Geneva is one of the world's great auto shows, if for no other reason than it's the place where Italy's design houses and coachbuilders --carrozzerie-- annually roll out their latest concept cars. This year, Aston Martin previewed the production version its voluptuous Vanquish (covered elsewhere in this issue). But that wasn't the only Aston on the show floor.
ItalDesign, and its father/son design duo Giorgetto and Fabrizio Giugiaro, unveiled this dazzling concept, called Twenty Twenty. Its main design brief was to create a high-performance luxury roadster around an aluminum space frame, while leaving those frame elements visible and crafting them into the bodywork. The cabin is also a study in naturally finished alloy, and what isn't metal is covered in butterscotch-colored Italian leather.
Most concept cars barely move, but our drive evidenced a fully functional, well-sorted machine. There's commendably little wind noise, even at 90-plus; amazing, as the car has never seen a wind tunnel. The modified Aston V-12 pulls hard and sounds wonderful, while the car handles at least as well as a production DB7. The best part? Blasting the James Bond theme on the CD player.
As the Twenty Twenty isn't an official Aston Martin design project, don't look for any sort of production version. What about the name? Simple: It's the term commonly used to describe perfect vision. And the Giugiaros clearly have good eyes.