A Used Aston Martin DB9 Is A Gorgeous V12 GT From Just £30k

We recently took a look at the rather lovely Aston Martin Vanquish Carbon Edition, and while it looks stunning, the styling isn’t all that far away from the DB9, which has itself looked pretty much the same since it was introduced in 2004.

Because it’s been around a while, all those years of depreciation have made earlier examples reasonably inexpensive. With prices starting at just £30,000, it’s a relatively affordable way to get those gorgeous Aston looks and that classy badge on the bonnet. Compared to the £200k Vanquish Carbon, which looks similar and has a newer version of the same V12 under the bonnet, that’s a bargain.

For £30k, you’ll get one of these gorgeous coupes, with a leather festooned interior and a sonorous 6.0-litre V12 under the bonnet, powering the rear wheels. The V12 has some rather humble origins - it’s essentially made up of two Ford Duratec V6s stuck together - but Ford worked together with Cosworth on the design while the Blue Oval still owned Aston, and the result was a beaut.

The naturally-aspirated 12-pot is good for 450bhp and 442lb ft of torque, which will get the DB9 from 0-62mph in 4.9 seconds, and on to a top speed of 186mph.

It’s an evolution of the same V12 found in the older DB7, but engine aside, the DB9 presented a huge leap forward compared to its predecessor. The DB9 was - and still is - built on an all-new aluminium chassis dubbed ‘VH,’ while the DB7 made do with the ancient steel underpinnings of the Jaguar XJS, which dates back to the 1970s.

It’s much more of a grand tourer than a sports car - if you want the latter, you’re better off looking at the V8 Vantage - but it’s a classy and thrilling way to waft around, with that magnificent V12 howling away under the bonnet and that beautiful coupe body stopping passers by in their tracks.

Of course, if you do have the spare capital to buy one of these, you can’t expect cheap running costs. Drive one like you should and you’ll only just scrape double figures for your average MPG, servicing isn’t cheap, and clutches tend to need replacing every 25-30,000 miles at a cost of around £3000.

However, choose your used DB9 carefully - making sure it’s been looked after and that the gearbox and clutch are in full working order - stick to independent specialists for servicing and budget carefully for maintenance, and you can run a very special car indeed. It’s a much better route into affordable Aston ownership than the old DB7, and you’ll be getting a car which will make you smile every time you look at it.

Interested? We found this one in the classifieds. It’s finished in Meteorite Metallic, setting it apart from the legions of silver DB9s out there, has a full service history and is up for £34,550.