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These are the first official images of the Aston Martin Rapide super-saloon, released ahead of its launch this autumn.

Based on a long-wheelbase DB9 chassis and powered by a 480bhp, 6.0-litre V12, the £140k Aston Martin Rapide should slot between the DB9 and DBS in the company’s range. It will have a six-speed ZF auto with Aston’s Touchtronic control.

These CAD images show a production car very faithful to the concept shown at Detroit in 2006.

The exaggerated styling line ru...Read the full article

Looks odd. The rear doors look more like hatches than full doors. Perhaps this puts the Porsche Panamera in context. Yes it's an ugly duckling but the doors look proportionate and the rear offers full adult seats, in a 4.97m total length.

I fear for the success of this car; neither fish nor fowl.

WOW!

Want one.   To complete the collection.....

Too big and yet not big enough...  not quite right.  Timing is the essence of comedy.

This is somewhat of a disappointment, hardly as striking as the concept and looks bulky. And a 5m car that can only seat teens in the rear? And that family front-end looks plain boring now, and at odds with the rest of the car.

Maybe Porsche are onto something with the Panamera. And worse for Aston, I don't think their new saloon is gonna worry the Quattroporte one bit - and that car is nearly 5 years old now.

To me this just does not look right in that the CAD image does not correspond to the mule in some crucial details. I mean, I can see how the front and rear bumpers can be changed, but if you look at the hatch opening it goes straight in the CAD image, while the prototype has a wider opening that goes over the rear lights. And that's metalwork, which is not easily chaged. What this suggests to me is that the CAD images are not of the final car. Plus, somehow, the prototypes driving around look so much better than the CAD image...

To be honest, I still do not get it?......what is it for?

Why have a four seat sports car? I can understand a two seat sports car or even a three seater (McLaren type layout) but why four seats?

Me personally, I would buy an S Class for long trips and an SLK 55 AMG or SL 63 AMG for luxuary sports driving; I think even if you bought both of these, you would get some money left over by comparison to the Aston Martin and you get two focused cars.

I just do not get it.....?

Whereas the Porker is a fat and ugly looking piece of superb engineering (how very German) the Aston looks like a DB9 that has been sliced in half, stretched and glued back together by those 'custom' car shops very popular in Florida, California and Vegas where they will make you anything if you give them a donor car and a large back of $.

Horribly pointless.  Quattroporte all the way.

If that's not a strange lens somebody used to make the official photo, that is one odd looking car. Stupid glass roof eh? No wonder the thing's heavy. Witless idea surpassed only be electric sunroofs in cars with climate control. No, you wouldn't choose it over the mad Italian would you?

As mentioned, the CAD images do it no favours, with a slightly odd fish-eye perspective.

Whilst white may be the en vogue colour for concepts at the moment, combined with the glass roof it gives the car a distinct 'bald' look that does it no favours from the front 3/4 rendering.

The more sculpted Vanquish style bonnet and more pronounced nose lacking in front foglights or any brake cooling vents gives a slightly pointier elongated look, but it still doesn't move the game on. The Fisker Karma is much more visually interesting and the Lambo Estoque blows this out of the water from a design perspective, and with Audi backing will be a lot better built.

As a previous poster said, the look works, but they could well have given the DB9 to any stretch company and have got similar results.

I get the feeling that it's when the official prices are announced that people will really start scratching their heads. 

Well it might be handsome but im bored of Aston martin now. they all look the same and no creativity in design what so ever!!!!!! i bet the interior is exactly the same as the DB9/V8 vantage to every switch..... they had a clean sheet they should have introduced a new design language and modern interior...... i don't like the panemera that much but its different and that what's important at this end of the market......so i would have one over this boring old Aston...... another thing!!! havent Aston designers seen the Lambo 4 door or the Quatroporte !!!!!! i guess they been in a comma for 6 years..... is it just me or anyone else feeling the same way!!!!!!

What is it with these sports car manufacturers and the design of thier 4 door saloons?

They don't seem to be able to get it right- The Rapide isn't beautiful the way an Aston should be. The Panamera, well the less said the better!. The only one that works is the Quattroporte and even that looks awkward from certain angles...

Can they not hire designers from Audi, Merc, Jag etc.. that know something about the successful design language for a 4 door saloon...

Aston also seem to have a lack of imagination when it comes to car design nowadays. I understand that you want a common design, but these aren't Bmws or Audis!. For the kind of money people are spending they want some original looks not just small, medium and large version of the essentially the same design. Look at Ferrari while I am not saying they're cars are pretty, the design of a f430, 599 and 612 are all different.