2009 Aston Martin DB9 Volante

This Aston’s first owner sold this gorgeous DB9 Volante after a 13-year love affair less than a year ago. It was maintained regardless of cost by Aston Martin themselves throughout his ownership, and it was still showing only 19,000 miles on the odometer when they parted company.

The second owner bought the car last October and has covered very few miles in it – just 350 in fact, so the current mileage is still under 20,000.

Finished in black with black leather, it’s been used across the UK and Europe including a road trip to Italy and back, a journey the first owner remembers with great fondness, even now.

A main dealer service in August 2022 rated it as being ‘green’ in all areas, which means it’s ready to thrill and delight its lucky new owner.

The DB9 is one of the all-time great designs and black suits it very well. Of course, black is also the most unforgiving of all colours, mercilessly highlighting every dink, scratch and flaw, so the fact this one looks as good as it does says a lot about its condition.

As you can see, the folding roof does a carefully coordinated dance to furl and unfurl, adding a touch of theatre to a car that’s not exactly lacking dramatic impact in the first place.

It seals well, and is so well engineered it turns the Volante into a very effect coupé, making the DB9 a peerless all-season, all-weather grand touring sports car. The condition is good too, including the light grey headlining.

The huge 19-inch alloy wheels are fitted with matching Bridgestone Potenza tyres on all four corners, all of which have good tread left on them.

Faults are few. There is the usual smattering of stone chips that every car collects over the years, and the front alloy wheels could do with refurbishing as they’ve collected some scuffs in addition to the odd patch of lifting lacquer.

The front seats are in fine shape. Still as supportive and comfortable as they were the day they were installed, they perfectly blend luxury and athleticism and only very light creasing gives their age away.

The rear seats are very usable, something the first owner often put to the test during weekend sailing trips on the south coast with his two children. He admits they did begin to grumble a bit when they reached double digits, leaving him to choose between leaving them behind or taking a different car: “it was a close-run decision!” he admits.

The carpets, door cards, and dashboard all reflect the DB9’s low mileage and careful curation and have almost no signs of wear.

The instrument cluster is a thing of beauty; minimalist in design, we especially enjoyed watching the counter-rotating rev counter. It’s little touches like this that make the DB9 (and indeed any modern Aston Martin) such a lovely car to own.

The original Smartire tyre pressure monitoring system is still in place, as is the factory wind diffuser which makes for ruffle-free motoring at surprisingly high speeds.

The boot, which is clean and well-organised, is home to the warning triangle, umbrella, tool kit, and emergency tyre inflation kit.

Of course, this isn’t a brand-new car so the interior does have the odd mark here and there but there’s no damage and it presents very well.

The V12 fires into life with alacrity, and revs and ticks over as it should. Of course, it also sounds wonderful and the first owner sums it up very well: “The car is a wonderful grand tourer. Our best trip was to Venice and back via the Italian lakes and Villa D’Este. What can beat mountain roads with the hood down and the wonderful growl of the V12?”

As for the DB9’s mechanical condition, please see the health check that Aston Martin undertook in August 2022 when it last serviced it; as you can see, it passed with flying colours.

As far as art goes, we think this engine bay has got to be one of the nicest of any modern car. Beautifully designed and as contemporary as the rest of the Aston’s construction, details like the gorgeous oil filler cap lie at the heart of how special the DB9 is, and the care with which it was (hand) built.

Both the engine bay and underside are very well presented and a credit to the craftsmen and women who’ve looked after it so diligently.

The DB9 comes with a thick file of invoices demonstrating its money-no-object maintenance since day one, largely by Aston Martin Works with only the odd service being completed by an AM main dealer.

MoT’d until September 2024, it won’t come as any surprise to learn that it gained its latest ticket without drawing a single adverse comment from the tester. It also comes with a number of expired MoT certificates.

The original Aston Martin book pack is present and the recent Vehicle History Check is clean.

The service history for this Aston Martin DB9 is as follows:

• 08/9/10 - Serviced at 4,075 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

• 23/09/11 - Serviced at 7,996 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

• 22/08/12 - Serviced at 10,125 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

• 27/08/13 - Serviced at 11,883 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

• 26/04/14 - Serviced at 13,601 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

• 02/10/15 - Serviced at 14,697 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

• 03/08/17 - Serviced at 16,286 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

• 08/10/18 - Serviced at 17,285 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

• 09/10/19 - Anti-corrosion inspection

• 27/05/21- Serviced at 17,987 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

• 30/08/2022 - Serviced at 18,975 miles with anti-corrosion inspection

The current owner bought the car after his heart told him he should. Sadly, his head has since argued and came out on top, so he’s reluctantly parting company with it. He says:

‘I bought the car as it’s the third Volante I’ve owned. I sold the first two as I was due to move abroad, which didn’t happen. But we’ve now decided to downsize our house and the new one doesn’t have a garage.

‘It has an interesting number plate, OO07AJF, which are the original owner’s initials. I’ve just had the plate valued at £1,000. I haven’t really driven the car anywhere special as I haven’t had time. I’ve been out of the country quite a lot which is another reason for selling it – I simply don’t do the miles I used to do.

‘It’s in great condition for its age with incredibly low mileage. The local garage where I just had it MoT’d last week were tempted to buy it! I’ve added an Aston Martin fitted rain cover and a trickle charger, which is about £900 worth of extras.

‘Personally I think the car is fabulous. It drives like new and, as I said, I’ve had three of them.’

The DB9 is every inch the modern Aston Martin. Beautifully built and utterly gorgeous, its cutting-edge engineering and design is wrapped around one of the best engines in the business.

And yet, for all its many attractions its price remains stubbornly constant, something that surely can’t continue for much longer. This is, after all, a hand-built British convertible with a V12 under the bonnet and supercar performance.

With a guide price of between £39,000 and £45,000, this example has an awful lot to commend it; finished in a wonderfully discreet colour combination and boasting an impressively OTT service history, we can’t think of a single reason not to buy it.

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