V12VS '15 vs '16 Differences?
Discussion
Im reading the Aston Martin Gayden definitive guide and there are a couple call outs for the 2016 year V12Vs.
1.) AMi2
2.) Rear lower section not leather
3.) Standard leather quality downgraded
Im specifically considering a 2016 for the AMi2 upgrade but point 2 and 3 have me wondering. Can anyone comment on the leather quality difference? Also, does anyone happen to have a picture of what the "rear lower section" is referring to?
I test drove a 2015 and loved it but in opening up my search ill likely need to go nation wide and ship the car. Id would be really helpful to know what exactly changed since in depth personal inspections would be unlikely.
Also, I see that Premium Audio is an option but Bang Olufson is not; however, I thought I'd seen pictures of the Bang Olufson dash tweeters? Is Premium audio and Bang Olufson the same thing?
1.) AMi2
2.) Rear lower section not leather
3.) Standard leather quality downgraded
Im specifically considering a 2016 for the AMi2 upgrade but point 2 and 3 have me wondering. Can anyone comment on the leather quality difference? Also, does anyone happen to have a picture of what the "rear lower section" is referring to?
I test drove a 2015 and loved it but in opening up my search ill likely need to go nation wide and ship the car. Id would be really helpful to know what exactly changed since in depth personal inspections would be unlikely.
Also, I see that Premium Audio is an option but Bang Olufson is not; however, I thought I'd seen pictures of the Bang Olufson dash tweeters? Is Premium audio and Bang Olufson the same thing?
Previous was a 2014. Current is 2016.
I also read that in the “Gaydon bible”. Didn’t notice a lower quality leather, but customers could spec back up as I understand.
Never found a lack of leather in any area. That must have been obscure.
AMIi is better and worth it (although AM3 in 2017 model even better with Apple Car Play, but possible to get specialist to install patch system).
The main hardware changes of any importance to suspension and steering took place in 2012.25 update, IIRC.
Lastly, expensive B&O option (£5k when new?) relatively rare. Adds 300w to bring it to 1000w and trick rising tweeters. Nice if you can find, but the option you REALLY want are lightweight carbon sports seats. You lose side airbags but gain comfort, weirdly.
Good luck!
I also read that in the “Gaydon bible”. Didn’t notice a lower quality leather, but customers could spec back up as I understand.
Never found a lack of leather in any area. That must have been obscure.
AMIi is better and worth it (although AM3 in 2017 model even better with Apple Car Play, but possible to get specialist to install patch system).
The main hardware changes of any importance to suspension and steering took place in 2012.25 update, IIRC.
Lastly, expensive B&O option (£5k when new?) relatively rare. Adds 300w to bring it to 1000w and trick rising tweeters. Nice if you can find, but the option you REALLY want are lightweight carbon sports seats. You lose side airbags but gain comfort, weirdly.
Good luck!
Hi Azten,
As far as the leather quality goes, up until the 16MY change the standard Vantage leather was "Caithness", with a softer, more supple hide called "Balmoral" available as an (expensive) upgrade. Not many people took the upgrade as I far as I saw when I was shopping for my V8V and the "Caithness" is a very nice, quality hide.
At 16MY a new standard spec leather called "Strathmore" was introduced, with "Caithness" being made a cost option and, I think, "Balmoral" still available as a "halo" trim. "Strathmore" has a noticeable, knobbly grain (a bit like army boots - although that may be a little unkind) and, in my opinion at least, swathes of it in the interior spoiled the look of the car to the point where I rejected a 16MY example just on that.
Luckily, at least again from my personal shopping experience, most first owners specifying their cars (or the dealers if they were dealer stock) seemed to have paid the relatively small additional amount to specify the perfectly acceptable "Caithness"..
Not everybody will be as bothered by the hide as I am - all I can suggest is you look at a couple of cars and decide if you can live with the cheaper hide - I couldn't. The type of hide is usually part of the vehicle spec the dealer will include in the advert.
As far as the leather quality goes, up until the 16MY change the standard Vantage leather was "Caithness", with a softer, more supple hide called "Balmoral" available as an (expensive) upgrade. Not many people took the upgrade as I far as I saw when I was shopping for my V8V and the "Caithness" is a very nice, quality hide.
At 16MY a new standard spec leather called "Strathmore" was introduced, with "Caithness" being made a cost option and, I think, "Balmoral" still available as a "halo" trim. "Strathmore" has a noticeable, knobbly grain (a bit like army boots - although that may be a little unkind) and, in my opinion at least, swathes of it in the interior spoiled the look of the car to the point where I rejected a 16MY example just on that.
Luckily, at least again from my personal shopping experience, most first owners specifying their cars (or the dealers if they were dealer stock) seemed to have paid the relatively small additional amount to specify the perfectly acceptable "Caithness"..
Not everybody will be as bothered by the hide as I am - all I can suggest is you look at a couple of cars and decide if you can live with the cheaper hide - I couldn't. The type of hide is usually part of the vehicle spec the dealer will include in the advert.
LTP said:
Hi Azten,
As far as the leather quality goes, up until the 16MY change the standard Vantage leather was "Caithness", with a softer, more supple hide called "Balmoral" available as an (expensive) upgrade. Not many people took the upgrade as I far as I saw when I was shopping for my V8V and the "Caithness" is a very nice, quality hide.
At 16MY a new standard spec leather called "Strathmore" was introduced, with "Caithness" being made a cost option and, I think, "Balmoral" still available as a "halo" trim. "Strathmore" has a noticeable, knobbly grain (a bit like army boots - although that may be a little unkind) and, in my opinion at least, swathes of it in the interior spoiled the look of the car to the point where I rejected a 16MY example just on that.
Luckily, at least again from my personal shopping experience, most first owners specifying their cars (or the dealers if they were dealer stock) seemed to have paid the relatively small additional amount to specify the perfectly acceptable "Caithness"..
Not everybody will be as bothered by the hide as I am - all I can suggest is you look at a couple of cars and decide if you can live with the cheaper hide - I couldn't. The type of hide is usually part of the vehicle spec the dealer will include in the advert.
Thanks so much! I googled the leather terms and that summed it up ver quickly. I think most the cars i've ever seen online obviously upgraded. The slight texture on the Strathmore would be an instant deal breaker.As far as the leather quality goes, up until the 16MY change the standard Vantage leather was "Caithness", with a softer, more supple hide called "Balmoral" available as an (expensive) upgrade. Not many people took the upgrade as I far as I saw when I was shopping for my V8V and the "Caithness" is a very nice, quality hide.
At 16MY a new standard spec leather called "Strathmore" was introduced, with "Caithness" being made a cost option and, I think, "Balmoral" still available as a "halo" trim. "Strathmore" has a noticeable, knobbly grain (a bit like army boots - although that may be a little unkind) and, in my opinion at least, swathes of it in the interior spoiled the look of the car to the point where I rejected a 16MY example just on that.
Luckily, at least again from my personal shopping experience, most first owners specifying their cars (or the dealers if they were dealer stock) seemed to have paid the relatively small additional amount to specify the perfectly acceptable "Caithness"..
Not everybody will be as bothered by the hide as I am - all I can suggest is you look at a couple of cars and decide if you can live with the cheaper hide - I couldn't. The type of hide is usually part of the vehicle spec the dealer will include in the advert.
Now I just need to find more about this "rear lower section". Im wondering if its behind the seats? Im not sure what else would be considered rear in a 2 seater
.Thank you both Nickv8 and LTP
I don't know the precise details of the later car changes, but around the time you refer to, there were some forum mentions about a few previous standard items being dropped or made cost options.
One I remember which did seem 'penny pinching', was omitting the leather strap used to pull down the Vantage tailgate.
Radio choices for the 2009 era were;
1. Standard, think 160 watt.
2. Premium, an Alpine 700 watt system. Cost option, probably the most popular.
3. B & O with the rising speakers top of dash. Costly option.
Azten said:
Thanks so much! I googled the leather terms and that summed it up ver quickly. I think most the cars i've ever seen online obviously upgraded. The slight texture on the Strathmore would be an instant deal breaker.
Now I just need to find more about this "rear lower section". Im wondering if its behind the seats? Im not sure what else would be considered rear in a 2 seater.
Thank you both Nickv8 and LTP
Sounds like you have most of the answers already, but to fill in your final question, yes the rear lower section is the vertical panel behind the seats that was covered in leather as standard up to the point of this change. Carpet covering that panel became the new standard, and although the difference was not significant visually it was only £395 to upgrade again back to full leather so a well worthwhile upgrade, and one I opted for on my car.Now I just need to find more about this "rear lower section". Im wondering if its behind the seats? Im not sure what else would be considered rear in a 2 seater
.Thank you both Nickv8 and LTP
The added smell of such a large area of leather is almost as important as the leather itself to be honest. Unlike caithness leather upgrade however I am not so sure that quite as many people chose this option, as it was somewhat under the radar. As Jon said there were a few penny pinching spec reductions, but almost all could be added back in at a cost, so it was a rather dubious attempt at keeping the price rise under control. I think many owners at the time would rather have seen the cost go up a little more.
Here's another one for you - the fuel filler cap was "downgraded" from aluminium to black plastic. For £195 you could add back in the aluminium version.
AdamV12V said:
Sounds like you have most of the answers already, but to fill in your final question, yes the rear lower section is the vertical panel behind the seats that was covered in leather as standard up to the point of this change. Carpet covering that panel became the new standard, and although the difference was not significant visually it was only £395 to upgrade again back to full leather so a well worthwhile upgrade, and one I opted for on my car.
The added smell of such a large area of leather is almost as important as the leather itself to be honest. Unlike caithness leather upgrade however I am not so sure that quite as many people chose this option, as it was somewhat under the radar. As Jon said there were a few penny pinching spec reductions, but almost all could be added back in at a cost, so it was a rather dubious attempt at keeping the price rise under control. I think many owners at the time would rather have seen the cost go up a little more.
Here's another one for you - the fuel filler cap was "downgraded" from aluminium to black plastic. For £195 you could add back in the aluminium version.
Got it! So googling a picture it would be the carpeted area under the bench in this picture? The added smell of such a large area of leather is almost as important as the leather itself to be honest. Unlike caithness leather upgrade however I am not so sure that quite as many people chose this option, as it was somewhat under the radar. As Jon said there were a few penny pinching spec reductions, but almost all could be added back in at a cost, so it was a rather dubious attempt at keeping the price rise under control. I think many owners at the time would rather have seen the cost go up a little more.
Here's another one for you - the fuel filler cap was "downgraded" from aluminium to black plastic. For £195 you could add back in the aluminium version.
https://www.chicagomotorcars.com/imagetag/5437/45/...
Is the bench it self ever in leather as well?
Azten said:
Got it! So googling a picture it would be the carpeted area under the bench in this picture?
https://www.chicagomotorcars.com/imagetag/5437/45/...
Is the bench it self ever in leather as well?
Yes that is the area, but it’s only the vertical back panel that was in leather and then in carpet (as per this pic). The lower horizontal surface always was in carpet, and even with the £395 upgrade was still in carpet. It’s always been that way in vantage (unless you pay Q to change it!)https://www.chicagomotorcars.com/imagetag/5437/45/...
Is the bench it self ever in leather as well?
BlackTails said:
Isn’t the bigger change for the MY16 cars the newer centre console design? There seems to be a slight upwards step change in pricing for cars with the new dash on AM dealer forecourts, as far as I can tell.
That was a year earlier! MY numbers are a year earlier than the actual year, so we are talking about MY17 cars in this thread.Here you are:
The luggage shelf itself has always been covered with carpet, not leather (makes sense).
On my 17MY V8 Vantage S I had the rear compartment leather (see pic above) retrofitted as the dealer spec had unfortunately been standard carpet. The OEM Obsidian Black "Caithness" leather - the configuration sheet calls it "Contemporary" - was used. So this is doable and therefore a rear compartment carpet should not turn you off from a specific car that might otherwise be in perfect condition.
As to the leather quality something to consider perhaps depending on your intended use of the car: When you will actually see the different leather qualities in reality - i.e. in the showroom - you will perhaps find that the difference in look between Strathmore and Caithness is not as big as you had imagined. At least that was my experience. When I looked into the leather interiors in the showroom for the very first time, I really had difficulties in telling one from the other. Only later on after I had seen and realized the slightly more "knobbly" texture of Strathmore, yes, I became more aware of it.
Admittedly I am quite happy that my car has got Caithness as it looks really fine. But the downside to this fine quality is that it is VERY scratch sensitive and delicate. On a garage queen like mine it is of course perfect to look at, but really "using" this material on a daily driver basis would be a different thing. Therefore I could imagine that Strathmore would perhaps be the better and more durable choice for everyday use.
The luggage shelf itself has always been covered with carpet, not leather (makes sense).
On my 17MY V8 Vantage S I had the rear compartment leather (see pic above) retrofitted as the dealer spec had unfortunately been standard carpet. The OEM Obsidian Black "Caithness" leather - the configuration sheet calls it "Contemporary" - was used. So this is doable and therefore a rear compartment carpet should not turn you off from a specific car that might otherwise be in perfect condition.
As to the leather quality something to consider perhaps depending on your intended use of the car: When you will actually see the different leather qualities in reality - i.e. in the showroom - you will perhaps find that the difference in look between Strathmore and Caithness is not as big as you had imagined. At least that was my experience. When I looked into the leather interiors in the showroom for the very first time, I really had difficulties in telling one from the other. Only later on after I had seen and realized the slightly more "knobbly" texture of Strathmore, yes, I became more aware of it.
Admittedly I am quite happy that my car has got Caithness as it looks really fine. But the downside to this fine quality is that it is VERY scratch sensitive and delicate. On a garage queen like mine it is of course perfect to look at, but really "using" this material on a daily driver basis would be a different thing. Therefore I could imagine that Strathmore would perhaps be the better and more durable choice for everyday use.
AdamV12V said:
BlackTails said:
Isn’t the bigger change for the MY16 cars the newer centre console design? There seems to be a slight upwards step change in pricing for cars with the new dash on AM dealer forecourts, as far as I can tell.
That was a year earlier! MY numbers are a year earlier than the actual year, so we are talking about MY17 cars in this thread.Emilio Largo said:
AdamV12V said:
BlackTails said:
Isn’t the bigger change for the MY16 cars the newer centre console design? There seems to be a slight upwards step change in pricing for cars with the new dash on AM dealer forecourts, as far as I can tell.
That was a year earlier! MY numbers are a year earlier than the actual year, so we are talking about MY17 cars in this thread.The difference between Caithness and Strathmore leather, imo, is very noticeable.
I don't understand the thinking behind these changes -- these details are very much a part of what makes an Aston special, and goes a long way toward creating that aura of craftsmanship. How much could these things have cost? Must be a very small increment in cars in this price class.
Speedraser said:
Sometime during MY16 the Aston wings disappeared from the engine -- one of those details that is so nice, and a shame to lose to penny-pinching.
How very true! Of course I would have loved to have that intake manifold badge retrofitted as well. But I soon discovered that the recess in the manifold in which the wings badge used to be neatly placed on the earlier cars had also vanished. I never found the courage to just glue it on the (now) even surface of the manifold without some sort of template (like for the model badge at the rear).
So they made a different intake manifold part to be able to save the badge? Strange, but so it seems.
Speedraser said:
Emilio Largo said:
AdamV12V said:
BlackTails said:
Isn’t the bigger change for the MY16 cars the newer centre console design? There seems to be a slight upwards step change in pricing for cars with the new dash on AM dealer forecourts, as far as I can tell.
That was a year earlier! MY numbers are a year earlier than the actual year, so we are talking about MY17 cars in this thread.The difference between Caithness and Strathmore leather, imo, is very noticeable.
I don't understand the thinking behind these changes -- these details are very much a part of what makes an Aston special, and goes a long way toward creating that aura of craftsmanship. How much could these things have cost? Must be a very small increment in cars in this price class.
Mine is a '65 plate, MY16, which originally came with AMIii (AMIiii is better, if expensive, save for not pinging speed camera warnings at you any more, unless you hook it to Waze). I hadn't really noticed the trim around that rear luggage area but I assume mine is carpeted (and the car is at HWM having some work done right now, so I can't check). I have LW seats so a bit less leather in any event.
BlackTails said:
Phew!
Mine is a '65 plate, MY16, which originally came with AMIii (AMIiii is better, if expensive, save for not pinging speed camera warnings at you any more, unless you hook it to Waze). I hadn't really noticed the trim around that rear luggage area but I assume mine is carpeted (and the car is at HWM having some work done right now, so I can't check). I have LW seats so a bit less leather in any event.
Did you upgrade from AMI ii to AMI iii? It's a huge improvement, apparently, but also a huge price and it seems only AM dealers can do it.Mine is a '65 plate, MY16, which originally came with AMIii (AMIiii is better, if expensive, save for not pinging speed camera warnings at you any more, unless you hook it to Waze). I hadn't really noticed the trim around that rear luggage area but I assume mine is carpeted (and the car is at HWM having some work done right now, so I can't check). I have LW seats so a bit less leather in any event.
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