EVO review of AM Rapide vs Maserati Gran Turismo
Discussion
brakedwell said:
A very fair assessment, although a Quattroporte would have been a been a better comparison.
Sorry but I don't agree at all. I've been saying since it came out that despite the press comaprison tests, Rapide is not a logical alternative to quattroporte for most (though not all), just as it isn't for panameraExactly as Harry says, Rapide is a DB9 with rear seats that you can actually use and should be thought of as a 2+2. Otherwise you'll spend your time (quite rightly) slating the room & access for the rear seats, luggage space, etc.
Rapide's most obvious rivals are bentley continental, maserati GT, merc CL (I think that's what they call it now, the s class coupe anyway), ferrari 612 (I know the FF is out now, but that is 250k !) i.e. sporting coupes with rear seat arrangements.
The rear doors on rapide help access but are a red herring if used to then compare the car to other 4 door models like quattroporte which is defintiely a saloon car - rapide is most definitely not a saloon
Harry is quite the Aston fan these days, he's a good car journo and proper car man.
Very fair points and really shows that Aston need to do a huge job to get more room in the back, not just fit a new grille and bump up the power.
The hatchback arrangement and folding seats really is a triumph, although there should be a cover for the seat backs when they're laid flat, that pale leather looked really vulnerable.
Very fair points and really shows that Aston need to do a huge job to get more room in the back, not just fit a new grille and bump up the power.
The hatchback arrangement and folding seats really is a triumph, although there should be a cover for the seat backs when they're laid flat, that pale leather looked really vulnerable.
We compared the Rapide with the GranTurismo and 612 last year with the decision being that for us the Rapide was the winner. In terms of interior space the three cars are very closely matched. With two small children getting them in and out of rear car seats with the rear doors was a big advantage. In some ways it would be much nicer if the Italian cars had good old fashioned seats because you seem to wait for eternity for them to slowly slide forward to enable rear access. I thought that the Maser felt bigger and heavier and certainly the interior was several steps below the Aston.
Ultimately though I preferred the way the Aston drove. With a family in tow I'm just not likely to drive the same way as I do in my Lotus. I liked the auto box and felt it suited the car's role as a GT. I'm rarely a fan of autos.
We're waiting to see the new one and there is a possibility we might order one to get it 'just right' but I guess it's more likely that we'll pick one up second-hand later this year. With the way the prices are going I'm in no hurry.
Ultimately though I preferred the way the Aston drove. With a family in tow I'm just not likely to drive the same way as I do in my Lotus. I liked the auto box and felt it suited the car's role as a GT. I'm rarely a fan of autos.
We're waiting to see the new one and there is a possibility we might order one to get it 'just right' but I guess it's more likely that we'll pick one up second-hand later this year. With the way the prices are going I'm in no hurry.
yeti said:
Harry is quite the Aston fan these days, he's a good car journo and proper car man.
Very fair points and really shows that Aston need to do a huge job to get more room in the back, not just fit a new grille and bump up the power.
The hatchback arrangement and folding seats really is a triumph, although there should be a cover for the seat backs when they're laid flat, that pale leather looked really vulnerable.
I'm not sure how they will go with the rapide medium term - the new one will be seriously rapid however ! Very fair points and really shows that Aston need to do a huge job to get more room in the back, not just fit a new grille and bump up the power.
The hatchback arrangement and folding seats really is a triumph, although there should be a cover for the seat backs when they're laid flat, that pale leather looked really vulnerable.
But I can see them potentially launching more of a 'proper saloon', perhaps alongside rapide, i.e. all new. I think to get significantly more rear space, either to compete with maserati/porsche or to meet the demands of the chinese market, they need to start again - rapide can only be altered so much and I don't think it will be enough to compete with saloons
My own opinion is that they should try to make the rapide a 2 door but with the same size exterior & interior - chandrew has illustrated my point that for those that know, the logical comparisons to rapide are cars like the maser GT & 612 but the mainstream press and therefore wider public may not realise that until it goes to 2 doors
Incidentally, maserati will be even further removed from aston shortly, as the new quattorporte is larger and less agile whilst the baby quattorporte will be a rebadged jobbo (Chrysler from memory) based on a medium size saloon car
The rear seats are small if you consider the external dimensions of the car, but plenty of families do fine with something Golf / Focus sized and from memory it's not a million miles away from those sort of cars - well maybe a bit lower headroom.
As for a bigger-in-the-back 4 door I can't see it. I suspect we'll see something AWD and a bit higher first. What could be interesting, especially with the hike in power of the new one could be dropping the V8 of the Vantage S in it as a new entry model and dropping the price to around the GBP100k level.
In marketing terms they quite clearly need to position it as a usable 2+2 that happens to have 4 doors when they let the media drive the new one.
As for a bigger-in-the-back 4 door I can't see it. I suspect we'll see something AWD and a bit higher first. What could be interesting, especially with the hike in power of the new one could be dropping the V8 of the Vantage S in it as a new entry model and dropping the price to around the GBP100k level.
In marketing terms they quite clearly need to position it as a usable 2+2 that happens to have 4 doors when they let the media drive the new one.
ds2000 said:
I personally don't get the rapide at all, apologies if anyone here has one and loves it. For me I'd sooner have a Vantage and an old Disco for >2 runs, or dare I say it... an XF....
Aaaaand if you only have space for one car..? Or you have 2 cars, the wife is in the Disco with one of the kids a d two of their pals and you're taking the other 2 to school? I don't need a Rapide either, but I can understand that many do. As I found out recently on here, it's Aston's best selling model at the moment so there is obviously a market for it...
I had my Rapide for 12 months and I think the video is pretty accurate in it's assessment. It's a great car, but if I was to pick issues with it - it would be the letter box windscreen coupled with the low roof height that restricts vision on tight roads/gateways and that slush box which doesn't have the crispness of an automated manual.
yeti said:
Aaaaand if you only have space for one car..? Or you have 2 cars, the wife is in the Disco with one of the kids a d two of their pals and you're taking the other 2 to school?
I don't need a Rapide either, but I can understand that many do. As I found out recently on here, it's Aston's best selling model at the moment so there is obviously a market for it...
Valid points but if I only had space for one car it'd probably be the disco, so that I could get around every day of the week. As you said its selling well but then I don't get the Porsche Cayenne either.... so its probably a case of me not getting something... imagine that I don't need a Rapide either, but I can understand that many do. As I found out recently on here, it's Aston's best selling model at the moment so there is obviously a market for it...
Why is the Rapide packaging so poor - is the v12 so big or is there something about aluminium that requires an Elise type sill and more space as he implies ? If they dropped the v8 engine in could they increase rear legroom ? It really is the only Aston you could even think about having as your only car which is presumably why it sells so well elsewhere in the world.
I did want the Rapide to be a replacement for my DB9, but it is too compromised in the rear space department. I normally drive to Munich twice a year, but the time is approaching when I would prefer to share the driving with my son, who usually accompanies us in his V8V. The idea that my wife would be comfortable in the back of a Rapide for six or seven hours was disproved in the showroom. There is not enough space for her feet under the front seat and her knees would be touching the back when it positioned with minimal space for a 6' passenger. She also found the rear environment claustrophobic, admittedly the car had black leather. I found it very difficult to get in and out of the back seat due to the shape of the door, which removed the option of her sitting in the front while my son drove. The car is over five metres long, which makes the shrinking size of parking spaces an even bigger pain in the a*se. Having driven a 2013 DB9, which I loved BTW, I have decided to stay younger for longer and look forward to the newly found refinement of a "new" DB9.
Interesting thread. I have a 2012 vantage and a RRS. The range rover is obviously the family weekend car but would love to go out with the family (wife, 13yr old girl and 10 yr old boy) in an aston. The vantage has only done 2000 miles in the last 10 months and I am seriously considering a rapide which would get used for family days out.
I truly wish the family would fit in the back of a DB9 but multiple posts on here say that is a dream.
Best regards
Josh
I truly wish the family would fit in the back of a DB9 but multiple posts on here say that is a dream.
Best regards
Josh
Edited by josh bear on Saturday 19th January 19:52
I had a Merc CL500 2009 replaced it with a 2012 Rapide 3 months ago and love it. Much more practical to get in and out for passengers of than a coupe (and I don't have to get out for someone else to get in). The sound, feeling and handling is great in my opinion - it certainly does the job for me and it is nice to be able to have a few friends along and not just one.
- but obviously not for everyone...
- but obviously not for everyone...
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