You never tire of the DBS; each time you get in you unearth a new aspect of it

Dimitri Pesin

Look at the sexy, curvaceous purple beauty below and identify one awkward angle, one out of place line or any single element that looks like it could’ve been improved. Hard, isn’t it? Now tell me you don’t want to own an Aston Martin DBS.

It would be harder still if you lifted the bonnet, looked at what throbs just behind the front axle and then fired it up. Going through this process feels – and this wouldn’t be an overstatement – slightly orgasmic.

Yes, this is about as emotional an argument as you can muster when it comes to justifying a pricey 500bhp+ supercar over a Japanese runaround, but actually, what price do you put on emotions? The way you reason the difference between a $ 30k Mazda and a $ 280k Aston is not by asking yourself if the DBS provides nine times more pleasure than the MX-5 because it’s nine times more expensive… Those who spend tens of thousands of dollars on a Louis Moinet, do so not because they’re able to tell the time more accurately than someone with a Casio, it’s because at each split second they look at their watch, or someone else admires their timepiece, they get a gleam of satisfaction and forget about how many bonuses it took for them to be able to afford it.

And all the above comes even before you’ve driven something like a DBS. It's not just the speed at which you cover ground that justifies its price, but also the results of the increased energy involved: superior acceleration, higher cornering G-forces, momentary loss of traction as power overcomes grip on the exit of a bend – it all makes your heart flutter as you reach the sort of physics that create an ephemeral pause in breath. You feel challenged. Yes, driving excitement is largely down to handling and balance (points which the MX-5 admittedly covers very well), but it’s more than that: it’s the whole experience.

I know that, given one stretch of winding road, at full attack mode, the limits of a car like the MX-5 are easier to reach because of its lighter weight and skinnier tyres. Yet, this is exactly why you’d never tire of getting into something like an Aston: you know that each time you do, you’ll be trying to explore it further, that you’ll unearth a new aspect of it that you hadn’t stumbled upon before. More often than not, it’ll be keeping power and grip in reserve, leaving it up to you, the driver, to get the most out of it. Why would you want to get into a car, always knowing exactly what to expect? Where’s the surprise factor?

Price has always dictated quality, size, panache and excitement, and it isn’t any different in this case. Money may not buy you ultimate happiness, but it does buy you a very capable and desirable Aston Martin.

Bassam Kronfli

Don’t get me wrong, I love supercars as much as the next guy. Probably more than the next guy. In my profession I have been lucky enough to drive more supercars than one man should be entitled to, and for that I am eternally grateful. On the other hand, I am always pulling for the underdog (and in this case the Mazda MX-5 is very much an underdog). There are loads of exciting cars that give you an adrenaline hit in the same predictable way: with lung crushing acceleration and mind altering top speeds. But, I think that a car should be rewarding to drive without doing big speeds.

You get in to some supercars (such as the DBS on the opposite page) and instantly feel you have to be as alert as a goalie in a penalty shootout to even drive it out of the parking lot. But getting into the little MX-5 you can almost feel the pressure lift from your shoulders. It is slow and cheap, there’s no getting away from those two facts, but that makes you instantly relax with it. It’s not difficult to drive, all the controls are exactly where you want them to be and visibility is perfect. There are no bulging bonnets or ground-scraping spoilers to worry about. There is zero intimidation. You just get in and drive.

And what a drive it is. Turn the wheel and the front end communicates exactly what is going on beneath it, with deliciously detailed feed-back. The brakes are precise and powerful all the way through the pedal’s movement, but the thing is you try to use them as little as possible. You might simply brush them if you feel the need to help settle the nose towards the apex as you turn into a bend, but if you brake more than that you lose momentum, which takes a long time to regain.

Arriving at a corner you simply chuck the MX-5 at the bend with one steering movement and then feel the skinny rear tyres gradually and progressively give up their mechanical grip. Next thing you know the tail lets go and you are in a four-wheel drift, travelling perfectly sideways for quite a long time. It goes on for so long that you have time to admire the scenery as you casually apply opposite lock, all the while wondering when the slide is going to finish.

Which sums up the joy of piloting something as pure and simple as an MX-5 – it gives you time to enjoy every bit of a drive. You can get ready for a corner, settle onto the right line, then concentrate on turning in, carrying speed through to the apex, then make sure you’ve got the throttle nailed for the exit. Straights give you time to take in your surroundings and enjoy the wind in your hair. You might take a little longer to reach your destination, but in the little Mazda you’ll have time to enjoy every bit of the journey.

‘The joy of the MX-5 is that it gives you time to enjoy every bit of a drive’