2012 Aston Martin Virage Volante Review

2012 Aston Martin Virage Volante Review

Prior to 1964, unless you were a die hard sports car aficionado, most Americans had never heard of Aston Martin.  Then the James Bond movie Goldfinger came out, and almost overnight, everyone in the world knew what an Aston Martin was.  The DB5 used in the movie became the most recognizable and talked about car on the planet. For the movie, it came equipped with all manner of spy gadgets including a GPS tracking screen, machine guns, oil slick sprayer, nail spreader and smoke screen, extendable spinner wheel knock-offs, bullet proof shield, and a red button located on the gear shift knob to activate the passenger ejector seat. 

For the times, that DB5 was about as good as it got for powerful British sports cars.  It boasted 282 horsepower from its 6 cylinder motor, and would scoot to 60 miles per hour in 8.6 seconds and reach a top speed of 135 miles per hour.  And while you could buy Fords new top of the line Mustang, (which also appeared in that film as a victim of those extendable spinner knock-offs) for about $3,000, the DB5 would set you back about 13 Grand!

The 2012 Aston Martin Virage Volante, which slots in between their the DB9 and top of the line DBS model, is filled with all manner of amenities and gadgets which even James Bond couldn’t have imagined, including a real pop-up navigation screen, but it lacks the anti-personnel features of the DB5 movie car. Today, all one has to do is depress the accelerator pedal, and unleash the 490 horsepower from its 6-Liter V-12 engine, which scoots from zero to 60 in only 4.6 seconds, and then keep charging up to the top speed of 183 miles per hour, to leave anyone chasing you in the dust.  It’s much simpler and even more fun.