Description
Highlights
* Rare Marron Black with Sandstorm and Bitter Chocolate trim
* Full main dealer history
* Full original Aston Martin Warranty till August 2025
* Original champagne flutes, umbrella and headphones
* Four-door, four-seater V12
The Appeal
Aston Martin revisited a name from its glorious past when it unveiled the Rapide at the 2009 Detroit Motor Show.
Built as a rival to the likes of the Porsche Panamera and Maserati Quattroporte, the Rapide used a name previously used on Lagonda models and built in the same spirit – as a four-door luxury saloon with supercar-rivalling performance.
It was based on an extended DB9 platform, with Aston Martin’s in-house developed 5, 935cc V12 engine and digitised ‘Touchtronic’ automatic transmission, initially as a six-speed model and later a much stronger eight-speed.
Originally, it was built at a dedicated plant at the Magna Steyr facility in Graz, Austria and the factory planned to build 2, 000 cars per year, but production was relocated to England in 2012 after sales didn’t meet production targets.
This one is a UK-made eight-speed model, first registered to Aston Martin itself as a press and marketing demonstrator in March 2015, with two private keepers since. It comes with a full service history from main dealers and was most recently maintained by Aston Martin Works Service last summer, less than 1, 400 miles ago.
It’s an appealing car by its very nature, but is made even more desirable by virtue of its fantastic Marron Black paintwork – a very dark brown that looks black in flat light, but with a chestnut-coloured sparkle to the paint finish. The striking exterior is offset by a colour-coded cabin, with Sandstone leather and Bitter Chocolate trim. It’s a lovely thing, presented in fabulous overall condition
NO DEALERS PLEASE - Only PRIVATE Clients
Although it’s a four-door, the Rapide’s delicate features carry off the saloon car styling flawlessly – it looks every inch a sports car, with the narrow glass area and kicked-up C-pillars managing to retain a well-balanced Grand Tourer profile thanks to the striking talent of Aston Martin’s designer, Marek Reichmann.
The colour, meanwhile, is stunning. The brown element to the almost black finish is unusual but impeccably stylish, whilst the two-tone brown interior sets of the exterior beautifully, as do the immaculate diamond cut alloys and Aston Martin-branded brake callipers.
Inside, it’s snug – less spacious than a Panamera, for example, but equally more like a sports car, which is every bit core to Aston Martin’s DNA. The Sandstone leather is virtually unmarked, the Bitter Chocolate highlights equally so, and the Alcantara headlining and brushed alloy controls complement it all beautifully. It’s an exquisite car in terms of its styling and finish – and moreover in its condition.
The Mechanics
* 5, 935cc V12
* 550bhp
* 0-60mph in 4. 8 secs
* 202mph top speed
* Amazing V12 soundtrack
* Touchtronic eight-speed transmission in perfect order
* Drives perfectly
* Main dealer maintained with seven service stamps
* Most recently serviced at Aston Martin Works Service, Newport Pagnell, at 29, 116 miles in May 2023
A genuine 30, 400-mile car, the Rapide has been subject to main dealer servicing for all of its life, initially by Aston Martin itself then by main dealers in Essex and Warsaw, where it spent part of its life. In May 2023, it was subject to a major service by Aston Martin Works Service in Newport Pagnell, the home of Aston Martin, and it has covered fewer than 1, 400 miles since.
It starts on the button, runs flawlessly and sounds amazing, with incredible acceleration and a near-silent idle.
