RE: Aston Martin V8 N400 Roadster

[Luckyluciano]

JR said:

Luckyluciano said:

Bizzle said:

Is it just me or does 400hp sound a bit... well... slow?
I think Aston Martins are amazing cars, i think the DBS is possibly one of the most amazing looking cars of all time. But with all this technical knowledge and large engines, why can't they get more power than a £7 grand modified skyline?

I know AM's are about the ride, handling, build quality yada yada yada... but really. 400hp vs £105 grand? Getting blown away by an E46 M5 costing a fifth of the price would really bug the hell out of me.

Or am i just missing the point?

Totally missing the point,

Or is he? Astons used to go for gold, not fail to even get bronze.

[grahamw48]

Waynester said:

Question is: If i had £102k to spend on a car, would it be this? Not so sure. I prefer the coupe.
And you need 5000rpm for it to sound good? My TVR sounds awesome at all revs..;(

In black as well please.

Haha...Wedges rule !

Probably better noise from the Wedge...same attention, a couple of tenths down on 0-60, (400SE) and maybe 95 grand change.

Seriously though, Astons aint wot they used to be.

[PascalBuyens]

Luckyluciano said:

JR said:

Luckyluciano said:

Bizzle said:

Is it just me or does 400hp sound a bit... well... slow?
I think Aston Martins are amazing cars, i think the DBS is possibly one of the most amazing looking cars of all time. But with all this technical knowledge and large engines, why can't they get more power than a £7 grand modified skyline?

I know AM's are about the ride, handling, build quality yada yada yada... but really. 400hp vs £105 grand? Getting blown away by an E46 M5 costing a fifth of the price would really bug the hell out of me.

Or am i just missing the point?

Totally missing the point,

Or is he? Astons used to go for gold, not fail to even get bronze.

Pre WW Astons used to dominate racing... Guess that's what JR is referring to.

[TonyHetherington]

Luckyluciano said:

Totally missing the point, Aston's are not for ragging it around it's more of an occasion to drive it, it's hard to explain until you get in one.

But if that's the case, why the entrance at LeMans, the "N400" super duper car, the DBS, the sporting emphasis in press releases etc?

[JR]

PascalBuyens said:

Luckyluciano said:

JR said:

Luckyluciano said:

Bizzle said:

Is it just me or does 400hp sound a bit... well... slow?
I think Aston Martins are amazing cars, i think the DBS is possibly one of the most amazing looking cars of all time. But with all this technical knowledge and large engines, why can't they get more power than a £7 grand modified skyline?

I know AM's are about the ride, handling, build quality yada yada yada... but really. 400hp vs £105 grand? Getting blown away by an E46 M5 costing a fifth of the price would really bug the hell out of me.

Or am i just missing the point?

Totally missing the point,

Or is he? Astons used to go for gold, not fail to even get bronze.

Pre WW Astons used to dominate racing... Guess that's what JR is referring to.

Yep. They can't have it both ways as in:

TonyHetherington said:

Luckyluciano said:

Totally missing the point, Aston's are not for ragging it around it's more of an occasion to drive it, it's hard to explain until you get in one.

But if that's the case, why the entrance at LeMans, the "N400" super duper car, the DBS, the sporting emphasis in press releases etc?

Road going Astons used to compete for the fastest 0-60 etc. To launch a new Aston with N400 that should be nearer N500 and have the press report that Porsches, let alone Ferarris, are faster would make DB spin in his grave.

[TonyHetherington]

[Luckyluciano]

Actually after re-reading this it seems a little odd considering the new 4.7 std one is available with 420bhp?
Why would you buy this one?

[Luckyluciano]

JR said:

PascalBuyens said:

Luckyluciano said:

JR said:

Luckyluciano said:

Bizzle said:

Is it just me or does 400hp sound a bit... well... slow?
I think Aston Martins are amazing cars, i think the DBS is possibly one of the most amazing looking cars of all time. But with all this technical knowledge and large engines, why can't they get more power than a £7 grand modified skyline?

I know AM's are about the ride, handling, build quality yada yada yada... but really. 400hp vs £105 grand? Getting blown away by an E46 M5 costing a fifth of the price would really bug the hell out of me.

Or am i just missing the point?

Totally missing the point,

Or is he? Astons used to go for gold, not fail to even get bronze.

Pre WW Astons used to dominate racing... Guess that's what JR is referring to.

Yep. They can't have it both ways as in:

TonyHetherington said:

Luckyluciano said:

Totally missing the point, Aston's are not for ragging it around it's more of an occasion to drive it, it's hard to explain until you get in one.

But if that's the case, why the entrance at LeMans, the "N400" super duper car, the DBS, the sporting emphasis in press releases etc?

Road going Astons used to compete for the fastest 0-60 etc. To launch a new Aston with N400 that should be nearer N500 and have the press report that Porsches, let alone Ferarris, are faster would make DB spin in his grave.

Did Aston Martin not win at Le Mans?

Have you driven one?

[Twincam16]

Aesthetically it seems Aston Martin have ended up back in the '80s, ie the more you spent on an Aston, the uglier it got. Top-spec model circa '85 was the V8 Vantage Volante - the early '70s shape but with all elegance obliterated with huge extended wheelarches, a spoiler, blanked-off grille, huge bonnet bulge, an air dam and side-skirts so wide they resembled running-boards. Usually in 'Storm Red' with an all-cream interior and a maroon leather steering wheel.

Nowadays, the 'entry level' AMV8 and DB9 are gorgeous, but the more you spend on them, they get a whole lot uglier for very, very little performance gain.

Also, why is there a convertible N400 anyway? It was the coupe that was the racer, for the same reason that Ferrari never made any convertible 250GTOs - they wouldn't handle as well.

[grahamw48]

Twincam16 said:

Aesthetically it seems Aston Martin have ended up back in the '80s, ie the more you spent on an Aston, the uglier it got. Top-spec model circa '85 was the V8 Vantage Volante - the early '70s shape but with all elegance obliterated with huge extended wheelarches, a spoiler, blanked-off grille, huge bonnet bulge, an air dam and side-skirts so wide they resembled running-boards. Usually in 'Storm Red' with an all-cream interior and a maroon leather steering wheel.

Aaaah, was my dream car

A hooligan with class.

[Miguel]

Luckyluciano said:

Actually after re-reading this it seems a little odd considering the new 4.7 std one is available with 420bhp?
Why would you buy this one?

Exactly my thought. This version might've made some sense before the 4.7 came out. Now, isn't it old news? I'd much rather have the standard 4.7 L model.

Miguel

[whoami]

Miguel said:

Luckyluciano said:

Actually after re-reading this it seems a little odd considering the new 4.7 std one is available with 420bhp?
Why would you buy this one?

Exactly my thought. This version might've made some sense before the 4.7 came out. Now, isn't it old news? I'd much rather have the standard 4.7 L model.

Miguel

Correct. That's why they (dealers) were knocking out unsold N400's with big £££'s off.

[Cowhead]

That stitching in the centre console is so unbeliveably tacky...baffled as to why Aston even considered that as a sensible option.

[bad_roo]

Just waiting to see one of these at the Ring complete with numpty in white race suit.

[bogie]

its old news, they were all sold anyway before the 4.7 was announced....I mean 40bhp on a 400bhp car is hard enough to really notice, let alone 20bhp ...jeez if you put 20bhp on an Elise it just perks it up a bit, dosent exactly make it a dragster ..and a Vantage weighs double.

The new 4.7 version for £85K makes a lot of sense now, unless you are into your 'limited edtions' of cars I guess

[Polarbert]

I can't believe I'm saying this but I'd much rather have a GT3 RS with a straight through exhaust.

[whoami]

bogie said:

its old news, they were all sold anyway before the 4.7 was

What comedian told you that?

They had loads left and were available at huge discounts.

By the way you can notice the extra power and torque on the new car. It's actually quite noticeable.

Mostly in the mid-range.

[Pesky.critter]

I have a Silver coupe and it looks stunning....well happy with my car..!

Their are no Coupes for sale as they sold out in 2007

whoami said:

bogie said:

its old news, they were all sold anyway before the 4.7 was

What comedian told you that?

They had loads left and were available at huge discounts.

By the way you can notice the extra power and torque on the new car. It's actually quite noticeable.

Mostly in the mid-range.

[Chris71]

Isn't this a contradiction in terms?

It's supposed to be a stripped-out, lightweight racer, yet it's a convertible. I know the Vantage is part of the modern breed of cars which are supposed to be less compromised in convertible form than traditional cut-down coupes (pun not intended), but surely if you want a hardcore, uncompromised version you get the fixed head?

[Hell27]

I'm no expert on bloody quick cars (having never owned one), but it seems to me that ever since Clarkson said on Top Gear that it was not that fast....not slow, that would be ridiculous etc etc, everybody in the motoring press have jumped on the bandwagon and agreed with him.

To me, it seems bloody fast. 0-60 in less than 5 seconds, 170mph+; these are quick figures!

Yes, in the same price bracket and peer group there are faster cars, and the rice rockets like the Skyline can make mincemeat out of it, but surely there's more to it than this? Heritage, feelgood, performance, sound, looks, jaw dropping effect on many other motorists........

Aston Martins are something really special; only thing that puts me off one is the image of James May driving that one through Italy in the nip!