Glass Buttons

[mikey k]

Jonby - goo point on the glove box, I opted out of paino black as it reflects too much with the roof down and looks dirty VERY quickly in a roadster
Phil - it is well spotted, no pics of Johnny 550 it is now home yet.

[jonby]

mikey k said:

Jonby - goo point on the glove box, I opted out of paino black as it reflects too much with the roof down and looks dirty VERY quickly in a roadster

agree entirely AND it scratches easily

[ds2000]

I have to confess, they look very very good

Edited by ds2000 on Monday 21st January 12:09

[yeti]

My sport and suspension buttons are already glass and I have a manual - so no transmission buttons. Not bothered about glovebox so would need 8 buttons at around 50 quid, plus fitting. Hmm, it's a pricey undertaking but I suppose worth it for a keeper.

Heated screen x 2, parking, fogs, traction, hazards, air recirc and AC... I think

[jonby]

yeti said:

My sport and suspension buttons are already glass and I have a manual - so no transmission buttons. Not bothered about glovebox so would need 8 buttons at around 50 quid, plus fitting. Hmm, it's a pricey undertaking but I suppose worth it for a keeper.

Heated screen x 2, parking, fogs, traction, hazards, air recirc and AC... I think

Is that a pre 'facelift' / dbs style console then ? Because hazards, air recircAC. heated screens etc are not that style of button on mine

[yeti]

jonby said:

Is that a pre 'facelift' / dbs style console then ? Because hazards, air recircAC. heated screens etc are not that style of button on mine

2006 DB9, so the early Sarah Maynard designed console

[jonby]

yeti said:

jonby said:

Is that a pre 'facelift' / dbs style console then ? Because hazards, air recircAC. heated screens etc are not that style of button on mine

2006 DB9, so the early Sarah Maynard designed console

On your car whilst many of the more minor buttons are difficult to read and IIRC the standard finish in that design can mark/scratch more easily, for me it's a nicer design in many ways and it may well age better - as with many things car design wise, often the first/original attempt is the best

[jonby]

yeti said:

jonby said:

Is that a pre 'facelift' / dbs style console then ? Because hazards, air recircAC. heated screens etc are not that style of button on mine

2006 DB9, so the early Sarah Maynard designed console

Talking about Sarah Maynard, I wonder what she could do about the silver seat switches

It had been suggested to me by another member that they in turn had been told Works could retrofit vantage with them but Works today have categorically denied it as being possible - they say it's a popular request but they haven't found an engineering solution as yet

Bearing in mind they ask £4k to fit front & rear cameras, it's not likely that they are worried about quoting an off-putting price so whilst obviously anything is possible at a price, I guess the price of this would run into '000s

However it occurs that the vast majority of the 'plasticness' comes not from the back plate or the memory buttons, but instead the two lozenge shaped large black buttons. Surely it wouldn't be so difficult to replace these two buttons only, with metal ones ? I would have thought there is easily sufficient demand, at the right price, for an initial run of say 10-15 sets - it requires 4 buttons per car, two for each side

Any thoughts ?

[adsl3897]

I wanted to get the glass button's on my 4.3 Vantage but the problem with the kit though as I see it is that they don’t make a glass version for the Hazard, A/C, Recirculate or the Rear window defrost?



These buttons were moved on the 4.7 to be intergrated in the facia just above...



Or does made to order mean that Aston will make up buttons to suit 4.3 or 4.7?

[Gibberish]

adsl3897 said:

... though as I see it is that they don’t make a glass version for the Hazard, A/C, Recirculate or the Rear window defrost?

I just knew there’d be a spanner in the works somewhere along the line; well spotted!

I’m coming back round to appreciating the retro look of the older style buttons again.

[yeti]

adsl3897 said:

Or does made to order mean that Aston will make up buttons to suit 4.3 or 4.7?

Yep, as I understand it, the full set is available for earlier cars. Hence the cost perhaps...

[yeti]

[quote] I would have thought there is easily sufficient demand, at the right price, for an initial run of say 10-15 sets - it requires 4 buttons per car, two for each side

Any thoughts ?


[/quote]

I very much doubt she would be interested. People wanted nicer buttons, she designed them, as the original designer of the car's interior, fully backlit and made in a limited run as a bespoke service. They were expensive and didn't sell, people would rather have cheap ones that >almost< do the job.

That would be the way with this is well. Cost prohibitive; she not an AML owner doing it for fun, she needs to run a business. Making them at cost price or close to... Well, why bother, she's got tons of other well-paid stuff to do

It's like the glass buttons... Wow, they look great... HOW MUCH?? Actually not much for what they are, but a lot to make the car very subtlety nicer. That's money that can be spent on cake etc.

[mikey k]

yeti said:

That's money that can be spent on cake etc.

I like your thinking especially after seeing Pit Babes recent offerings

[jonby]

yeti][quote said:

I would have thought there is easily sufficient demand, at the right price, for an initial run of say 10-15 sets - it requires 4 buttons per car, two for each side

Any thoughts ?

I very much doubt she would be interested. People wanted nicer buttons, she designed them, as the original designer of the car's interior, fully backlit and made in a limited run as a bespoke service. They were expensive and didn't sell, people would rather have cheap ones that >almost< do the job.

That would be the way with this is well. Cost prohibitive; she not an AML owner doing it for fun, she needs to run a business. Making them at cost price or close to... Well, why bother, she's got tons of other well-paid stuff to do

It's like the glass buttons... Wow, they look great... HOW MUCH?? Actually not much for what they are, but a lot to make the car very subtlety nicer. That's money that can be spent on cake etc.

you may well be right, though it may not need Sarah I suppose - if the buttons literally just clip on, is this one for Mr Hall ?

[brakedwell]

Someone on the AMOC Forum has successfully installed a glass ECU start switch in a 2006 DB9.

Glass key conversion on 2006 DB9
Today at 09:23:25 AM »

So Aston Martin say it couldn't be done!
I have just finished converting my 2006 DB9 with conventional starter button to the Emotion Control Glass Key. I am really pleased with the outcome.
You may ask Why?
Well, I didn't like having a Ford key for the ignition and a Volvo fob for the doors. The ignition key was near impossible to insert and turn with the steering column set in a comfortable position. The integrated transponder key is "well sexy"
Not an easy job and some of the parts are expensive. I am most pleased that I did it without a visit to the dealer for key coding too
Everything works as it should, no short cuts taken. Now onto the sound system!

Edited by brakedwell on Tuesday 22 January 11:34

[KarlFranz]

yeti said:

I very much doubt she would be interested. People wanted nicer buttons, she designed them, as the original designer of the car's interior, fully backlit and made in a limited run as a bespoke service. They were expensive and didn't sell, people would rather have cheap ones that >almost< do the job.

That would be the way with this is well. Cost prohibitive; she not an AML owner doing it for fun, she needs to run a business. Making them at cost price or close to... Well, why bother, she's got tons of other well-paid stuff to do

It's like the glass buttons... Wow, they look great... HOW MUCH?? Actually not much for what they are, but a lot to make the car very subtlety nicer. That's money that can be spent on cake etc.

Well, there's expensive, and then there's

I think she could have made the same or more profit in volume if her prices were a bit more reasonable.

[jonby]

KarlFranz said:

yeti said:

I very much doubt she would be interested. People wanted nicer buttons, she designed them, as the original designer of the car's interior, fully backlit and made in a limited run as a bespoke service. They were expensive and didn't sell, people would rather have cheap ones that >almost< do the job.

That would be the way with this is well. Cost prohibitive; she not an AML owner doing it for fun, she needs to run a business. Making them at cost price or close to... Well, why bother, she's got tons of other well-paid stuff to do

It's like the glass buttons... Wow, they look great... HOW MUCH?? Actually not much for what they are, but a lot to make the car very subtlety nicer. That's money that can be spent on cake etc.

Well, there's expensive, and then there's

I think she could have made the same or more profit in volume if her prices were a bit more reasonable.

I guess one of the issues is that when you are speccing a car from new and spending £100k+++, £300 here and £800 there is much easier to swallow when ordering your perfect bespoke car. But once you have your car, whether purchased new for £100-150k+ or 2nd hand for perhaps significantly less, those sums start to stand out more as you more likely compare them to what else you can do with the money

[yeti]

KarlFranz said:

I think she could have made the same or more profit in volume if her prices were a bit more reasonable.

I think so too

But she wanted bespoke, she wanted each car to be different.

[adsl3897]

yeti said:

adsl3897 said:

Or does made to order mean that Aston will make up buttons to suit 4.3 or 4.7?

Yep, as I understand it, the full set is available for earlier cars. Hence the cost perhaps...

Not according to Aston directly....

"Many thanks for your enquiry. Unfortunately the glass button kits are only suitable for 4.7 (09MY) vehicles onwards, so would not be suitable for your model"

[yeti]

adsl3897 said:

Not according to Aston directly....

"Many thanks for your enquiry. Unfortunately the glass button kits are only suitable for 4.7 (09MY) vehicles onwards, so would not be suitable for your model"

That's a surprise... And a shame too I could consider just doing the 2 x heated screens and the parking sensor one on the shift tunnel...

So what can't be done, AC, recirc and hazards I guess?