Aston Martin, generally, makes good looking cars - and we reckon most would agree. By that same token, Italian coach builder has had a good run of producing quite fetching and unquestionably exclusive hand made versions of these British grand tourers over the years.
With their latest creation, one based on the flagship V12-powered DBS Superleggera model and part of the DBZ Centenary collection, which celebrates 60 years of collaboration, it’s possible that they’ve missed the mark. And yet, each example of the DBS GT Zagato will be priced even higher than the previous modern Zagato-bodied Aston: the Vanquish Zagato (in both Coupe and Shooting Brake form).
Unveiled at an event in the relatively tiny American state of Rhode Island, the car was shown off alongside a special continuation series of the DB4 Zagato - arguably one of the most beautiful cars ever made. The contrast isn’t doing the former any favours.
Looks are indeed a subjective mater, but in this writer’s opinion, the bright red (called Supernova Red, aptly) car simply overdoes it with its full width maw with foldable honeycomb slats at the front, the loud multi-spoke 3D-machined wheels finished in gold and 18-carat badging, along with the retina-searing interior.
By comparison, though its body is painted in the same bright scarlet, the DB4 Continuation looks dignified and restrained, embodying the qualities we associate most with Aston Martins. In its shadow, this DBS-based looks amateurish and try-hard.
A redeeming feature of most Zagato-bodied Astons from 1960 is their unique ‘double bubble’ roof, which in the DBS GT Zagato’s case, is a single curved and opaque panel that effectively replaces the windscreen, reducing rearward visibility to basically nothing. Genius.
However, if you’ve some £6 million to spare and simply must own 1 out of the 19 examples Zagato plans to produce, the Italian company will be happy to humour your inquiry - assuming they’re not all already sold. Each purchase is a package deal, so you will be getting the far prettier DB4 Zagato Continuation as well. Regardless, first examples are due to be delivered by the end of the year.
Earlier, we touched briefly on the cabin’s colour scheme, but the details Zagato have lavished upon the trimmings are indeed something to behold. Complementing the red leather interior surfaces are textured gold inserts, comprising much of the transmission tunnel and centre stack accents. Even the HVAC controls are intricately 3D-machined, taking approximately 100 hours to print and properly coat.
Luckily, the DBS GT Zagato isn’t all about cosmetic changes. As surprising as it is, the car receives an uprated version of Aston Martin’s 5.2-litre twin-turbocharged V12, now producing 567kW (a 33kW increase over the DBS Superleggera). There aren’t any numbers to accompany this upgrade, so it’s hard to say whether performance is impacted positively.
For more on Aston Martin cars, check out our Showroom.
