You know that whole four-door coupe thing that's been going around? Well, most of them have been nothing of the sort. They were full-size sedans with a couple inches taken out of their roofs.
If there is such a thing as a four-door coupe, the 2010 Aston Martin Rapide is it. There are rear seats, but they're of the barely inhabitable type you might typically find in a true two-door. Of course, the Rapide has rear doors, too, but they, too, are a bit on the small side. Watching full-size adults crumple themselves into the backseats is almost comical and once they get in they are clearly not pleased to be there.
Its lack of room in back struck us as odd given that the Rapide is far from small. Its overall length of 197 inches makes it slightly longer than the Mercedes-Benz CLS and just shy of the sizable BMW 7 Series. It's wide, too, at just over 84-inches.
Size aside, the Rapide should at least perform like a coupe. It will come standard with a 470-horsepower V12 that sends power to the rear wheels. Aston Martin says the Rapide will be good for a 0-to-60-mph run of 5.1 seconds and a top speed of 188 mph. It rides on a suspension that uses double wishbones front and rear along with adaptive dampers. The brake system features six-piston calipers up front and four-piston calipers in back. A set of 20-inch wheels comes standard with Bridestone Poetenza tires sized 245/40R20 up front and 295/35 in back.
The 2010 Aston Martin Rapide goes on sale worldwide early next year.
notabigdeal says:
09:53 AM, 09/15/09
that is a tight back seat. Just looks like an extended weelbase DB9.
zoomzoomn says:
10:12 AM, 09/15/09
So if you are going to build a premium four door "coupe" should it not at least marginally accomodate two averaged (6' and under) sized adults? Even if entry and egress are awkward, you should at least be comfortable if not cozy once you are in.
fuhteng says:
10:23 AM, 09/15/09
Beautiful even with the big mouth, but it won't ever be a coupe! 295 tires on the back? Good lord!
cruiserhead1 says:
10:26 AM, 09/15/09
Beyonce's spandex just called from Frankfurt: it said, damn that's a tight fit!
mrryte says:
10:34 AM, 09/15/09
The guy in the back seat look like he's so cramped and uncomfortable.
rick8365 says:
11:07 AM, 09/15/09
+1 zoomzoom ..... I love Astons, I'm okay with the 4 door coupe thing and I think this car is beautiful but...the thought, or lack of, that went into that "backseat"....why bother building it?
iskch says:
11:55 AM, 09/15/09
Agree with zoomzoom. Even if I have the money I will opt for the coupe.
estreka says:
01:09 PM, 09/15/09
Kids only.
clarkma5 says:
01:42 PM, 09/15/09
What's the point of a 4-door, 4-seat Aston Martin that doesn't provide significantly more rear seat room than a DB9 except it costs more money and weighs more?
Silly...
zoomzoomn says:
10:10 AM, 09/16/09
Holy crap! Now that the pic with the poor bastard in the rear seat is posted...holy crap!!! This will surely go down as an absolute failure for Aston Martin. Why would you buy this?