All change at Aston Martin

New boss Andy Palmer intends the DB11 to be the backbone of the company’s new range. As such, it will address areas in which the DB9 it replaces has fallen behind the times. It will be cleaner but more powerful, and bigger proportions will allow it to have a true four-seater cabin

In terms of its appearance, the DB11 takes cues from this year’s DBX crossover and 2013’s CC100 concepts. You won’t mistake it for a DB9 – though you’ll know without a second look that it’s an Aston Martin.

Aston has forged a partnership with Mercedes’ AMG operation over the last couple of years, and it’s expected that the German outfit will provide engines for the DB11 – possibly in addition to a totally reworked version of the DB9’s V12. Gearbox options are set to include a six-speed manual – a return to Aston’s sportier roots after the auto-only DB9.

The chassis won’t borrow from AMG, but will instead be freshly engineered in-house. This means it will be available to Aston for use on future models – here’s an outline of what those are going to be:

2017: DB11 Volante

The DB11 will gain a soft-top option a year or so after going on sale. This will be the headline story in the first round of model revisions – though if it coincides with new engines from AMG, they’ll be jostling for top spot too.

2018: Vantage

Powered by the same engines as the DB11, the Vantage will be the closest thing to a production version of the DB10 – whose only customer was James Bond. Like the DB11, it will be built in coupe and drop-top form.

2019-2020: DBX

Luxury performance crossovers are massive news for manufacturers like Aston, so the DBX is crucial to its future plans. Aston revealed a concept version at this year’s Geneva show.

2019-2020: Rapide replacement

Aston is expected to launch a larger, roomier luxury saloon car to replace the Rapide. It’s possible that the Lagonda name will be brought back for this vehicle.

2020: Vanquish

Like the DB11 and Vantage, the range-topping Vanquish will be available in fixed-head or ragtop form. Despite being last in line for replacement, the current model is unlikely to have to soldier on much past the end of this decade.