Why do we upgrade our Astons - discuss please
Discussion
What we classing as mods here ??
Personalised sills, plates, clear rears ??
Tinted Glass ??
Does somebody who doesn't modify have no Soul (Seb
)
Are Modifiers people whose car is at or near the centre of their universe ?? If so, is this a good thing or a bad thing ??
Would people rather modify their own bodies than their car ??
So many different angles !!
I'm easy either way. I meet up with and respect both types. Whatever floats your boat
Personalised sills, plates, clear rears ??
Tinted Glass ??
Does somebody who doesn't modify have no Soul (Seb
)Are Modifiers people whose car is at or near the centre of their universe ?? If so, is this a good thing or a bad thing ??
Would people rather modify their own bodies than their car ??
So many different angles !!
I'm easy either way. I meet up with and respect both types. Whatever floats your boat
I guess it's horses for courses really.
I've always modded my cars in some fashion. Some with strictly performance upgrades like both my old S3s, and some only cosmetic like my golf gti and integra type r.
As for my V8V yes I agree if needs more power, but in reality, what for? When and where is it safe to have my car sprint from 0-60 in .3 of a second faster?
Sure I'd feel the difference in that brief moment. But what else could I have done with that upgrade money to achieve a similar or better feeling of happiness/satisfaction?
£3500 plus the VAT on an upgraded exhaust for an extra 40bhp could get me and the Mrs to Disney in Florida to visit my family for a month!
So on that basis (and as much as I would love that brief moment of extra excitement, and better handling with brake upgrades), I've decided to only cosmetically upgrade my V8 vantage.
And only simply at that, as resale time won't give me anything back on my investment.
Clear lenses.
N400 sills.
DBS gear knob
IPod unit fitted.
But I must reiterate, horses for courses.
I've always modded my cars in some fashion. Some with strictly performance upgrades like both my old S3s, and some only cosmetic like my golf gti and integra type r.
As for my V8V yes I agree if needs more power, but in reality, what for? When and where is it safe to have my car sprint from 0-60 in .3 of a second faster?
Sure I'd feel the difference in that brief moment. But what else could I have done with that upgrade money to achieve a similar or better feeling of happiness/satisfaction?
£3500 plus the VAT on an upgraded exhaust for an extra 40bhp could get me and the Mrs to Disney in Florida to visit my family for a month!
So on that basis (and as much as I would love that brief moment of extra excitement, and better handling with brake upgrades), I've decided to only cosmetically upgrade my V8 vantage.
And only simply at that, as resale time won't give me anything back on my investment.
Clear lenses.
N400 sills.
DBS gear knob
IPod unit fitted.
But I must reiterate, horses for courses.
It depends on your view point. I love the concept of owning a car from new and then twenty years later still pootling around in her.
However while my Vantage as with most Gaydon cars could be viewed as a golden age of design for AML my V8 had issues which I got tired of. Generally around the gear box and SS.
What I found after I bought a new FFRR is that the keys for the Aston stayed in my drawer. Heresy without a doubt.
I do hope I'm wrong about the golden age of design output and its just the dawn but the aggressive lines of the new Vanquish leave me a little cold and the spy shots of the refreshed Rapide suggest the same design language is being filtered down through the range. It's like an older lady trying too hard.
However while my Vantage as with most Gaydon cars could be viewed as a golden age of design for AML my V8 had issues which I got tired of. Generally around the gear box and SS.
What I found after I bought a new FFRR is that the keys for the Aston stayed in my drawer. Heresy without a doubt.
I do hope I'm wrong about the golden age of design output and its just the dawn but the aggressive lines of the new Vanquish leave me a little cold and the spy shots of the refreshed Rapide suggest the same design language is being filtered down through the range. It's like an older lady trying too hard.
Lewis the philosopher 
I think that the answer is that we are all unique and that is what makes the world an interesting place. I know that the mods on my car, if sold, would either devalue or at best limit the market that I am selling to. However, it can also be returned to standard.
All that said, I just wanted more power and I wanted to see what was possible with a standard V12V engine with minor tweaks; what else do I have to do with my time. Life is about experiences and taking a V12V and upping the torque and BHP for a laugh is exactly what I have done. Now the experience is just better, but that does not mean I was unhappy with it before. I am a serial modder and have spent probably 10's of thousands (if not more) on modifying perfectly good cars to something better. It makes it individual, just like me. Anyone fancy a scalextric race
I think that the answer is that we are all unique and that is what makes the world an interesting place. I know that the mods on my car, if sold, would either devalue or at best limit the market that I am selling to. However, it can also be returned to standard
. All that said, I just wanted more power and I wanted to see what was possible with a standard V12V engine with minor tweaks; what else do I have to do with my time
. Life is about experiences and taking a V12V and upping the torque and BHP for a laugh is exactly what I have done. Now the experience is just better, but that does not mean I was unhappy with it before. I am a serial modder and have spent probably 10's of thousands (if not more) on modifying perfectly good cars to something better. It makes it individual, just like me. Anyone fancy a scalextric race The rationale for us stretching to buy the V8V from new was the misses telling me to find a car I wanted to keep to avoid the depreciation that most cars suffer from. So the V8V is a keeper.
She never made me promise that it wouldn't get some surgery along the way and at the time it needs a new clutch it'll be going to BR.
If I'm flush enough at that time I may also get the manifolds.
If I was really flush I may get 4.7 (or the 5.0L if that is available by then)
As we're not selling it, impact on residuals matter not a bit to us.
I will upgrade things if I think it's an improvement. Like changing the map reading candles to LEDs
Clear lights... well I like the reds on our Blue car and so that's my choice.
I'd love the improved steering rack.
But most of all I'd really like the lurching behaviour on and off throttle to go away.
I know Tim at Trinity is working on that.. his car exhibits the exact same trait so I know it's not at all unique and I think is a consequence of fueling strategies to get better (!) fuel economy and emissions. That's a mod I'd love to take advantage of.
Rather foolishly I realised after I'd had new disks and pads fitted that I could have looked at upgrading those rather than replacing with same. Oh well
She never made me promise that it wouldn't get some surgery along the way and at the time it needs a new clutch it'll be going to BR.
If I'm flush enough at that time I may also get the manifolds.
If I was really flush I may get 4.7 (or the 5.0L if that is available by then)
As we're not selling it, impact on residuals matter not a bit to us.
I will upgrade things if I think it's an improvement. Like changing the map reading candles to LEDs
Clear lights... well I like the reds on our Blue car and so that's my choice.
I'd love the improved steering rack.
But most of all I'd really like the lurching behaviour on and off throttle to go away.
I know Tim at Trinity is working on that.. his car exhibits the exact same trait so I know it's not at all unique and I think is a consequence of fueling strategies to get better (!) fuel economy and emissions. That's a mod I'd love to take advantage of.
Rather foolishly I realised after I'd had new disks and pads fitted that I could have looked at upgrading those rather than replacing with same. Oh well
Ive always modded every vehicle ive owned, even from being a kid....for various reasons as Yeti explained
however I havnt done much at all with my Vantage ....I guess im getting old and far too sensible
Ive had it over 5 years now, for the first 2 years it did 15K miles a year but has been a fun weekend car since
I enjoy it for what it is, i did used to have a track car as well that gave the 0-100mph in 8 sec buzz whenever I needed to feel alive, so the Vantage has always been a Sunday drive/touring car to me. I have bikes too...so the Vantage dosnt need to deliver that thrill - its "fast enough" for its purpose I use it for
I guess its also experience....after spending +£30K modding a previous car..I know that if I start modding the Vantage, i can easily spend £20-30k on making it a better car...the car is only worth £20k trade in so its a big decision to make and i dont intend to keep it forever
So then im in the same boat as per other thread "4.3 vs 4.7" ..keep my 4.3, upgrade it or get another car ...well Ive had that conundrum for years and never been able to justify the cost to change yet.....we moved house a year after I got the Vantage and ever since have had a stream of property projects lined up (inc more garaging for toys of course) so the car changing fund has been spent elsewhere
Then Aston keep bringing out new aspirational cars....I really would like a Roadster (they didnt make it when I got my coupe) as thats a different experience, so I had my heart on a 4.7 Roadster ...then the ultimate was announced; the V12 ....so thats the new "save up for" car...a 3 year old V12 Vantage R
In the meanwhile I enjoy the relatively low costs of ownership of a 6 year old Vantage doing 5K miles a year
/another long waffle....there you go Yeti, another example of why we do or dont mod
however I havnt done much at all with my Vantage ....I guess im getting old and far too sensible
Ive had it over 5 years now, for the first 2 years it did 15K miles a year but has been a fun weekend car since
I enjoy it for what it is, i did used to have a track car as well that gave the 0-100mph in 8 sec buzz whenever I needed to feel alive, so the Vantage has always been a Sunday drive/touring car to me. I have bikes too...so the Vantage dosnt need to deliver that thrill - its "fast enough" for its purpose I use it for
I guess its also experience....after spending +£30K modding a previous car..I know that if I start modding the Vantage, i can easily spend £20-30k on making it a better car...the car is only worth £20k trade in so its a big decision to make and i dont intend to keep it forever
So then im in the same boat as per other thread "4.3 vs 4.7" ..keep my 4.3, upgrade it or get another car ...well Ive had that conundrum for years and never been able to justify the cost to change yet.....we moved house a year after I got the Vantage and ever since have had a stream of property projects lined up (inc more garaging for toys of course) so the car changing fund has been spent elsewhere
Then Aston keep bringing out new aspirational cars....I really would like a Roadster (they didnt make it when I got my coupe) as thats a different experience, so I had my heart on a 4.7 Roadster ...then the ultimate was announced; the V12 ....so thats the new "save up for" car...a 3 year old V12 Vantage R
In the meanwhile I enjoy the relatively low costs of ownership of a 6 year old Vantage doing 5K miles a year
/another long waffle....there you go Yeti, another example of why we do or dont mod
MollyGTi said:
MaverickV12 said:
yeti said:
If anyone bothers to read that... well, discsuss
Are you the same Yeti and I have come to love so much on this forum 
?You seem so serious, no alcohol last night
? Couldn't sleep 
? You're normally calling people a t
t, or telling them their car is crap.Have never called anyone a T censored T as far as I am aware. Maybe that 'Mansory Bentley' fellow, but he was a weapons grade bell-end.
Johnfrancis said:
I have seriously looked at mods for my 4.3, however, i have also looked at my driving abilities, and, to be fair, the ability f the standard 4.3, far outweighs my driving skill, if i cant get the most out of 380 bhp, what would be the point of 420 bhp?.
So with this in mind, i decided to take a different route......keep the Aston Standard, invest the "tuning money" in a 165 bhp Caterham, to use on track days and Sunday morning blats, i now believe i have got the best of both worlds, the Caterham stretches and tests my abilities ( without doing 140) and the Aston is as original, and being one of the first 1000 made, thats the way I like it.
Just my twopenneth.
Top post So with this in mind, i decided to take a different route......keep the Aston Standard, invest the "tuning money" in a 165 bhp Caterham, to use on track days and Sunday morning blats, i now believe i have got the best of both worlds, the Caterham stretches and tests my abilities ( without doing 140) and the Aston is as original, and being one of the first 1000 made, thats the way I like it.
Just my twopenneth.
and just the sort of thing I'd like this thread discussion to be about. It isn't an 'upgrades are right, standard is wrong' thread by any means, just that neither of the two camps should believe they are wholly in the right for the whole community.Omaruk said:
A different angle, but I find best performance upgrade £ for £ and satisfaction is yourself....
http://donpalmer.co.uk/
A lot of the lotus guys hold Andy Walsh in high regard for coaching
http://www.carlimits.com/
Indeed - have done a day with Walshy myself. Spinning the Marcos 20 times was quite an experience...http://donpalmer.co.uk/
A lot of the lotus guys hold Andy Walsh in high regard for coaching
http://www.carlimits.com/
Jockman said:
What we classing as mods here ??
Personalised sills, plates, clear rears ??
Tinted Glass ??
That is a modification, no doubt, but my point, using BR for Aston as AMG for Merc, is a performance enhancement for the car. An upgrade to the driveability and A to B speed of the thing. Tinted glass certainly makes it look faster, but... Personalised sills, plates, clear rears ??
Tinted Glass ??
MaverickV12 said:
May I ask what you did to bump up the bhp to outstrip a DBS 
? Did it cost a lot? Has the day-to-day driving experience changed? (not the weekend spirited driving)
Purely on powertrain; is has performance air filters, short tract inlet manifolds, high lift camshafts, unique exhaust manifolds with pre-cat delete and then 200 cell sports catalysts, standard DB9 backbox. Net result 522bhp. If you were to do the sdame thibng to a DBS/V12V engine, you end up with 'Chimney-Sweep Spec' and around 570bhp ? Did it cost a lot? Has the day-to-day driving experience changed? (not the weekend spirited driving)No, it wasn't cheap, but then quality isn't.
Day to day, I pootle around the south circular with the exhaust switch set to quiet mode, the suspesion on soft and you would not know you weren't in a standard DB9... except that to nip past a truck quickly, there is more torque than before. However, switch the suspension for hard, open the exhaust valves and put your foot down and all hell is unleased
There isn't a time when I am not shocked and impressed at how rapidly my car moves forwards, and then when it hits a bend, the brakes shug off the speed effortlessly, the chassic bracing and rear anti-roll bar keep it level and the suspension just feels so incredibly taut and composed combined with the fast steering rack.After the run, back on the motorway, quiet and smooth again.
bogie said:
Ive always modded every vehicle ive owned, even from being a kid....for various reasons as Yeti explained
however I havnt done much at all with my Vantage ....I guess im getting old and far too sensible
Ive had it over 5 years now, for the first 2 years it did 15K miles a year but has been a fun weekend car since
I enjoy it for what it is, i did used to have a track car as well that gave the 0-100mph in 8 sec buzz whenever I needed to feel alive, so the Vantage has always been a Sunday drive/touring car to me. I have bikes too...so the Vantage dosnt need to deliver that thrill - its "fast enough" for its purpose I use it for
I guess its also experience....after spending +£30K modding a previous car..I know that if I start modding the Vantage, i can easily spend £20-30k on making it a better car...the car is only worth £20k trade in so its a big decision to make and i dont intend to keep it forever
So then im in the same boat as per other thread "4.3 vs 4.7" ..keep my 4.3, upgrade it or get another car ...well Ive had that conundrum for years and never been able to justify the cost to change yet.....we moved house a year after I got the Vantage and ever since have had a stream of property projects lined up (inc more garaging for toys of course) so the car changing fund has been spent elsewhere
Then Aston keep bringing out new aspirational cars....I really would like a Roadster (they didnt make it when I got my coupe) as thats a different experience, so I had my heart on a 4.7 Roadster ...then the ultimate was announced; the V12 ....so thats the new "save up for" car...a 3 year old V12 Vantage R
In the meanwhile I enjoy the relatively low costs of ownership of a 6 year old Vantage doing 5K miles a year
/another long waffle....there you go Yeti, another example of why we do or dont mod
I'm in the bogie camp here, I'm getting older and marginally more sensible having spent too much money upgrading previous motors and perhaps I don't have the stomach for it anymore. Even if I throw some mans maths in, it still doesn't make sense for me either. however I havnt done much at all with my Vantage ....I guess im getting old and far too sensible
Ive had it over 5 years now, for the first 2 years it did 15K miles a year but has been a fun weekend car since
I enjoy it for what it is, i did used to have a track car as well that gave the 0-100mph in 8 sec buzz whenever I needed to feel alive, so the Vantage has always been a Sunday drive/touring car to me. I have bikes too...so the Vantage dosnt need to deliver that thrill - its "fast enough" for its purpose I use it for
I guess its also experience....after spending +£30K modding a previous car..I know that if I start modding the Vantage, i can easily spend £20-30k on making it a better car...the car is only worth £20k trade in so its a big decision to make and i dont intend to keep it forever
So then im in the same boat as per other thread "4.3 vs 4.7" ..keep my 4.3, upgrade it or get another car ...well Ive had that conundrum for years and never been able to justify the cost to change yet.....we moved house a year after I got the Vantage and ever since have had a stream of property projects lined up (inc more garaging for toys of course) so the car changing fund has been spent elsewhere
Then Aston keep bringing out new aspirational cars....I really would like a Roadster (they didnt make it when I got my coupe) as thats a different experience, so I had my heart on a 4.7 Roadster ...then the ultimate was announced; the V12 ....so thats the new "save up for" car...a 3 year old V12 Vantage R
In the meanwhile I enjoy the relatively low costs of ownership of a 6 year old Vantage doing 5K miles a year
/another long waffle....there you go Yeti, another example of why we do or dont mod
In the Lotus and TVR worlds, if you pick your upgrades carefully you can realistically (I had different engines in both for kick off) get back maybe up to half of the upgrade cost come resale time as a lot buyers are enthusiasts and know what 'improvements' they're looking for.
It's not the same with the Aston market being so 'aspirational' and with the BR mods being relatively recent there haven't been enough upgraded Astons on the market to test that theory out in any case yet. If it's definitely a keeper then fair play, even if it's not...I've lost track of the point I'm trying to make.. Anyway just a few thoughts. That's where I'm at. Having said that in the last two years I've changed the grill, put an exhaust switch in, changed the....actually not too much else, it's all small fry compared to previous efforts though. I think I've got upgradeitis finally under control.
It helps enormously that the Vantage does do pretty much everything in the first place though. In the meantime I'll also enjoy it for the (relatively) small amount it costs me to keep it on the road.
Perhaps the game will change again as early V8's depreciate a little further
Johnfrancis said:
I have seriously looked at mods for my 4.3, however, i have also looked at my driving abilities, and, to be fair, the ability f the standard 4.3, far outweighs my driving skill, if i cant get the most out of 380 bhp, what would be the point of 420 bhp?.
So with this in mind, i decided to take a different route......keep the Aston Standard, invest the "tuning money" in a 165 bhp Caterham, to use on track days and Sunday morning blats, i now believe i have got the best of both worlds, the Caterham stretches and tests my abilities ( without doing 140) and the Aston is as original, and being one of the first 1000 made, thats the way I like it.
Just my twopenneth.
also this. My man maths can actually build a case here So with this in mind, i decided to take a different route......keep the Aston Standard, invest the "tuning money" in a 165 bhp Caterham, to use on track days and Sunday morning blats, i now believe i have got the best of both worlds, the Caterham stretches and tests my abilities ( without doing 140) and the Aston is as original, and being one of the first 1000 made, thats the way I like it.
Just my twopenneth.
Jockman said:
What we classing as mods here ??
Personalised sills, plates, clear rears ??
Tinted Glass ??
Does somebody who doesn't modify have no Soul (Seb)
Are Modifiers people whose car is at or near the centre of their universe ?? If so, is this a good thing or a bad thing ??
Would people rather modify their own bodies than their car ??
So many different angles !!
I'm easy either way. I meet up with and respect both types. Whatever floats your boat
Methink its up to each taste,I fitted clear repetiters,200 cells cats,sport exhaust,few GT upgrades to my DB7 and QS backbox,DBS 20" wheels (still to be fitted)to the DB9 because it suits my tastes,would love to go the same path as Yeti,DBS bonnet and engine mods,during my motobike time I had a 1986 1100GSXR totaly modified as it suited me, in the same manner we designed and build our house as we knew what would correspond to us.Cars are important for me,I made it my job but not the center of my universe,it is just that it is a part of my "customised" lifestyle,most of us here chose theire life instead of following the herd so here we find strong individuals and some push this a little further. Personalised sills, plates, clear rears ??
Tinted Glass ??
Does somebody who doesn't modify have no Soul (Seb
)Are Modifiers people whose car is at or near the centre of their universe ?? If so, is this a good thing or a bad thing ??
Would people rather modify their own bodies than their car ??
So many different angles !!
I'm easy either way. I meet up with and respect both types. Whatever floats your boat
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