First year of V8V ownership

[V8V Pete]

So it is a year since I bought my California Sage MY2009 4.7 V8V and I thought I would share my experiences.

The car was fairly low mileage at 16,000 and I have done a further 7,000 miles in the last year returning about 20mpg in mixed driving.




Maintenance:
1. Annual service August 2014 at local Main Dealer - no unexpected issues.
2. Rear brake pads (at service and anticipated by me).
3. Set of winter tyres.
4. One small top up of oil between services.
5. Full paint correction detail by Paddy - very highly recommended.

Warranty items:
1. New AM tuner module for radio - not sure how long it was broken as I only found out when I tried to listen to the cricket (FM was fine).
2. New Aircon pump - was working fine but nasty intermittent squealing sound due to slipping electromagnetic clutch.
3. New hydraulic pistons for boot lid as not holding it fully open.
4. Paintwork for minute bubble top of passenger door next to mirror which I didn't spot when I bought the car - not really warranty I know but 100% contribution from AML.

Modifications:
1. New steering wheel to get Cruise Control - well worth it for me.
2. Parrot Bluetooth unit - works very well and is completely hidden in "ashtray".
3. BR 3-way exhaust switch - better than just removing Fuse 22 because it stops your valves sticking (unless you have it on loud ALL the time!)

What I've learnt:
1. Not all main dealers are the same! The one I bought it from sent me out for a test drive in a car with a slipping clutch then when I collected the car it had oil leaking from the gearbox oil cooler. Unfortunately, I only discovered this when over 100 miles away at home when I saw oil on the drive (and all over the back of the car). They even tried to deny that it was present when the car left them until I showed them a picture of it when I test drove it 10 days earlier with oil on their forecourt. OK, I should have spotted that too but so should their 140 point check!



This problem and a couple of other issues hanging over from the sale were sorted out by my local main dealer (Derby Stratstone) with a level of service I have never encountered before in the motor trade. It is for this reason that I chose to have my service at this dealership rather than one of the very reputable indies within easy reach of me.

2. Do not test drive a V12V. I absolutely love my V8V but since test driving the Madagascar beast at Works Service in July my waking hours have been consumed with the need to upgrade to a V12. This will happen within the next couple of years but if you have less patience / self control than me then really - DO NOT TEST DRIVE A V12V.
3. Everyone loves Aston Martins.
4. The answer to the question "Do you need a lovely lady to sit in that empty seat?" should nearly always be "No, I've already got one of those" but that may depend on personal circumstances.
5. Do not scratch bumper on stupid garden wall 2 weeks after paint protection film applied



So what do I plan for the next year?
1. Save up for V12.
2. Save £250 by not subscribing to Tracker service (going towards V12 fund).
3. Save a lot more (hopefully) by not renewing warranty (hopefully going towards V12 fund).
4. Do AM Performance Driving Course (in preparation for V12 ownership).

Thanks for all the advice and banter on here and here's to another year of happy motoring (not thinking about this).

[V8V Pete]

Little Donkey said:

Can't believe that Madagascar V12 is still up for sale. What's the matter with you lot, it's stunning - someone please get it bought!

It's not only stunning but it also has a specification to die for. The deal was done in my world but when I took the family to see it the girls totally hated the colour. Clearly divorce is the only logical route to pursue but I'm still working on gentle persuasion. My legendary patience will falter eventually.

[V8V Pete]

Little Donkey said:

V8V Pete said:

Little Donkey said:

Can't believe that Madagascar V12 is still up for sale. What's the matter with you lot, it's stunning - someone please get it bought!

It's not only stunning but it also has a specification to die for. The deal was done in my world but when I took the family to see it the girls totally hated the colour. Clearly divorce is the only logical route to pursue but I'm still working on gentle persuasion. My legendary patience will falter eventually.

Go for the divorce - any judge will sympathise in your plight and will find heavily in your favour. Guaranteed.

Did think about following the legendary advice "Just get a V12 in the same colour, she'll never notice". Obviously a watertight plan until you see the colour of my V8 and that of the V12 I have been seduced by.

[V8V Pete]

sunseeker said:

Pete, Your Aston is stunning. You should be happy with what you have. I am still waiting on my DB7 to get finished. It went for exhaust system this week on a transporter. Here is what a light weight DB7 looks like. lol.

Gus, you need to get that car out of Scotland before it becomes a foreign country and import tax is due!

[V8V Pete]

Little Donkey said:

You have my favourite colour already in the V8 (I still miss mine) now a V12 in CSG would make me weep. Wonder if they ever produced any?

I have a pic of mine somewhere - ah yes, here we are........

Sigh..... (

I had wondered if it was your old V8V that I had but I see that it was a 4.3 so clearly not. I'm actually not sure if CSG would suit the V12V as well as it does the V8 because subtlety isn't really the V12's strong point. I'm sure MakoV12V and his registry will know if any were made in Sage.

[V8V Pete]

mikey k said:

V8V Pete said:

Thanks for all the advice and banter on here and here's to another year of happy motoring (not thinking about this).

No idea why that V12 hasn't sold

1. When first on sale it was too expensive.
2. Being a press car any rational potential purchaser would worry at least to some extent how hard it may have been driven for 9000 miles.
3. In my experience girls hate the colour - WTF
4. It's now been on sale nearly a year.

[V8V Pete]

AMDBSNick said:

V8V Pete said:

2. Being a press car any rational potential purchaser would worry at least to some extent how hard it may have been driven for 9000 miles.

Was it definitely a press car out of interest? I was chatting to a factory driver the other day. One of his jobs is to simply drive around all day long (obeying the speed limits) just so an engineer could evaluate wear and tear on some part or other after a days constant use (not abuse). He also said how incredibly well looked after the cars are. Having seen the way "some" people on the forum treat their cars the minute they start them up in the morning I would be more concerned buying one of those.

Yes, they are quite adamant it was a press car and offered to show me the articles/provenance but I didn't look as I believed them. It is definitely a double edged sword though. Yes, some journalists will abuse it but it is designed to be driven hard, let's face it. On the other hand they are very well looked after and the car looks perfect (except a peeling leading edge of left rear quarter paint protection film!).

Believe me, if it hadn't been vetoed by the girls it would now be mine.

[V8V Pete]

Ikobo said:

Can I ask what the total costs were of having cruise retro fitted?

About £750. It's quite simple as only hardware needed is the steering wheel then just needs an ECU re-flash. So a bit costly but bonus is you have a brand new wheel to hold and look at which somehow makes the car feel newer. I suppose you could also go for an Alcantara wheel if you fancied that too.

[V8V Pete]

Ikobo said:

I assume that's £750 plus the wheel Pete? I didn't think it would bother me when I bought the Vantage that it didn't have it, but I've become so accustomed to having it in my other car for long journeys it really is something you miss.

No, that was £750 all in. Not sure if that was a good price for the wheel as it was done as part of the purchase deal. Have a word with your local dealer, see what they say.

[V8V Pete]

Ah bks, the irony of it. 5 days into warranty-free ownership and I get my first one of these Can people give me an idea of how often these tend to clear themselves with time as I don't have a code reader. Might just take it to the Dealer as they've been pretty good at the goodwill thing so far and know I'm in the market for a V12V sometime too

[V8V Pete]

triple5 said:

I used to get loads of ESSR warnings and after many resets by the dealer and myself, (they never cleared themselves), the dealer replaced the left bank Lambda Sensor..........not one error since.

By way of an update on mine, ironically again, the message cleared itself after 5 days on start up on the trip to the Dealer to have it read. I went anyway (only a few miles away), they read it anyway and all was fine, no work needed. So, message to self: must only do longer journeys driving harder - oh well, I'll cope!