DB9
The Aston Martin DB9 is a grand tourer launched by Aston Martin in 2004 and is the first new car to be built at Aston's Gaydon facility. The name "DB" stems from David Brown, the owner of Aston Martin for a sizeable part of its history. This model, which was designed by Ian Callum and finished by his successor, Henrik Fisker, superseded the now-discontinued Aston Martin DB7 (also by Callum) which started production in 1994. The Vanquish engine produces 10 bhp (7 kW) more. In fact, this V12 engine is why Aston Martin did not call the car the DB8, which could suggest that it has only eight cylinders. One report states that Aston Martin believed that this car was such a huge leap from the Jaguar XJ-S based DB7 that it named it DB9 instead of DB8, which they thought would indicate a gradual evolution. This car was designed to ensure Aston Martin's continued survival into 21st century in light of its past financial troubles. Traditionally being a maker of more exclusive automobiles, CEO, Dr. Ulrich Bez assures Aston loyalists' that production numbers of the new DB9 will be slightly higher than previous models, however the Aston will still retain a small statistical percentage of the high end sport's car market.The car has been adapted for sports car racing by Prodrive. The DBR9, as it was called, first raced at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2005 and won the LMGT1 category, but was beaten by arch-rivals Corvette Racing in the Le Mans GT1 class.In 2006, Aston Martin introduced a "Sports Pack"for the DB9, which includes increased structural stiffness, lighter 19-inch forged aluminium alloy wheels with titanium wheel nuts, lower (by 6mm) ride height, revised spring and damper rates and the like. This upgrade suits the more enthusiastic driver. Aston Martin's Rapide four-door sports car is heavily based on the DB9.
