Aston Martin Rapide caught testing

Is not a secret anymore that the Rapide Concept will go into production. Set to be unveiled in 2009 and to go on sale in 2010, the Rapide will be priced at nearer £150,000 (much, much more than everyone expected!) and will compete with models like Porsche Panamera and the Maserati Quattroporte.

The 2009 Rapide will be built on the the familiar VH platform and will be powered by the 6.0-litre V12 from the DBS. This means the output will be around 510 hp and the peak torque at 420 lbs-ft.

The Rapide will stretch the tape measure to around five metres long, making it 30cm longer than the DB9, whose VH aluminium architecture it shares. Aston is targeting buyers who need practicality and is promising a lift-up tailgate to swallow luggage, fold-down rear seats to extend the boot and ’swan-lift’ doors on all four apertures that glide upwards and out, easing access.

The panoramic roof (caught for the first time in a spy shot) is impressively big - stretching all the way from the windscreen header rail to the tailgate and bathes the cabin in daylight.