AM experience

[rft218]

Hi All,

I am thinking of making the leap into Aston Martin ownership and I believe there are a few owners out there in the DDK world. I have several 911's but need something a bit newer for doing medium distance runs (220 miles ish) where I just want to get there in reasonable shape and enjoy it. Most of my distance driving I do in my BMW 535d which despite most peoples predujice of BMWs is very hard to beat . I sort of know the best car for what I want will probably be a pdk 997 gen2 2S but still have always wanted an Aston.

So I have done some initial research and liked the Vantage over the DB9 as it just looks better to me, and the DB9 seats in the back seem a complete waste of time. After that the 4.3 engine doesnt get the greatest of reviews and a bit short of torque so I am thinking the 4.7 is a better bet. I havent driven anything yet as I am worried it will be a one way ticket . There seems to be mixed review of manual vs sportshift but I guess I will have to drive to check out.

Is there anyone out there that has had a Vantage and lived with it and done some reasonable miles in it that has any views?

Cheers

Roger

[stichill99]

Aston vantage is the only car I considered changing the 993 for until I looked into the running costs and that dented my enthusiasm somewhat. Lovely looking things!

[Magnum]

Yes - I don't own one but a couple of friends (who own a lot of special cars) are flabbergasted by the running/maintenance costs especially through main agent.

I'd research this carefully.

[911hillclimber]

Man at work bought a year old one, not sure which model, 2 seat though and 4 years ago.
Dealer told him if it goes over 10K they did not want it back and the value would plummet over that number, so don't use it unless you have to!
All a bit silly as a prospect, but nice to look at and clean the dust off?

[Nige]

Highfield (Ian) has a new DB something or other. Drop him a PM.

[Ashley James]

A friend’s friend has one that he re-places every three years at a loss of about £100,000 and often after various niggles.

My 356 is in the official AM body repair shop and parked next it it is one that had a door swiped off for £37,000.

I don’t believe they are as good or reliable as a Porsche though they are stunning lookers.

[rft218]

Thanks all, yes the service bill they attract are definitely closer to the Ferrari league than Porsche. I did look at a Vanquish from 2003 or around there a while back, it only had about 25k miles but had 2 bills that were between £15 and £20k in its lifetime plus the 'normal' ones. Probably makes running turbo seem sensible...

[anglophone1]

Redrobin should be along shortly- he’s got one , and a bunch of 911s to compare

[PeterK]

My wife’s daily driver is a 2008 V8 Vantage, that she’s had for over 4 years now.

Positives - Gorgeous looks and when the revs get to 4k, WOW - amazing sound. Phenominal road holding on the typical british roads

Less positive
Service every 10k or 1 year (whichever sooner) to maintain history and 7/800 per time assuming no other work needed
Expect new clutch every 25k miles
Centre console is too high for comfortable fast gear changing (although as its SWMBOs daily, I don’t spend too long adjusting the seat)
Hand built, not well built - loads of annoying isssues, but thankfully nothing major so far
Tracking system loves to alarm even though we’re in it - thankfully I automatically get a text requesting my PIN to clear

SWMBO loves it, despite the niggles but may go for something else this year

[targa/red]

About three years ago I thought a 4.7 V8 would be change from my 991 2S so went to the local AM dealer to look at one year old one loved the looks the finish was good however the drive was rock hard the gear change was very antiquered was very disappointed jumped back back into my four year old 991 and thought this is years ahead of AM so ended up buying a new 991 3.8 2S which was even better than the four year one

[Nige]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5PHck72b8M

[gturner008]

I had a V8 Vantage for a couple of years. I’d agree with earlier comments.

Main thing I didn’t like was the front engine driving experience. For me, it just lacked front grip and suffered under steer (compared with a 911). Just didn’t like the driving experience. Night and day to rear engine. Pleased I did the change. Pleased I swapped back. No regrets

[rft218]

Hi All,

Great feedback thanks, I think it comes down to driving it and see if it grabs me, and then trying to assess the cost/grief vs the obvious great looks.

Thanks for all the thoughts, I'll let you know

Cheers

Roger

[Gary71]

I spent a couple of days recently driving this:

That V12 is the only thing that’s ever made me seriously consider selling the 911.

I know the Vanquish is not quite the same but you get a lot of DB9 for £40k... and if you find a high mileage facelift one you get a better car and a few more miles won’t hurt...

That’s what my man maths is telling me...

[JAN]

Hello there.

I have had two Vantages, the first straight after a manual 996 c2.

First was a 2005 4.3 Vantage. I fell in love with it when i went for a test drive, though one has to admit it wasn't quite as dynamically nimble and 'just so' as the 911 it replaced, but i wanted a change and the looks, sounds and presence, for me, blew the 911 out of the water.

I kept it for 4 years (twice as long as the previous 911) and 15k miles, bought at a main dealer and sold back to the main dealer with a loss of £4k. I also obviously bought it with a years main dealer warranty which would cost almost £2k, so depreciation wise I was very happy, i didnt bother to renew the warranty. I bought at 27k miles and sold at 42k miles, so im not sure what the mileage sensitivity comments above are based on. Sure, a young car with big miles will be harder to sell, but show me a car that isnt.

During the 4 years I had it, it needed a new door latch and a heated seat element, all on warranty when new, nothing else needed doing outside of routine pads / discs / tyres. Early models had different dampers, they can leak, and are expensive to replace, so watch out for that. Also watch for paint bubbling, mainly around the door handles, most should have been sorted under warranty, but worth looking for.

Overall a cracking car.

So good, i decided to buy another one, as i fancied a change and with the old one getting past 10 years old i was beginning to think at some point, that refresh might cost me rather a lot of money, though that was really my paranoia rather than the car showing any signs of aging.

I researched quite a lot before i bought the next one as to what period of car represented the biggest step forward in performance / feel etc with the most appealing price point. I went for a 2012 model standard Vantage. The 2012 model has the bigger brakes, bigger wheels and importantly for me the quicker steering rack fitted to the 's' model, along with the 's' redesigned subtle lipped boot spoiler and front and rear new diffusers it really added up to a big change in feel. The 4.7 ltr engine also does make a difference, particularly the torque, the newer seats and centre console i liked, although thats subjective) and the tech is slightly better (though thats not why you buy an Aston). The damping was improved several times i think, i found the non sports pack 2012 onwards suspension perfect for me, and a big improvement on the early car.

I bought it at about 4 years old and 17k miles, for mid £50s. It would probably now sell, 18m later and 5k more miles at low £50s. Again, im not sure where the ideas of depreciation come from once you are post 3-4 years old.

Servicing is 600-800 at a main dealer, 400-600 at an indie (theres a couple of good ones).

It likes to drink fuel a bit.

It looks stunning, sounds stunning, the interior is a wonderful place to sit and the finish and level of materials used in the interior is far better than the equivalent Porsche in my opinion, has great racing pedigree, handles wonderfully with beautifully weighted controls (the quicker rack steering is better than a 997 / 991 steering to me, sorry!), but you dont drive it like a 911, and to do so will leave you confused and wanting your 911 back.

Most importantly, it makes me very happy whenever i drive it.

I dont know what your budget is, but loosely you need £30k for a slightly tired early model, £35k for a really good early car, £37 ish for the 2007 small facelift model, £40k ish to get into a 4.7ltr car though maybe £45k for a very nice one, £50k gets you the 2012 facelift car which is essentially the 's' without the badge, £55-60k for an 's', £75k+ for a v12. As noted, i think the 'value' is the 2012 facelift non 's', all the differences between that and the 's' are down to specification when new, the car is the same (minus some stitching on the door card) and they are a useful amount cheaper than a true 's', they also feel notably tighter than the standard 4.7, and are not THAT much more, plus you are simply getting a newer car.

Sportshift II is much better than the Sportshift I it replaced, but they are no PDK, manual was the choice for me, seems to go very well with the modern but old school brut of a car it is.

Buy one.

ps any question, please feel free to ask.