Jay Leno, host of his own eponymous talk show revolving around cars and car culture, invited Aston Martin design director Marek Reichman to his garage to speak about the new DB10, designed for the forthcoming James Bond film Spectre.
In the above video, we learn that the car points the way towards Aston Martin’s new design direction, which hasn’t evolved very much since the time Henrik Fisker was in charge of design for the British sports car manufacturer (then under Ford’s stewardship). New cars will retain the definitive Aston Martin ‘character’ but evolve as well, losing what Reichman refers to as a “positive wedge” to welcome a new “falling waistline”, which tapers off to the rear of the car.
The DB10 features massive rear haunches and a tapering DLO, which work to great effect in accentuating the car’s rear drive proportions and its ‘pouncing’ nature. The extremely low grille, which was inspired by sharks and is only fully visible when viewed straight on, is also a very aesthetically appealing element, while the exclusive diamond-turned directional wheels will also appear on forthcoming vehicles, Reichman says.
Aston Martin DB10 sketches by Sam Holgate
Inside, the DB10’s cabin is one of the most driver-focused of any Aston Martin to date, with a few subtle nods towards high-end couture, most notably on the center console, door panel and glovebox areas. The quadratic steering wheel is similar to that found on the limited edition Aston Martin One-77.
“We’ve designed the car thinking about future production,” says Reichman, noting that the designers worked closely with aerodynamicists throughout the entire design process to ensure optimum airflow over and through the car.
For this specific vehicle, however, Aston Martin’s designers worked closely with Sam Mendes, director of the Spectre film, to design the car. Elements such as the perforated hood were designed to be more discreet: “From a movie perspective, we didn’t want to have a strong graphic on the hood of the car as it’s driving,” says Reichman.
The DB10’s footprint is roughly identical to that of Porsche’s 911 (it’s built on an adapted Vantage platform), but given its width we’re betting the Turbo model rather than the Carrera. The body and elements such as the mirror stalks are made of carbon fiber, all sitting over a bonded aluminum chassis. Bond’s DB10 sources power from Aston Martin’s tried and true 4.7-liter V8 engine, which sends power to the rear wheels via a six-speed gearbox.
Watch the above video for more details on the Aston Martin DB10 and the new Bond film, Spectre, coming to theaters this week.
