Aston Martin Rapide
Jeremy Clarkson recently reviewed the Rapide in The Times and spent much of his word count talking about bicycles in Holland. For the life of me, I cannot understand why he didn’t use that precious space to explain in more detail just why the Rapide is the finest and best looking true four-seater performance car money can buy.
Aston’s logic with the Rapide is to move beyond the strict 2-seater supercar appeal of its current line-up as there are many who love the marque but want something more in tune with their day-to-day lifestyle. So it’s aimed at men (and women) who don’t want marriage and family to undermine their love of driving.
Aston are keen that the Rapide, while appealing to a wider audience, should not disappoint purists. To achieve this they’ve had to overcome a couple of major practical problems: how to physically accommodate the extra seats and space in a body befitting of Aston Martin and how to provide a supercar driving experience alongside reasonable levels of comfort for all occupants and with a longer wheelbase.
On the first point – wow! The Rapide is achingly beautiful and, I believe, the most attractive Aston of the lot which is saying something. The Rapide’s designers have used the extra length as an opportunity to create an elegant rear quarter that’s the perfect counterpoint to that long bonnet and a roofline that gently slopes away to subtly hide the extra seats. Perfect.
On the second point, the Rapide has something of a split personality, in the nicest way. Active suspension that instantly adapts to the prevailing road-surface and driving conditions makes any journey comfortable, composed and refined. With the active suspension on and the sports setting off the Rapide is very easy to live with and soaks up bumps extremely well. Turn the active suspension off and the sports setting on and you could quite happily take the Rapide on a track-day – limpet-like grip, sharper responses, higher revving etc. The ideal setting though is with both on – it suits the car perfectly. In all setting configurations the Rapide is beautifully balanced and poised through the bends and the steering is ideally weighted, precise and involving. I’d go so far as to say its fluency makes it a better drive than most supercars.
Whether pootling or hoofing it, the 5.9-litre, 477bhp, V12 engine is magnificent in all respects – sound, response, power, flexibility, you name it - and it will hurtle you to 60 in 5secs and on to 184mph. The sound in particular, though muted at low revs, progresses to a glorious deep roar when unleashed. The gearbox, a 6 speed auto with paddles for manual changes, changes seamlessly.
But I guess the big question is does the cabin, or the rear seats to be precise, cut the mustard. I’m over 6ft and ample of girth so having hopped out of the driver’s seat I was sceptical that I’d fit in the back, but I was wrong. Admittedly, it was snug but not unreasonably so, and certainly OK for a couple of hours but a skinny teenager or shorter adult should have no problems with much longer journeys. Furthermore, I didn’t have any problems getting in or out and there’s also a genuinely useful boot accessible via a hatchback. The cabin itself has been generously sprinkled with Aston Martin’s magic dust and the materials, finish and ambience are truly special, particularly so the retro instruments.
If I had the money, I’d buy one tomorrow.
Top Speed: 186 mph
0-62:5.2 secs
£139,950
Mazda 3 MPS
On public roads it's not really practical or responsible to push a car, particularly a high performance car, close to its limits. Which basically means you don't know what a car, or you as a driver, are truly capable of. Nor do you get to experience the thrill of driving on the edge. So, when Victoria Park Mazda offered to let us loose around Llandow race-track in the latest incarnation of their stupendously powerful (270bhp) Mazda 3 MPS hatch, we leapt at the chance. Time for a white-knuckle ride.
But first a 'gentle' warm up to familiarise ourselves with the track and the car. After a lap or two with our instructor (a successful BTCC driver) at the helm to show how it should be done we swap seats. A couple of circuits and you get the hang of when to power on and off, when to break, what the right line is, where you can thrash it and where to be careful. The MPS for its part seems comfortable, surefooted and actually quite refined for a car of its type. The steering's nicely weighted, power delivery is smooth and the gearbox nice and sweet. For the record it's spacious and extremely well specced too with a long list of goodies including bluetooth, a blind-spot warning system and an awesome Bang and Olufsen sound system.
To business proper. The first thing that strikes you when you start reaching decent speeds is just how much intense concentration is needed and how tense you become as a result. No doubt, this eases the more practised you become but if you're constantly pushing yourself and the car as hard as possible it's always present, apparently, which must be knackering if you're doing it for a few hours, especially if it's on a track-full of cars trying outpace you.
After a while you start to relax, enjoy the rush and fully appreciate just how exceptional a good modern, reasonably priced (very, in this case) hot hatch is at speed. Thanks to a torque-sensing limited slip diff, its 270bhp is transferred well to the tarmac with minimal spin and fuss, engine response is instant and gratifying and it's indecently quick, especially when darting from corner to corner thanks to an immense 380Nm of torque. Grip is exceptional and confidence inspiring, balance is nicely neutral through the chicanes and the steering is very precise so you've no excuse for not hitting the apex just right.
So how did I and the car fair? Well, Jensen Button's got nothing to worry about – I'm competent at best. I didn't crash, leave the track or even spin but this was probably as much a result of the abilities of the MPS. Its power, cornering and braking prowess enabled me to lap at a fair old pace while its box of traction tricks subtly but effectively masked my indiscretions. As if to prove the point, an experienced driver in a sprint car went out on the circuit immediately after us and promptly spun off. If only he'd had the MPS.
Top speed: 155mph
0-62: 6.1secs
Price: £22,295
Hit the rapids