I'm not sure how long the DB9 Volante didn't have a rear anti-roll bar (perhaps through 2012?), but I've noticed that a few people have added a DB9 coupe rear bar to their Volantes and have noted a significant handling improvement. Encouraged by Steve McEvoy and PhuketPaul's advice, I added one to my '06 Volante today. Total cost was under $325, total installation time was about an hour (in my driveway), and total improvement is massive.

-I bought a salvaged rear anti-roll bar with rear mounting brackets (Aston calls them "straps") from a wrecked 2007 DB9 for $149. I cleaned it up and sprayed it with several coats of epoxy paint.
-I bought two new polyurethane bushings for the bar's connection to the rear mounting straps. They were $71.99 for the pair direct from Powerflex.
-I bought two new droplinks and fastener hardware from Scuderia. That cost a total of $102.48, including the shipping.

Installation was very simple, but if you don't have one to remove, installing one can be challenging to envision for someone of my limited abilities! That's where Steve and Paul came in. They explained and provided images, and life was good from that point.

1) Get your Volante off the ground. I bought a QuickJack several years ago, and this is the kind of project where it excels. However, setting up the QuickJack always takes me about a half-hour (including placing the jackpads and routing the hoses...).
2) Remove the rear plastic undertray with a torx bit. Piece of cake...
3) Place the bar in position, resting the ends on/over the left and right lower suspension arms (they'll go there naturally) and the metal straps/brackets with the bushings lined up with the existing mounting holes (thanks, Aston!).
4) Insert a bolt through one of the strap/bracket mounting holes and finger-tighten it into the existing threaded holes in the mounting bracket. DON'T TIGHTEN IT TOO MUCH!
5) Do the same with the other three bolts.
6) Slide under the car (I used a wheeled creeper) and place the mounting stud from one of the droplinks through the mounting hole in the flange sticking down from the lower suspension arm.
7) Wiggle the other droplink stud through the hole at the end of the anti-roll bar. The bar will be sitting ABOVE the lower suspension arm, and you'll have to flex and "wake up" the ball-joints in the droplinks to get the studs at the correct angles to go through the mounting holes.
8) Place a washer between the nut and the bar end and also between the nut and the lower suspension arm mounting flange before putting the nuts on (Aston Martin's parts diagram only shows a washer with the nut attaching the bar end, but the workshop manual specifically calls out a washer to be added at the lower suspension arm attachment, too).
9) Do the same at the other side of the car/end of the bar.
10) Now everything's lined up, torque the bolts securing the metal straps/bushing brackets at the rear of the car to 30Nm. Yes, that's all. Alternate tightening the top and bottom bolts in each bracket to make sure the bushing is seated properly, then do a final torque check on both top and bottom bolts after the bushing is evenly compressed.
11) Torque the nuts at both ends of the droplink studs to 110Nm. This is hard to do; you'll have to get an open-ended wrench on the flats on the metal "nut" on the inside between the rubber boot and the mounting point so the stud doesn't rotate when you tighten the outside nut (remember, it's a ball-joint). Once you get the outside nut (the one your torque wrench is on) fairly tight, the stud will cinch down and stop turning. Still, I'll be 70 this year, and torquing to 110Nm while lying under a car with limited leverage isn't easy!
12) Replace the rear undertray, lower the car, and experience new joy!

I was never happy with the way my Volante entered and exited roundabouts or tight corners. The rear suspension never seemed to know what it was doing and could "hop" or lose its line. From what I've experienced so far - admittedly, just one day's use - that issue's been fixed, and the fix is indisputable.

(PLEASE EXCUSE MY FILTHY WHEEL INSIDES! My next job is a thorough undercarriage and wheel cleaning...)

DB9 Rear Anti-Roll Bar

Rear Anti-Roll Bar in Place (undertray removed)

Rear Anti-Roll Bar Mounting Strap with Bushing in place

Rear Anti-Roll Bar Bushing Strap Mounting Holes

Rear Anti-Roll Bar Droplink Parts

Rear Anti-Roll Bar Lower Suspension Arm Droplink Mounting Flange

Rear Anti-Roll Bar Droplink in Place

 

I'm glad you like the improvement it does feel so much more tied down to the road at the rear with the rear bar fitted.

I just got a great offer so I'm upgrading both anti roll bars to DBS versions (29.4mm instead of 25.4mm), doesn't sound a lot but it makes the bars a huge amount stiffer and I've just upgraded the front lower wishbones to poly bushes (the castor adjusting bolts were seized in the bushes) so looking forward tio seeing the improvement from that too.

http://db9s.com/dbs-anti-roll-bar-upgrade/

 

For the record, my 2011 DB9 Volante has the rear anti-sway bar as standard.

 

If one were to only add the thicker DBS rear bar but left the stock one in the front how would that negatively affect it if at all vs just adding a standard DB9 rear bar?

 

It would reduce understeer and increase oversteer, possibly too much

 

I was a BIT concerned that adding a rear bar to a no-rear-bar Volante would increase oversteer too much. To me, however, adding the stock DB9 coupe rear bar provided missing balance to the car and I don't see myself getting caught-out by surprise oversteer. After getting used to it for a while, I'll see if I stiffening further with Paul's DBS mods starts calling me...

 

I want to undertake this project on my 2009 db9 Volante; you sold me on it

Would you be able to provide the part numbers for the bushlinks and the droplinks?

Thanks

 

These are the relevant part numbers:

• Anti roll bar 4G43-5A771-AA
• Bracket 4G43-5487-CA
• Bushing 4G43-5484-CA
• Drop Links 4G43-5664-AD

 

Subscribing. This will be my next project. Thanks

 

Does anyone know if the rapide sway bar would fit the db9? Part numbers are almost identical except for the first 2. Which is AD vs 4G
4G43-5A771-AA for db9 and vantage. And AD43-5A771-AA for the rapide

 

I'm not sure so can't be much help but...the first 4 characters show what car it is off so could be completely different.

4G43 DB9 and Vantage
6G33 Vantage where its a different part
8D33 DBS
AD43 Rapide
CD33 Vanquish 2
There re also a few more for different versions of the car., but if a later car uses an identical part to an early DB9 it would still use a 4G43 part number.

The 5 character number in the centre is the part number so all 5A771 parts are rear anti- roll bars for all the VH cars.

and the last two characters are the revision code so AA would be the first version of that part and later modified parts would be AB, AC etc.

 

Great info. They look almost identical in pictures. But obviously could be different in geometry. I was asking because the same seller on eBay had both versions. But was selling the one for the rapide for much less. $129 vs $199. Either way I played it safe and went with the latter. I managed to score it for $99 with an offer. So if a one else is interested. There are a few on eBay now.

 

ARB came in today. Looks to be in great shape. The drop links that came with it are pretty tight. But I need the nuts that bolt it to the chassis as well as the 4 bolts that tighten up the brackets. Where can I find the part numbers?

 

Part Numbers are on my website but just any decent M8*21mm serrated head bolt and M12*1.5 serrated nylock nut will do.

https://db9s.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=162&action=edit