GMR Supercharger Kit - thoughts?
Discussion
So I've had my 2008 V8Vr for nearly a year and a half a love it. Perfect blend of class, style and look at me I'm awesome. I'm also lucky enough to have an Exige, but rarely use it now and considering selling it on. Not wanting to dwindle my car pot I've thought about upgrading the AM. I'll be honest, I've toyed with the idea of a Gallardo, 911 or California, but I just can't get over the fact when you're seen driving with the roof off most people would just look at you and think w@nker! I know I should care what others think but I do. The AM is perfect for that, yeah sure the odd person would still think that, mainly out of jealousy, but in the main most people appreciate the cars.
So I started looking at V12's but then thought I need to get a grip, I don't earn the money that warrants spending £100k on a car. I could just about justify it but with the new model coming out in just over a year I'd be worried about depreciation.
So then I'm down to a V8Vs (roadster of course) Love the look, the updated bumpers, centre console, could get one with a few more toys (prem. audio, mem seats, auto dim rear view) and of course it will be a bit quicker than mine. However, do those differences warrant a £35k spend? Mines got 63k miles on it, this would have significantly less, sure. But would I be more at risk from depreciation?
So this got me thinking. My current car is pretty safe as far as depreciation goes. I'd just like it to be quicker, give me back what I'd lose by getting rid of the Exige. The V8VS wouldn't quite do that. But spending £18k on a supercharger kit would! And you'd be up with V12 power levels.
My concerns are these:
http://gmr-uk.co.uk/
A good read here: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=159...
So I started looking at V12's but then thought I need to get a grip, I don't earn the money that warrants spending £100k on a car. I could just about justify it but with the new model coming out in just over a year I'd be worried about depreciation.
So then I'm down to a V8Vs (roadster of course) Love the look, the updated bumpers, centre console, could get one with a few more toys (prem. audio, mem seats, auto dim rear view) and of course it will be a bit quicker than mine. However, do those differences warrant a £35k spend? Mines got 63k miles on it, this would have significantly less, sure. But would I be more at risk from depreciation?
So this got me thinking. My current car is pretty safe as far as depreciation goes. I'd just like it to be quicker, give me back what I'd lose by getting rid of the Exige. The V8VS wouldn't quite do that. But spending £18k on a supercharger kit would! And you'd be up with V12 power levels.
My concerns are these:
- Can the car cope with that power level? They say they've done 10's thousands of miles now, inc trips to the Ring. So looking good
- resale? As mine is at the bottom end of the price range anyway, I would've thought it won't hurt it. Would be happy if it added £10k on to the value?
http://gmr-uk.co.uk/
A good read here: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=159...
Edited by AstonExige on Thursday 10th November 09:55
my two cents: the upgrade certainly sounds great and personally I prefer superchargers so much over turbos (even though they are very, very thirsty, but how cares).
However, I believe there are a few caveats:
1) Upgrade of the ride: I think you need to consider as well putting some money into the ride; I don't think it's advisable to just put 200 more bhp on the standard V8V ride if you're going to use this power
2) Breaks: same as the ride, if you really want to use the power and go the full 200 mph they claim, probably the brakes need some upgrade as well.
3) Resale: honestly, I don't think investing GBP 18k will increase the resale value by 10k. I think it will be difficult to sell it at all for a reasonable price. You will find very little demand for a used supercharged AM. Look at other marques and turbo/supercharger upgrades, they are never fulfilling the expectations of the owners with regard to resale.
4) Performance figures: for a 3.6 sec 0-60 the power is sufficient (3.6 is probably a bit ambitious, but below 4.0 should be feasible), but you would need to work on traction. Semi-slicks, wider tires etc.
However, I believe there are a few caveats:
1) Upgrade of the ride: I think you need to consider as well putting some money into the ride; I don't think it's advisable to just put 200 more bhp on the standard V8V ride if you're going to use this power
2) Breaks: same as the ride, if you really want to use the power and go the full 200 mph they claim, probably the brakes need some upgrade as well.
3) Resale: honestly, I don't think investing GBP 18k will increase the resale value by 10k. I think it will be difficult to sell it at all for a reasonable price. You will find very little demand for a used supercharged AM. Look at other marques and turbo/supercharger upgrades, they are never fulfilling the expectations of the owners with regard to resale.
4) Performance figures: for a 3.6 sec 0-60 the power is sufficient (3.6 is probably a bit ambitious, but below 4.0 should be feasible), but you would need to work on traction. Semi-slicks, wider tires etc.
Edited by TKP on Thursday 10th November 10:28
TKP said:
my two cents: the upgrade certainly sounds great and personally I prefer superchargers so much over turbos (even though they are very, very thirsty, but how cares).
However, I believe there are a few caveats:
1) Upgrade of the ride: I think you need to consider as well putting some money into the ride; I don't think it's advisable to just put 200 more bhp on the standard V8V ride if you're going to use this power
2) Breaks: same as the ride, if you really want to use the power and go the full 200 mph they claim, probably the brakes need some upgrade as well.
3) Resale: honestly, I don't think investing GBP 18k will increase the resale value by 10k. I think it will be difficult to sell it at all for a reasonable price. You will find very little demand for a used supercharged AM. Look at other marques and turbo/supercharger upgrades, they are never fulfilling the expectations of the owners with regard to resale.
4) Performance figures: for a 3.6 sec 0-60 the power is sufficient (3.6 is probably a bit ambitious, but below 4.0 should be feasible), but you would need to work on traction. Semi-slicks, wider tires etc.
Thanks for the feedback. Its the resale that bothers me the most really. For me personally, when I was looking if I had seen a Vantage with nearly 600bhp, done well and well looked after I'd have paid an extra £10k! May help with mine only being worth £35k right now. So would a 2008 AM Vantage roadster with 600bhp be worth £45k? Would there be people out there willing to pay that? I would have thought so. Supercar Performance in a classy, understated package. Maybe it'd take longer to sell as the market would be restricted. Or would it. A lot of my friends wouldn't consider a V8 Vantage as they are too slow, so by sticking on an SC are you in fact bringing some new people to the market? However, I believe there are a few caveats:
1) Upgrade of the ride: I think you need to consider as well putting some money into the ride; I don't think it's advisable to just put 200 more bhp on the standard V8V ride if you're going to use this power
2) Breaks: same as the ride, if you really want to use the power and go the full 200 mph they claim, probably the brakes need some upgrade as well.
3) Resale: honestly, I don't think investing GBP 18k will increase the resale value by 10k. I think it will be difficult to sell it at all for a reasonable price. You will find very little demand for a used supercharged AM. Look at other marques and turbo/supercharger upgrades, they are never fulfilling the expectations of the owners with regard to resale.
4) Performance figures: for a 3.6 sec 0-60 the power is sufficient (3.6 is probably a bit ambitious, but below 4.0 should be feasible), but you would need to work on traction. Semi-slicks, wider tires etc.
Edited by TKP on Thursday 10th November 10:28
As for brakes, I'm not going to track it, road use only, so 200mph is not a speed I will be going! I think the brakes are more than adequate for the road, should I start noticing an issue I'll certainly get that sorted. Suspension? Same thing really? Tyres? Already sorted on that, just put some DBS wheels on that have 295's on the rear
If I had the money and choice, I'd probably go down the AM power upgrade and additional exhaust kit with Bamford Rose, but that's my personal preference. I'd say its cheaper, reliable and more desirable when selling on compared to a supercharger. Even though the supercharger maybe a great product, a lot of people are just put off by such a big change and the unknown long term effects.
I have driven the demo car and can certainly confirm that it is quick. I couldn't justify the cost. For £18k assuming garage space you could buy another fun car. Regarding residuals, speaking from experience of having modified a few cars, and also having bought a fairly heavily modified V8 Vantage, it is unlikely you would get back the cost of the mods when you come to sell. The right buyer may be willing to pay a slight premium over the market price for a similar car, but 18k more?
As above, you wont get your money back and imagine being the buyer of the SC car, spending £45k on a blown older higher mileage Aston with no warranty. How much is a full rebuild if needed? £15k, £20k ?
I would play it "safe" with the known, established aspirated mods. You can get a 4.3 up to 470bhp with manifolds/cats/ECU etc from Bamford Rose and would be spending 1/3rd of the cost, more likely to get some back come resale or take the parts off and sell seperately.
470bhp is a nice upgrade on a 4.3
I would play it "safe" with the known, established aspirated mods. You can get a 4.3 up to 470bhp with manifolds/cats/ECU etc from Bamford Rose and would be spending 1/3rd of the cost, more likely to get some back come resale or take the parts off and sell seperately.
470bhp is a nice upgrade on a 4.3
Similar to the other comments, I think it would be much harder to sell (smaller base of people likely to want it) and even then I suspect you'd get max £5k back on top of a stock car. Plus - even if I would have considered a modified car when I was buying mine, I would not have considered one that had such a big increase in power at a relatively high mileage - which yours is. I realise in the grand scheme of things ~60k miles isn't a lot, but adding 50% more power........
The BR updates would be more acceptable I think.
The BR updates would be more acceptable I think.
AstonExige said:
- Can the car cope with that power level? They say they've done 10's thousands of miles now, inc trips to the Ring. So looking good.
Each year Aston Martin enter the Nurburgring Nordschleife 24 hours race. It usually includes a Vantage in an almost showroom class. Therefore the reliability of a standard 4·7 engine is made very public, with the car being driven flat out for 24 hours.
You say the GMR car as been to the Ring. Was this for just a few laps, or has it competed in a 24 hour race there?
Superchargers create considerable extra heat and other stresses, so my main concern would be long-term reliability. Reassurances by a seller, would not be enough for me, particularly as we have heard that replacement engines cost about £20,000.
Perhaps I worry unecessarily, but I still remember years ago, when a friend fitted a supercharger to an everyday car. It went fast, and sounded great, but eventually - bang!
bogie said:
I would play it "safe" with the known, established aspirated mods. You can get a 4.3 up to 470bhp with manifolds/cats/ECU etc from Bamford Rose and would be spending 1/3rd of the cost, more likely to get some back come resale or take the parts off and sell seperately.
470bhp is a nice upgrade on a 4.3
"Jessica" at GBP 6k? Hard to believe.... IIRC the normal BR upgrade that brings the standard 4.3 to 4.7S performance is already beyond that.470bhp is a nice upgrade on a 4.3
TKP said:
bogie said:
I would play it "safe" with the known, established aspirated mods. You can get a 4.3 up to 470bhp with manifolds/cats/ECU etc from Bamford Rose and would be spending 1/3rd of the cost, more likely to get some back come resale or take the parts off and sell seperately.
470bhp is a nice upgrade on a 4.3
"Jessica" at GBP 6k? Hard to believe.... IIRC the normal BR upgrade that brings the standard 4.3 to 4.7S performance is already beyond that.470bhp is a nice upgrade on a 4.3
Ian_UK1 said:
The 4.3 can't be taken to 470BHP directly - it has to be completely rebuilt as a 4.7 first. The BR tuning pack (manifolds, 200-cell cats, engine re-calibration and airbox mods) will then take the converted 4.7 engine to circa 470BHP. This is, of course, a lot more expensive than £6000, but an early 4.3 plus cost of conversion will likely be less expensive than starting with a later car.
But how much less? An extra £15k would get me a 4.7 with lower miles and a newer car. AstonExige said:
Ian_UK1 said:
The 4.3 can't be taken to 470BHP directly - it has to be completely rebuilt as a 4.7 first. The BR tuning pack (manifolds, 200-cell cats, engine re-calibration and airbox mods) will then take the converted 4.7 engine to circa 470BHP. This is, of course, a lot more expensive than £6000, but an early 4.3 plus cost of conversion will likely be less expensive than starting with a later car.
But how much less? An extra £15k would get me a 4.7 with lower miles and a newer car. Another option could just be save up a bit more and change cars....the 40bhp and raft of other nice improvements over the years is well worth the upgrade now the early 4.7s are in the £50k region
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