First thing that needs to be stated is that this car, a rare DB6 Mark 2 Volante is not a factory replica such as the continuation DB4GT, DB4GT Zagato or the Bond spec DB5’s. This is a genuine old Aston Martin that has had it’s 4 litre straight 6 engine exchanged for an electric motor, control system and battery pack. So, whatever lawmakers throw at old, thirsty and polluting Aston Martins, the technology now exists to keep them on the road, guilt free.

What is neat is that the conversion is fully reversible. At anytime, the owner can have all the fancy electrical equipment removed and the conventional powertrain reinstalled.

So far, the EV Volante is acting as a testbed for the technology although in the near future (maybe 2020), the system will be made available to other DB’s, V8’s and Lagonda’s. Aston Martin Works are claiming the weight of the EV power pack and output are a  match for the 282 bhp straight 6 so the suspension and brakes are unchanged. No word on performance as yet but given time and the inevitable march of technology, there is no reason to believe that the electric conversion should match and even exceed that of the original petrol car. Works are a little tight-lipped about the tech but it is believed it owes quite a bit to that used in Aston Martin’s first production EV, the RapideE, the first Aston Martin built in Wales.

Sadly the car is almost silent in operation. Despite keeping the exterior look absolutely as standard, the wonderful sound of the petrol engine is lost. You could of course have this replicated but it would be maybe a tad tasteless.