Anyone on board who has one of these rare models? I am trying to get first hand feedback about this tranny and likes and dislikes?
TIA

 

I own a DBS with a manual and before that I had a DB9 with a manual.. they are very similar. I absolutely LOVE the manual transmission in these cars. The shifter is amazing and feels great in your hand. The gear ratios feel dead on to me. If I was going to complain about anything..it would be that the clutch is a bit tough to get used to. It doesn't start to "grab" until you are quite a ways up in the pedal travel. It's not a "problem" but it takes a bit of getting used to. I actually took it to the dealer to have it looked at because I thought it was an indication of wear..but they said it's normal and since then I have driven a couple other DB's with 3 pedals and they all feel the same. Just something you should expect..past that it's awesome! DO IT! They are also starting to creep up in value which is nice.

 

I would consider it a so-so trans. Shifting needs to be deliberate; too fast and you may get the wrong gear. I would prefer it as an SSM like the Vantage. It needs fresh fluid for the best changes; gets worse over time as the gears shear the additives. When cold, shifting from 1st to 2nd is nigh on impossible until warmed up. Good strategy is to skip 2nd and go to directly to 3rd.

And to add to the post above, the clutch pedal does grab high resulting in you having to lift your heel off the floor. Once you do that, modulation becomes difficult especially when trying to get moving in first. Also first is too tall, further making leaving from a stop tricky (expect stalling until you get a good feel for it) and reverse is worse...you never get used to how tall it is and you will stall it whenever you use it for the first time (backing up a slight incline is to be avoided at all costs).

 

I just put 2k miles on a DB9 manual in the last month. All types of driving, commuting in bay area traffic, long highway trips and even some track time at Thunderhill. The shifter is garbage. Its a simple cable linkage that feels mushy. You need to be slow and deliberate with your shifts. If you bang shifts you could dislodge the ball and socket at the transmission leaving you stranded. The clutch and accelerator have very little feel. The clutch point is also very high so it makes actuation very difficult if you just want to slip it (like if you need to reverse uphill carefully while parking in San Francisco).

Probably the worst shifter I've felt but would I trade it for an automatic? Never in a million years.

The transmission itself is pretty solid you. Doesn't like to shift when cold. Gear ratios are all very close.

EDIT: DB9 manuals are much rarer than DBS manuals.

 

Drive a DBS (Volante) Manual for several years now and imho it is much more involving than the same car with TouchTronic. Even waiting for a better transmission in the new DBSS before I take the plunge for a new one (see my experiences of the new DBSS in other threads).

Since the V12 has enormous torque, you can drive it in 3 when you want to cruise around town, but if you really want to drive more sporty, shift it, and that goes very smooth imho, even at lower temps. Don't know if there is a big difference between the DBS gearbox and the DB9 gearbox in this respect, but maybe others will chime in on that.

There was one major service bulletin related to this Graziano gearbox, so check if this has been done before buying!

 

A DBS with a Manual is THE WAY to go! The tranny is very well made and with that solid aluminum DBS Shifter (I have one in my manual DB9 thanks to @speedracer800 it's like buttah! It is a little finicky when cold. When warm, I have no problem working the gears when I want to get on it, however, keep in mind that it is a high performance GRAND TOURING car, not a track star. If you want the latter, get a 911 Turbo with a manual.

FWIW, YMMV.

Jim

 

A future classic for sure. Try to find one with B&O they are rare on manuals. The B&O was designed specifically for the DBS but was not ready in time, Up to chassis no. 743 they are equipped with the Alpine Premium and from no 754 onward B&O. that means a very few manual have the B&O since almost every DBS sold from late 2009 where touchtronic.

 

Indeed the B&O looks great (especially when the front tweeters raise from the dash), this was introduced almost at the same time as the TT gearbox, after which not many manuals were sold. But.........the Premium (Alpine) audio system is not that bad at all, in fact, it has less compression/DSP filtering/etc than the B&O setup, and I would not mind going for that option when available!

 

An Outstanding acquisition (if and when you find one). I have a 2009 DBS Touchtronic and although 6 speed manual is preferred; any Aston DBS experience will be exquisite. Great endeavors in your DBS searching = 100%

 

Whenever I discover the chick I just "successfully" picked up is a tranny I dislike it. Whilst I don't like it, if I'm inebriated enough, I'll just go along with it...

 

My biggest complaint of the manual is the shifter **** gets crazy hot in the sun!

 

This was my experience as well....I’ve had both a manual and the paddle shifter DBS. The manual shifting I remember was quite smooth as far as the shifter was considered...a nice click into the slot. The actual clutch wasn’t too heavy and quite driveable for daily driving.
my 2nd DBS was the touchtronic and the shifting was fine, not dual clutch feel but I like SCT feel anyhow.

 

It's not an SCT; conventional torque converter automatic.

 

Agree, B&O is not crucial to the feeling of being one with the car which is what´s it all about with a manual transmission, the sound of the brutal naturally aspirated v12 is still the music you want to listen to. B&O is amazing but just the extra spice to this masterpiece of a car, timeless!

 

Since I bought my DB9 I have not turned the radio on, preferring instead to listen to the V12 exhaust note.