The most immediately noticeable aspect of the car is how quickly it reacts. The new electric steering is light and yes, perhaps a bit vague in the feedback department, but it is very sharp. The fat, sculpted wheel is an extension of your forearms, the front tires just beyond your fingertips as the car follows a clean, precise line through the turns. There's none of the imprecision one felt when pushing the outgoing car to the limit, though there is a bit of understeer, something Becker plans to address by tweaking the car's new torque-vectoring differential, which will vary brake pressure left-to-right, adding an extra bit of agility.

And what about the engine? First of all, it sounds very good indeed. It isn't quite as operatic as the DB9’s 6.0-liter V-12, but if anything it's more fierce, and the ever-so-slight whistle of the turbos just adds more purpose. There's no digital trickery going on here, nor any extra pipes to duct noise into the cabin. In fact, Aston will offer a "Quiet Start" mode, muting the exhaust for more stealthy getaways. This is something of a necessity considering the DB11 is the first Aston Martin with automatic stop/start, cutting down on fuel wasted while idling. It'd be no good blowing out the windows of the cars around you every time you pull away from a light.

Power is indeed strong and there's no proper turbo lag as such, but the power delivery is a bit uneven at times, with an occasional dip in oomph felt in the middle of the rev range. Hopefully this gets ironed out as the car goes through its final testing.

The overall impression is doubtlessly a thrilling one, especially for such a big car designed to cover big miles in all seasons. The turn-in is eager and the grip fierce, though the rear is more than willing to step out with little prompting. Even with the traction control on and set to track mode, giggle-inducing slides are all too easy.

