The DB12 Volante: The Icy Cool Cabriolet That Screams Desirability If you’re the type of individual who’s made it in life and just wants to splurge that makes you look cool and suave, for god’s sake, don’t try and be Schumacher or Senna and buy something from Ferrari or McLaren, because likely you’ll be cursing at how delicate and fragile those thoroughbreds are. Also don’t buy any Lamborghini, Bentley or Rolls-Royce because people will immediately compare you to 50 Cent and Wayne Rooney. They’ll call you vulgar and a show-off. But at the same time, brands like Mercedes and even Porsche are also not recommended as they don’t have the same kudos as most of the other high-performance brands. Maserati does but you’ve never heard of them and they’re going bankrupt, nor will you want the maintenance or stress of owning a Bugatti or a Pagani. Really there’s only one luxury brand that would suit you as just someone who wants to be admired and look cool. Aston Martin. Read More 2025 Aston Martin DB12 Goldfinger Edition: Celebrating 60 years of an Iconic Partnership But it’s important to note that you shouldn’t waste over $400,000 on a new Vanquish because you’ll never cope with its 820 horsepower nor to be too tight and buy the Vantage as that will be too hardcore for you. No the one you want is the DB12, the middle of the range. More specifically the Volante. In many ways, this car is universally appealing. It’s as beautiful to behold as Daisy Ridley, with its elongated bonnet, and perfectly proportioned rear. It’s a convertible so you can cruise with the wind in your hair and a roof that lowers and raises in around 14 seconds even at speeds of up to 31mph. Of course, put your foot down and it responds with sufficient get up and go. Its AMG-derived 4.0l twin-turbo V8 develops 671 horsepower, 590lb-ft of torque, will achieve 0-62mph in a modest 3.7 seconds and max out at an approachable 202mph. Not what you’d call mind-blowing performance but achievable. Plus with a 50:50 distribution and an 8-speed ZF it handles nicely and because the engine is built by the no-nonsense engineers at Mercedes instead of being mangled by blokes in Gaydon, it’s going to work endlessly. And at around $250,000 it’s not bad value either, though it will depreciate heavily if that’s too much for you. And of course, we mustn’t forget Aston Martin is the personal car of choice for the world’s most beloved spy James Bond. That certainly would beat looking like Hamilton or Kanye West or the Taxi, your dad drove. There’s no other brand with the same kudos as Aston and there never will be. And the DB12 Volante encapsulates that kudos perfectly. The Beautiful Palm Edition by Q Aston Martin’s Q Division is the brand's in-house bespoke customizer creating the most unique and bespoke liveries for Aston’s range, given the cars released at that moment. They launched a DB12 Goldfinger Edition and a Vantage AMV24 last year and now a DB12 Volante Palm Beach Edition this year. This car features a bespoke Frosted Blue Glass livery that uses real glass flakes in the topcoat to achieve a dazzling shimmer. A club sport white pinstripe highlights the car’s splitters, sills and rear bumper. This is perfectly contrasted by the Gloss Jet Black diamond-tuned five-spoke wheels. Inside we find a combination of Aurora Blue and Ivory on the leather with vivid Spicy Red contrast stitching. There’s a bespoke palm-leaf embroidery, found on seats, door panels, the centre armrest and even on the polished aluminium side strakes and sill plaques. Finally, there’s open-pore Linear Light Olive Ash wood trim and coordinates to Palm Beach on the Dashboard. The Q Division have crafted some beautifully designed cars in the past but the Palm Beach Edition DB12 Volante might just be the most beautiful combination of the livery with a car in history. Sadly it’s a one-off, only one will ever exist. Still, if you’re lucky, maybe one day, you can take the DB12 that suits you, for a custom livery at the Q Division. Because no doubt, you won’t be disappointed. Source: Aston Martin
