997 Turbo - V8 Vantage - Audi R8?
Discussion
Hi All,
I purchased a Jag XFR earlier this year and as much as I love almost everything about it I am considering something a little 'sexier' and move involving to drive. I don’t do a lot of miles and we have a family car so this is purely for fun. Not really worried too much about running costs.
I have come up with the above as potential options and wanted to know your thoughts/opinions.
Max budget £40-50k part ex and cash, needs to be a manual.
The 997 Turbo is somewhat of a dream for me and to my mind is the best all round option of the 3 in terms of handling, speed, reliability and prestige etc but it would be at the top end of my budget and would probably be a 5+ year old car. I have owned a 996 C2 a few years ago and loved every minute of it, just a great car and never missed a beat.
The Audi is STUNNING looking and everything I have read suggests it drives really well and is very reliable. Certainly will tick the 'sexy' box but as it is an Audi and maybe not quite as exotic as other choices??
V8 Vantage - I could probably get the 4.7 which I believe is the better option (to be fair the 4.3's are so well priced now might also be worth a look!) and as far as I can see it ticks most if not all the boxes, not so sure about reliability but at the end of the day it’s an Aston Martin which is a pretty cool thing to be!!
So what do you think?
Anything I have missed off the list or should really be considering?
Cheers!
I purchased a Jag XFR earlier this year and as much as I love almost everything about it I am considering something a little 'sexier' and move involving to drive. I don’t do a lot of miles and we have a family car so this is purely for fun. Not really worried too much about running costs.
I have come up with the above as potential options and wanted to know your thoughts/opinions.
Max budget £40-50k part ex and cash, needs to be a manual.
The 997 Turbo is somewhat of a dream for me and to my mind is the best all round option of the 3 in terms of handling, speed, reliability and prestige etc but it would be at the top end of my budget and would probably be a 5+ year old car. I have owned a 996 C2 a few years ago and loved every minute of it, just a great car and never missed a beat.
The Audi is STUNNING looking and everything I have read suggests it drives really well and is very reliable. Certainly will tick the 'sexy' box but as it is an Audi and maybe not quite as exotic as other choices??
V8 Vantage - I could probably get the 4.7 which I believe is the better option (to be fair the 4.3's are so well priced now might also be worth a look!) and as far as I can see it ticks most if not all the boxes, not so sure about reliability but at the end of the day it’s an Aston Martin which is a pretty cool thing to be!!
So what do you think?
Anything I have missed off the list or should really be considering?
Cheers!
Not something I have looked into but might be worth looking into as well for a bit of fun/variety?
I do want to own my car though, I dont do that many miles but do need access to a second car fairly often.
I do want to own my car though, I dont do that many miles but do need access to a second car fairly often.
Matt UK said:
Tough call.
OP, serious suggestion here, but if you don't do a lot of driving and have a family car, why not spend a year in a supercar club?
You'd get to slum it around in all sorts of exotica for 12 months and I'm betting all three of your contenders will be on their books. At the at the end of your membership, either buy the one which floated your boat, or chuck your annual 'toy depreciation fund' into another year of membership.
Just a thought. I think it's what I would do anyway.
OP, serious suggestion here, but if you don't do a lot of driving and have a family car, why not spend a year in a supercar club?
You'd get to slum it around in all sorts of exotica for 12 months and I'm betting all three of your contenders will be on their books. At the at the end of your membership, either buy the one which floated your boat, or chuck your annual 'toy depreciation fund' into another year of membership.
Just a thought. I think it's what I would do anyway.
Short of a Ferrari F430 or Gallardo (and I look stupid trying to get in and out of those so they are a no go!!) the 997 Turbo is pretty close to my dream car! The problem I guess is that I am not sure if they have enough sole/passion.......... or maybe I am just being too picky!
It just occurred to me that for the kind of money I was looking at for a 997 Turbo it opened up a fair few other options, the ones I have mentioned were the ones that I am aware of/familiar with but was hoping for some user experience and thoughts I guess.
Also make sure there wasn’t something I hadn’t thought of!
I test drove a Maserati Granturismo recently and whilst it looked fantastic I really wasn’t impressed with it at all. Felt slow, a bit of a lump and altogether uninspiring even compared to my XFR!
It just occurred to me that for the kind of money I was looking at for a 997 Turbo it opened up a fair few other options, the ones I have mentioned were the ones that I am aware of/familiar with but was hoping for some user experience and thoughts I guess.
Also make sure there wasn’t something I hadn’t thought of!
I test drove a Maserati Granturismo recently and whilst it looked fantastic I really wasn’t impressed with it at all. Felt slow, a bit of a lump and altogether uninspiring even compared to my XFR!
Dalto123 said:
You mentioned the 997t is a dream car for you. You can get a nice one in your budget, so go for it! 
I test drove the 4.3 a few months ago and loved everything other than the lack of power. It just didnt feel as fast as it looked. And you are right about the sound!! 
yeti said:
Fast - Classy - Clinical
Or
Common - Old fashioned - Impractical
Are perhaps the words I use when thinking of these cars, positive and negative in respective order.
It'd be the Vantage for me but the 4.7 is a must to compare to those two; it's a much improved car over the 4.3 in every way.
But as others have said, if you want the Porsche... Why look elsewhere?
But drive the Aston; if you have ANY interest in the noise a car makes... Well, just drive the Vantage. The 911 sounds like a big hairdryer by comparison.
The R8 gets the most collosally mahoosive 'meh' from me of any sports-type car. Nothing appeals although I'm sure it's great.
Or
Common - Old fashioned - Impractical
Are perhaps the words I use when thinking of these cars, positive and negative in respective order.
It'd be the Vantage for me but the 4.7 is a must to compare to those two; it's a much improved car over the 4.3 in every way.
But as others have said, if you want the Porsche... Why look elsewhere?
But drive the Aston; if you have ANY interest in the noise a car makes... Well, just drive the Vantage. The 911 sounds like a big hairdryer by comparison.
The R8 gets the most collosally mahoosive 'meh' from me of any sports-type car. Nothing appeals although I'm sure it's great.
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