Beschreibung:

It's not by any means the world's most expensive drophead in production (the Corniche costs an extra £23,000) nor is it quite the quickest, though a Porsche Cabrio would have to be very well driven to get away from it, but the Aston Martin Volante is perhaps the greatest. It is a true sports car which is also luxuriously comfortable.' - Fast Lane. Aston Martin had always intended the DBS to house its new V8 engine, but production difficulties meant that the car first appeared with the DB6's 4.0-litre six. Bigger and more luxuriously appointed than the DB6, the heavyweight DBS disappointed some by virtue of its slightly reduced performance, but there were no complaints when the V8 finally arrived in 1969. With an estimated 315bhp available from its 5,340cc four-cam motor, the DBS V8 could reach 100mph in under 14 seconds, running on to a top speed of 160mph, a staggering performance in those days and one which fully justified the claim that it was the fastest production car in the world. After Aston Martin's acquisition by Company Developments in 1972, production resumed with the Series 2, now known as the Aston Martin V8 and distinguishable by a restyled front end recalling the looks of earlier Astons. The most successful Aston Martin ever, the V8 survived the changes of ownership and financial upheavals of the 1970s, enjoying a record-breaking production run lasting from 1969 to 1988, with 2,919 cars sold. Described by former Aston Martin Chairman Victor Gauntlett as, 'a stylish thoroughbred, beautifully built, luxurious, fast and immensely safe,' the V8 was built in several variants, one of the more exclusive being the Volante convertible. Introduced in response to customers' demands for such a car, the Volante first appeared in June 1978. Arguably the ultimate in soft-top luxury, the newcomer boasted a lined, power-operated hood which, when erected, endowed the walnut embellished interior with all the solidity and refinement associated with the saloon version. Although its open-car aerodynamics meant that top speed suffered with the hood down, the Volante's 150mph maximum nevertheless ranked it among the world's fastest convertibles. In January 1986 original, carburettor-equipped Volante was superseded by the Weber fuel-injected Series 2 version. The latter is one of the rarer and more exclusive V8s, only 172 being built against the 438 of the preceding model. V8 Volante and Vantage Volante chassis numbers ran from '15001' to '15849', a total of 849 cars. Finished in dark blue with dark blue-piped light blue interior, this Series 2 Volante currently displays a total of 27,798 kilometres on the odometer and is offered with numerous invoices and cancelled Swiss registration documents. Duty will be liable if the car remains within the EU. « Ce n'est sûrement pas le cabriolet de production le plus cher du monde (la Corniche coûte 23 000 livres de plus), ni le plus rapide - un pilote de Porsche Cabrio devra pourtant cravacher pour la semer -, mais l'Aston Martin Volante est probablement la plus grande. C'est une vraie sportive qui offre aussi un confort luxueux. » Fast Lane. Aston Martin avait toujours eu l'intention de doter la DBS de son nouveau moteur V8, mais des problèmes de mise en production expliquent que la voiture fit son apparition avec le six-cylindres 4 litres de la DB6. Plus grande et plus luxueusement équipée que celle-ci, la lourde DBS déçut quelque peu en raison de ses performances légèrement inférieures, mais les critiques s'éteignirent lors de l'arrivée du V8 en 1969. Avec une puissance estimée à 315 ch obtenue de son moteur à 4 ACT de 5 340 cm3, la DBS V8 pouvait atteindre 160 km/h en moins de 14 secondes et accélérer jusqu'à sa vitesse maximale de 260 km/h environ, une performance exceptionnelle à cette époque suffisant à justifier sa revendication du titre de plus rapide voiture de production du monde. Après le rachat d'Aston Martin par Company Developments en 1972, la production reprit avec la série 2 appe