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Aston Martin DB11 V8 loses four cylinders but none of its grace

We love the Aston Martin DB11. Few vehicles combine speed, luxury, and comfort as well as that beautiful British coupe. That said, it's not the most efficient or affordable GT in the world, but Aston Martin is planning to change that. Starting this year, the company will offer the DB11 a twin-turbocharged V8 sourced from the mad Germans at Mercedes-AMG. We've known about the engine partnership for a while now, though we assumed the first Aston Martin to use a Mercedes-AMG V8 would be the next-generation V8 Vantage. At first, sticking a V8 under the hood might seem like an odd choice, but the DB series only recently started using V12s. Historically, the car has packed powerful inline-six engines. Offering two engines will allow the company to sell a lower-cost model and presumably boost sales. That means changes are strictly mechanical in nature. The engine is the now-common 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged Mercedes-AMG V8. Output is 503 horsepower and 498 pound-feet of torque. That's down 97 horsepower and 18 pound-feet of torque from the 5.2-liter V12. In the Mercedes-AMG C63 S, the 4.0-liter V8 makes equal horsepower and 18 more pound-feet of torque. Aston Martin says that the partnership with Mercedes-AMG allows the company to tailor the engine for Aston Martins. This means a new ECU with new engine and throttle mapping. Losing four cylinders changes the character of the car a bit. The DB11 V8 is a not-insubstantial 254 pounds lighter than the V12. Since most of the weight savings comes from behind the front wheels, Aston Martin says the V8 model is more agile than the V12 model. Engineers have adjusted the suspension bushing, geometry, anti-roll bars, springs, dampers, and stability control to account for the weight savings. The DB11 V8's diet helps offset the lower power output. As such, the 4.0-second 0-62 sprint is just 0.1 seconds off the V12. Top speed is down 13 mph to a still extralegal speed of 187 mph. We don't have fuel economy ratings for the US, but expect an improvement from the V12's current rating. The V8 will be available with all of the same equipment and trims as the V12, with just a few visual changes to distinguish the two models. The V8 gets unique wheels, darker headlight surroundings, and just two vents on the hood, available in either black or titanium. The DB11 V8 goes on sale in the US later this year. At $198,995, it undercuts the V12 model by $17,500.

Aston Martin to cut 15 percent of workforce

Aston Martin has announced it will slash nearly 300 jobs, or about 15 percent of its total workforce, as part of a cost-cutting bid. The changes aren't going to come on the factory floor, though. Instead, according to the Unite trade union, the majority of firings will involve white collar employees – administrators, managers, and the like – at the company's headquarters in Gaydon, England, Bloomberg reports. In an emailed statement to the business outlet, Aston Martin said eligible employees will be offered early retirement options. While Aston said there'd only be 295 employees released, Unite put the number at no more than 314. "Collective consultation with employee representatives, including Unite, has begun and the company is working with them to minimize the risk of compulsory redundancies," the union told Bloomberg. Aston Martin added that this move will have no impact on the company's production figures, although it's unclear what it could mean for future vehicles, like the production DBX and upcoming DB11. Related Video:

2017 Aston Martin Model Year Preview and Updates

In 2017, more than 100 years after the Aston brand was first launched, the upscale maker of British grand tourers is so much more than that 'Bond car'. The Vantage remains the choice of drivers with a penchant for track days, while the Vanquish, Rapide S and DB11 (photo above) are for those vacillating between a car and a turboprop. ASTON MARTIN DB11: An all-new replacement for the ancestral DB9, Aston's high-performance Grand Tourer features a new twin-turbo V12, of-this-century angularity and an all-digital dash. RAPIDE S: Aston's svelte four door coupe receives new infotainment and satellite navigation. VANQUISH: Only minor trim changes for 2017. The two-door GT continues to rely on a normally aspirated V12. V-8 VANTAGE: A production run of 100 GTS-badged V-8s will be built, foretelling the end of the run for Aston's most accessible model. V-12 VANTAGE: Aston's tightly-drawn GT is now available with a seven-speed manual.