Aston Martin DB12 review

This is a car inwardly transformed. The view forward is clean because the big centre screen doesn’t sit high and upright on the dash, but reclines below the vents. It’s less intrusive and vulgar, helps reorientate the cabin away from a tech focus into materials and quality.

But it’s also Aston’s first touchscreen, quick to react and not over-crowded with menus. And it’s all Aston’s own work. The design of the centre console, however, does seem to owe something to someone else: Porsche. It’s the toggle gearlever and sloping deck lined with buttons. More tactile here with rotary barrels for the temperature adjustment and volume, but definitely a nod in Stuttgart’s direction.

The ergonomics are vastly improved, there’s more storage, it’s less claustrophobic and the driving position, tucked down behind a pleasingly rounded steering wheel on a seat that’s so beautifully shaped there’s no earthly need for the optional carbon bucket, is perfect. You get in and marvel at how far Aston has moved the game on.

Tell me it’s as good for those in the back?

Can’t. It’s only suitable for pre-teens back there. But two of you will really enjoy this space, this atmosphere, the new materials and a richness of quality that Aston hasn’t previously achieved.

And the boot?

As we said earlier, it’s a bit awkward to use, because it’s not a full hatchback, just a small notch. Watch your back when lifting things in and out – it’s more awkward than it looks. And the wide, shallow 262-litre space isn’t much to get excited about.

Are there modes to play with?

Not in the boot, no. Sorry. Aston used to have little thumb switches on the steering wheel for the chassis and powertrain. Now there’s a dial in front of the gearlever toggle on the centre console. Press it for start/stop, twist it for modes from GT through to Sport+.

You can also spec a new Bowers & Wilkins 15-speaker, 1,170-watt hifi. We mostly let the engine do the singing, but this is a system worth having and using.

Is it an easy car to operate in daily driving?

As we’ve already said, long nose aside, it’s a relatively easy car to manage because it goes exactly where you point it. Operationally, the semi-haptic buttons on the steering wheel are a bit confusing at first, but there’s not too many options/modes/apps to deal with here. The biggest problem – certainly for the central screen – is that the icon and font sizes are a bit small.