I am NOT leaving the fold.....

[ChilliWhizz]

bks, that was supposed to say I am NOT leaving the fold,,, fecking useless keyboard...

Anyway, I'm picking up the new addition tomorrow or Wednesday, and I'm THAT excited I just have to share it with you guys... (Coz you're all a bit special....) I'll take more pics when I get her home, and next to beastie so we can look at which one has the best arse

In the meantime check this out

[ChilliWhizz]

Guys thanks for all the great posts above......

Mr Haribo, what info are you after (limited experience at the moment)

Car is just amazing to drive, sounds awesome, interior is a lovely place to be, and the looks.... just beautiful.....

So, I think she also wins the best arse competition...



And er, I'll just leave this here

N7GTX said:

Andy_mr2sc said:

N7GTX said:

That makes it faster than his beloved TVR

Tempting isn't it?

It is for you and me

But this might be Chilli's limit.....


together with.......


This is a recent photo of our celebrity AM owner.......

Yes yes it's a selfie

[ChilliWhizz]

raceboy said:

Saw that one on AutoTrader, looked like a good buy, been keeping my eye on them for a while now, had planned to swap my Chimaera for one last year (can't afford to run both ) but it wouldn't fit in my garage, salesman brought one round but couldn't get out the door.

I've now moved house, bigger garage, smaller bank balance that can no longer afford the Aston hopefully funds may have replenished in a year or so.

Did a good bit of research, and through the Aston forum exchanged info with the owner that sold it to the guy I bought it from... Guy before him had it from new So had only done a couple of thousand miles in two years with the third owner.. It was this history and the info (and posts on PH) that made this car interesting.... Lots of little bits to do all cosmetic, and she'll need a new clutch soon, but all budgeted for.... Pretty sure I'll go for the twin plate and lightened flywheel upgrade...

Have you driven one yet? Clutch is VERY heavy, gearbox isn't as slick as the T5 on the Chim, so a bit of a let down there... It's a bit low on torque, half a tonne heavier than a Chimaera so it needs a bit of rowing along to make it feel like you're making proper progress.. Compared to my Chim which is just over 360bhp and 354ft/lbs, it's 380bhp and a tad over 300ft/lbs.... Still though, it's just under 5 seconds to sixty and tops out at 175mph...... I think I've got every optional extra other than the 'premium sound' but to be honest the standard AM sound system sounds fecking awesome to me

I averaged 21mpg (according to the onboard computer) driving her back on Tuesday, compared to (only time I ever worked it out) 19mpg from beastie on a run from Narferk to Cardiff....

I have much more confidence flooring the Vantage compared to the Chim because it has less low down torque, traction control stuff, and is heavier.... I can't floor the Chim say coming out of a roundabout in anything other than bone dry very warm conditions because I know it will try to swap ends and kill me.... even with all four wheels pointing (vaguely) in the same direction.... In this respect under these conditions you can actually drive the Vantage quicker.....

Anyway, early days yet and still learning

Overall impressions so far ????? I love it

[ChilliWhizz]

phazed said:

Lovely car Richard. Out of my league I'm afraid. I wish you nothing more than many miles of smiling motoring!

I too have been trawling the small adds looking for something very fast and reasonably priced. There isn't a lot around .

I really do like my car, very fast and handles superbly, (in the dry) but I feel that I could do with less noise, a little more comfort and much more in the way of build quality.

Probably been spoilt by my daily driver, the Mercedes ML which just seems to be screwed together beautifully.

Peter, I think they've hit the depreciation low.... (please God ).... An ML and a 5.5l Chim is a great and hard to beat combination....

But.... try a Vantage..... (I am smitten at the moment like a loved up teenager so probably best to ignore)...

[ChilliWhizz]

QBee said:

One of my clients bought a DB9.
Wouldn't believe that my puny little one tonne car with 315 bhp would be quicker off the mark than his two tonnes of 470 bhp Aston.
Didn't bother arguing - he hates being bested.

Not a car nut/enthusiast then Anthony..... simple math will tell you that 315bhp/tonne (or nearly) is going to be a trifle quicker than 235bhp/tonne .... given environmental conditions, vehicle conditions, driver experience etc etc

[ChilliWhizz]

phazed said:

I'm only dreaming!

Got a spare 5.5 block, thoughts are, build it with low cr pistons and a low boost turbo,.....next year.

No no no no....

Stop arse'ing about Peter... You have one of the fastest cars on the planet already... You need something to complement it, not replace it.... ditch the mass produced German stuff and buy (another) rear wheel drive hand built (in England) V8 two seater beautifully awesome classic thingy type car wotsit.... with an ejector seat and machine guns... and stuff....

Here's one I bought earlier

[ChilliWhizz]

Or... Boris Becker

[ChilliWhizz]

Thanks for the positive comments guys....

Dave, it's not greed mate, it's a necessity...

PhilH42 said:

Looks the business Richard....is it living up to your expectations so far?

Hi Phil yes mate... it's very like a TVR... for example this morning it wouldn't fecking start Needs a new battery which I'll get and fit at the end of the week....

Also within a hundred miles of next 10k service... I can't believe they only change the oil on these things every 10k miles...

I absolutely adore the the damn thing... I'm getting used to driving it and it's not at all slow, just takes a bit of pedalling along to make proper progress ... Interior is just a bloody lovely place to be....

Cost of some bits is bloody eye-watering though... how about £3.2k for a clutch replacement

Never mind, it's still cheaper to run than the ex wife... (and it's ageing better )

Insurance on beastie expires end of November, then she's off the road for a few months.... let me know if you wanna meet somewhere before then...