When you love Aston Martin DB7s as much as we do it can be hard to pick a favourite. You could say it’s a bit like picking your favourite child. If you think that’s going a bit far then you’ve probably never driven one of these wonderful cars! Despite the classic nature of Aston Martins and the fact they have maintained a timeless aesthetic through the years, there has been enough in the way of variations for us to be able to pick and choose those subtle differences that might make us opt for one DB7 over another.
Performance
In terms of being something beautiful to look at, the pick of the bunch has surely got to be the early i6, while in terms of the engine, the Vantage V12 has got the edge. We’re probably on the record somewhere as pointing out that, in terms of performance – that is the numbers set down in black and white on the page – there doesn’t really seem to be that much difference between the two cars where the power figures are concerned. What we’d say in response to that is that you have to have a look at the figures ‘under the curve’.
And what does ‘under the curve’ mean? Well, because we specialise in Aston Martins you might be excepting us to go into great and (let’s be honest) fairly tedious technical detail at this point. However, what we’d say is that it’s all about acceleration. In simple terms, when you put your foot down in a Vantage V12 it feels faster; it gets up and gets there quicker. Now, that’s not to say you can’t put your foot down in an i6 on the motorway because you can, and when you do it’ll hit a pretty impressive speed. The difference is that the V12 will hit that same impressive speed and it will do it more quickly and it will feel much easier.
Colour Palette
Since we’re picking favourites it’s probably sensible to have a bit of a think about the kind of colour we’d prefer in an Aston Martin DB7. When you consider the older i6s you can look back and see that people used to be able to choose them in a whole range of colours, including green, blue and red. All of that started to change when they introduced the Vantage, which was the start of the switch to cars becoming silver or grey. Now, there’s probably a school of thought which states that muted, understated colours like this are more stylish and timeless but, let’s be honest, they’re nowhere near as much fun, and fun is a big part of owning an Aston Martin. A lot of the thinking behind the understated colour schemes is, in all probability, aimed toward corporate resale, whereas the older i6 tends to be a car that people hold onto for longer. We’ve been providing regular servicing for Aston Martin owners who’ve been driving the same i6 for 17 years and still get a terrific buzz out of getting behind the wheel.
Before the switch to a more restrained palette, it was possible to get the i6 in a colour called Mendip Blue, which is a dark metallic blue. It was a popular choice of colour for many Aston Martin buyers and it still looks really good when you find an older car and clean it up properly. The same is true of the deep, metallic red that they used to offer. Likewise, if there was an option for a more dynamic interior colour than simple black or magnolia, people tended to choose it.
Manual or Auto?
Another variation which has, at some points, been a trifle contentious, is the switch from manual to an automatic gearbox. When this first started happening there was a sense that an auto wasn’t really a ‘driver’s car’, and this was probably down to two reasons. The first was that the auto gearboxes back in days gone by weren’t of the quality they are now with sharper, quicker gear changes etc. The second was that the manual cars at the time had a Tremec gearbox, which combined a fantastically engineered gearbox with a great driving experience. Back then we would have preferred the manual, but the experience of driving an automatic now has improved so much that we’d opt for auto every time. This switch probably started with the Vantage V12, which offers the kind of auto driving experience that means you don’t even think of switching back to manual. Put simply, the gearbox lets the engine work properly, and the later models also have shifting paddles on the steering wheel, which you can use to change the gear easily if you feel like really letting rip with the acceleration.
One final variation is the Volante which, like most convertibles, originally cost more than a fixed head or saloon model. Any price difference now, though, if you prefer a convertible, is likely to be dictated by factors like the service history and mileage.
Put all of this together and it’s possible to see that the Aston Martin DB7, which is fantastic no matter how it’s presented, does come with a few pleasing variations which make it possible to prefer one model, era or particular vehicle over another. We would find it pretty difficult to choose, to be honest, but making up your mind is all part of the fun.
