Aston Martin Rapide | PH Auction Block
6.0-litres up front and space for four inside - what more do you need?
Now is not a great time for those of us who love a fast four-door. Both the BMW M5 and AMG E-Class are drastically different propositions to what they used to be (and seldom more likeable), the Maserati Quattroporte is gone, the V8 Lexuses have said sayonara and the Audi S8 won’t be replaced. Shame. While the business case is hard to argue with - big petrol engines are almost impossible to make emissions compliant on their own, SUVs sell better - it remains disappointing.
Because there’s really nothing like the supersaloon experience; a surfeit of performance, sophistication and theatre really does make every journey feel very special indeed. Lower, sleeker four- and five-doors are so much more suave and stylish than those that must ride higher. It’s a fast car niche that’s very easy to be very fond of.
And the Aston Martin Rapide must be one of the most likeable. Oh sure, it was never the most capacious executive car around, and the DBX that replaced it as the family friendly Aston is one of the very best SUVs out there, but as a slightly more practical spin on the VH architecture it absolutely nailed the brief. Because here was a car just as arresting to look at and beguiling to drive as any DB9 or Vantage, with room for a couple of people (or bikes) in the back. The Gaydon MPV, if you will.
But perhaps because it was never quite as glamorous as the two-doors, and with the turbo’d German V8s going faster than the V12 for less, the Rapide tends to be forgotten about a little. They’re seldom seen and, while having new Rapides around feels like just a few years ago, it actually went out of production after a 10-year run at the start of this decade. And a lot has happened at Aston since just 2020.
This Rapide is one of the very first, a 470hp six-speed car on a 60-plate. The Rapide would go on to more powerful, more exciting things - the 550hp S and the 600hp AMR, with the eight-speed - but you probably don’t need us to tell you that all the standard VH Astons are abundantly appealing. They sound spectacular, they look great, and the value proposition looks hard to argue with.
This one has covered just 34,000 miles in a little under 16 years, and benefits from a fresh set of Michelins. The service history is excellent (including fresh fluids this year, just 40 miles ago), there’s months left on the MOT and, well, doesn’t it look magnificent? Black is notoriously difficult to keep clean, but the Rapide has recently been detailed and ceramic coated, so it’s still pretty smart. The cream hide - as part of the Luxe spec upgrade - is a nice contrast inside, and has lasted well. You’re going to be oversubscribed on lift requests, that seems certain, friends and family desperate to experience four-seat, four-door, 6.0-litre motoring. Keep a healthy kitty for fuel and maintenance (as you would any other supersaloon), and enjoy the ride. Sounds eminently achievable in something this exceptional. If not now, when?
Looking at the classifieds this is a £30-35k car. Can barely buy a new Golf for that nowadays (cliché alert!) but even with having to stick a few thousand a year away each year for warrantly/maintenance, it's probably not much more expensive in the medium run*
*as long as you don't count the fuel
The interior felt very dated although the materials were nice. I just looked at the prices - christ, they're dirt cheap now!
The interior felt very dated although the materials were nice. I just looked at the prices - christ, they're dirt cheap now!
Maybe the one you looked at wasn't properly set up.
Lovely cars, not very spacious but you have to look at it like a big 2+2, teenagers will fit comfortably in the back and I had a short ride in the back of a Rapide and it felt quite snug but comfortable.
Very underrated cars at unbeatable used prices.
The interior felt very dated although the materials were nice. I just looked at the prices - christ, they're dirt cheap now!
Maybe the one you looked at wasn't properly set up.
Lovely cars, not very spacious but you have to look at it like a big 2+2, teenagers will fit comfortably in the back and I had a short ride in the back of a Rapide and it felt quite snug but comfortable.
Very underrated cars at unbeatable used prices.
It felt pretty stodgy and underpowered to me, and the engine note was a bit too muted so I didn't pursue it. It was totally different to the car I eventually bought which was another 4 seater V12.
Cheap thrills for under 40k and plenty of miles to put on it.
Did Kevin the teenager clean the engine bay?
No mechanical issues? Apart from the shagged brake disc and four cracked tyres
The advert says four brand new tyres but, confusingly, there is an invoice for two new rear tyres in 2023 so they didn't last long!
Mind you, the ad also says 'No evidence of any scratches, dents or dings" but the nearside front corner looks pretty scuffed in the close up, as do a number of other areas including the door handles.
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