DBS Volante Purchase and Running Cost Advice

[5 wh]

After wanting a DBS Volante for many years I’m finally considering making a purchase.Its a car I would be keeping for many years so getting the right car is extremely important to me.Having researched models/specs etc with the help of Grants book I am leaning towards the updated 2012 model with the updated sat nav/silver seat adjustment switches etc.Something low mileage(under 15k)with low owners(many I’ve seen seem to be at least 4/5 owners!)and in a dark colour(grey/black),preferably a Carbon Edition.Is the 2012 worth seeking out or is the updated Garmin sat nav only slightly less dire than the Volvo unit?
How do other owners find reliability/servicing/running costs?Are you still using AM main dealers or are respected specialists as good at looking after them.What is the likely average annual spend for servicing? Is there a long term appeal with the DBS or is it something where the novelty wears off after a year or two? Thanks in advance. Will

[KevinBird]

The DBS only works as a manual which are impossible to find on Volante form

I would go for a post 2013 DB9 Volante which is much the same car as a DBS but you’ll get a newer car with less issues, see Grant’s book for details

If you can find a GT in your budget that will also give the later touch dash

Edited by KevinBird on Tuesday 4th August 08:19

[5 wh]

It’s definitely a DBS I want-I’m not interested in a DB9.

I’m also aware that the manual gearbox is better but I’m not a fan of manuals-I know it means having the sportshift which I’ve had in the V8VR I used to own.I know it’s not the best auto and a compromise I’m going to have to make to own a DBSV.

[Neil1300r]

5 wh said:

It’s definitely a DBS I want-I’m not interested in a DB9.

I’m also aware that the manual gearbox is better but I’m not a fan of manuals-I know it means having the sportshift which I’ve had in the V8VR I used to own.I know it’s not the best auto and a compromise I’m going to have to make to own a DBSV.

Sportshift in a V8VR is a manual not an auto gearbox.
DBS - it is a proper auto box. Same box (with different setup) to the DB9. Nothing like the V8VR

[DBSSV20]

If it’s a long term investment are you not considering the DBS SV

I got an absolute cracking deal on mine! Yes , it’s more outlay but I intend to keep mine... and IMO, the best convertible you can buy ( and I’m including the other usual brands in this statement)

5 year’s service included . There is nothing that comes close.....

I’m 30 mins from you if you want my private thoughts and info etc etc

[MarsellusWallace]

Neil1300r said:

5 wh said:

It’s definitely a DBS I want-I’m not interested in a DB9.

I’m also aware that the manual gearbox is better but I’m not a fan of manuals-I know it means having the sportshift which I’ve had in the V8VR I used to own.I know it’s not the best auto and a compromise I’m going to have to make to own a DBSV.

Sportshift in a V8VR is a manual not an auto gearbox.
DBS - it is a proper auto box. Same box (with different setup) to the DB9. Nothing like the V8VR

Sorry,my mistake.The point I was trying to make was that I am aware both ‘auto’ boxes are not regarded as being as good as the equivalent manuals

[Paul-DBSV12V]

5 wh said:

After wanting a DBS Volante for many years I’m finally considering making a purchase.Its a car I would be keeping for many years so getting the right car is extremely important to me.Having researched models/specs etc with the help of Grants book I am leaning towards the updated 2012 model with the updated sat nav/silver seat adjustment switches etc.Something low mileage(under 15k)with low owners(many I’ve seen seem to be at least 4/5 owners!)and in a dark colour(grey/black),preferably a Carbon Edition.Is the 2012 worth seeking out or is the updated Garmin sat nav only slightly less dire than the Volvo unit?
How do other owners find reliability/servicing/running costs?Are you still using AM main dealers or are respected specialists as good at looking after them.What is the likely average annual spend for servicing? Is there a long term appeal with the DBS or is it something where the novelty wears off after a year or two? Thanks in advance. Will

Bought my DBS Volante in 2016 having owned a 2008 DB9 for 3 years. DBS is a different car driving wise. It took me by surprise how different. Mine is an Auto, a manual would be nice but I think I am right in saying there may only be a couple of manual volantes in UK.

I like the auto and when you get into using the paddles they are great. The thing that drew me to the DBS was the possible future value. It's a bond car, was made in low numbers etc etc.

For me I bought when values were on the up, following my purchase they promptly stopped being on the up, but hey I think I am keeping it long term. The DBS never fails to bring a smile to my face when I drive, and it looks awesome. I personally think the looks are holding up well over time and it's a pleasure to look at.

Top and bottom is though, don't buy it as an investment, it may let you down, but buy because you want it. I still have mine serviced at main dealer,and usually it's tolerable £6-800 although I had a hefty bill this time for 10 year service and failed roof control module (common fault) £1800.

Mine had done 26k miles when I purchased, now 35k. I keep it off the road when salt us about. November to March ish and enjoy it the rest of the time.

AM or any other similar brand is never going to be cheap to run, but equally I gave had bigger garage bills for my LR disco 4.

[5 wh]

Paul-DBSV12V said:

5 wh said:

After wanting a DBS Volante for many years I’m finally considering making a purchase.Its a car I would be keeping for many years so getting the right car is extremely important to me.Having researched models/specs etc with the help of Grants book I am leaning towards the updated 2012 model with the updated sat nav/silver seat adjustment switches etc.Something low mileage(under 15k)with low owners(many I’ve seen seem to be at least 4/5 owners!)and in a dark colour(grey/black),preferably a Carbon Edition.Is the 2012 worth seeking out or is the updated Garmin sat nav only slightly less dire than the Volvo unit?
How do other owners find reliability/servicing/running costs?Are you still using AM main dealers or are respected specialists as good at looking after them.What is the likely average annual spend for servicing? Is there a long term appeal with the DBS or is it something where the novelty wears off after a year or two? Thanks in advance. Will

Bought my DBS Volante in 2016 having owned a 2008 DB9 for 3 years. DBS is a different car driving wise. It took me by surprise how different. Mine is an Auto, a manual would be nice but I think I am right in saying there may only be a couple of manual volantes in UK.

I like the auto and when you get into using the paddles they are great. The thing that drew me to the DBS was the possible future value. It's a bond car, was made in low numbers etc etc.

For me I bought when values were on the up, following my purchase they promptly stopped being on the up, but hey I think I am keeping it long term. The DBS never fails to bring a smile to my face when I drive, and it looks awesome. I personally think the looks are holding up well over time and it's a pleasure to look at.

Top and bottom is though, don't buy it as an investment, it may let you down, but buy because you want it. I still have mine serviced at main dealer,and usually it's tolerable £6-800 although I had a hefty bill this time for 10 year service and failed roof control module (common fault) £1800.

Mine had done 26k miles when I purchased, now 35k. I keep it off the road when salt us about. November to March ish and enjoy it the rest of the time.

AM or any other similar brand is never going to be cheap to run, but equally I gave had bigger garage bills for my LR disco 4.

Thank you for sharing your ownership experience.Ive been around cars long enough to know that they are rarely good investments.My thoughts have always been buy the car you love and if it keeps its value or goes up then that’s a bonus.Ive had some large bills presented to me in my time by the likes of Bentley Arnages and Ferrari 355’s so realistic about running costs.The roof control module seem a common failure on these,is there no one who can repair them-BBA reman etc?

[Paul-DBSV12V]

Re the roof module. Annoyingly it's a 10 minute job to fit, but then it needs coding to the car. A dealer job!

There was someone on here got one repaired, it's a webasto unit.

I imagine it's a case of the solder joints drying out on the board, so you can probably reflow it. It wouldn't last forever though as it's usually a case of poor quality solder when that happens.

Just guessing, I don't have any proof of the above. Tbf mine had lasted 10 years.

Paul

[Doggleg]

5 wh said:

After wanting a DBS Volante for many years I’m finally considering making a purchase.Its a car I would be keeping for many years so getting the right car is extremely important to me.Having researched models/specs etc with the help of Grants book I am leaning towards the updated 2012 model with the updated sat nav/silver seat adjustment switches etc.Something low mileage(under 15k)with low owners(many I’ve seen seem to be at least 4/5 owners!)and in a dark colour(grey/black),preferably a Carbon Edition.Is the 2012 worth seeking out or is the updated Garmin sat nav only slightly less dire than the Volvo unit?
How do other owners find reliability/servicing/running costs?Are you still using AM main dealers or are respected specialists as good at looking after them.What is the likely average annual spend for servicing? Is there a long term appeal with the DBS or is it something where the novelty wears off after a year or two? Thanks in advance. Will

Having had my third Vantage, a V12VSR 7 speed manual for about a year, I bought a DBS Volante as well, primarily because it was such a bargain. I got a 2010 car with 8k miles for a stupidly low price and it's been a great buy. Very different obviously but overall I enjoy driving the DBS more than the Vantage.

I don't agree that the DBS only works as a manual, it all depends what you are doing with the car. My Vantage is in Scotland, close to the great driving roads of Glenshee, the Lecht, etc. and the DBS is in Florida where there are no fun roads, maybe with the exception of cruising down the overseas highway. I use the paddles in the DBS in the city and it works fine and is easy to drive. Traffic is much less of a pain obviously. The DBS is black and looks fantastic.

The only reliability issue I've had was the rear window falling out of the roof when it was sitting in the sun one day. It's normally stored indoors but this day it sat in the sun for a few hours and when I came out the window was lying on the parcel shelf.

Don't worry about the sat nav issue, just use Waze or google maps, they're much better anyway. Both of mine have the B&O sound systems but the DBS sounds much better for some reason. The Vantage has the secondary cats removed and one of Clive's remote switches in Fuse 22 but the DBS sounds just as good and maybe even better.

I don't think you'll regret getting a DBS.

Cheers.

[KevinBird]

This has just popped up for sale https://www.hwmastonmartin.co.uk/pre-owned-cars/11...

[5 wh]

Doggleg said:

5 wh said:

After wanting a DBS Volante for many years I’m finally considering making a purchase.Its a car I would be keeping for many years so getting the right car is extremely important to me.Having researched models/specs etc with the help of Grants book I am leaning towards the updated 2012 model with the updated sat nav/silver seat adjustment switches etc.Something low mileage(under 15k)with low owners(many I’ve seen seem to be at least 4/5 owners!)and in a dark colour(grey/black),preferably a Carbon Edition.Is the 2012 worth seeking out or is the updated Garmin sat nav only slightly less dire than the Volvo unit?
How do other owners find reliability/servicing/running costs?Are you still using AM main dealers or are respected specialists as good at looking after them.What is the likely average annual spend for servicing? Is there a long term appeal with the DBS or is it something where the novelty wears off after a year or two? Thanks in advance. Will

Having had my third Vantage, a V12VSR 7 speed manual for about a year, I bought a DBS Volante as well, primarily because it was such a bargain. I got a 2010 car with 8k miles for a stupidly low price and it's been a great buy. Very different obviously but overall I enjoy driving the DBS more than the Vantage.

I don't agree that the DBS only works as a manual, it all depends what you are doing with the car. My Vantage is in Scotland, close to the great driving roads of Glenshee, the Lecht, etc. and the DBS is in Florida where there are no fun roads, maybe with the exception of cruising down the overseas highway. I use the paddles in the DBS in the city and it works fine and is easy to drive. Traffic is much less of a pain obviously. The DBS is black and looks fantastic.

The only reliability issue I've had was the rear window falling out of the roof when it was sitting in the sun one day. It's normally stored indoors but this day it sat in the sun for a few hours and when I came out the window was lying on the parcel shelf.

Don't worry about the sat nav issue, just use Waze or google maps, they're much better anyway. Both of mine have the B&O sound systems but the DBS sounds much better for some reason. The Vantage has the secondary cats removed and one of Clive's remote switches in Fuse 22 but the DBS sounds just as good and maybe even better.

I don't think you'll regret getting a DBS.

Cheers.

Thank you.My personal motoring these days consists of around 2000 miles a year cruising around-I’ve driven that many miles over the years as a lorry driver and also for my job that the joy of a manual gearbox has passed for me so the auto gearbox appeals.I like a nice looking car and one that puts a smile on my face when I look at it.Mostly it would be used for drive outs for a spot of lunch/dinner on my day off!Of all the ‘premium’ cars I’ve owned the response from others to my V8V was the friendliest and most positive of any car I’ve ever owned with people giving it the thumbs up and commenting what a nice car it was and wanting to chat about it.Trivial I know but I like stuff like that.

[5 wh]

KevinBird said:

This has just popped up for sale https://www.hwmastonmartin.co.uk/pre-owned-cars/11...

I’ve seen that and initially it was marked sold then readvertised.It looks a nice car to be fair and ticks many boxes of what I want.The history is all AM and they are putting a 12 month warranty on.I don’t think the price is unreasonable either.The only downsides are 5 owners and it not being the 2012 model.I am tempted but just started looking and as it’s something that I’ll probably have 10 plus years then it needs to be exactly what I want.

[Green9]

Just had a new roof control module fitted to my DB9 as on hot days when you pressed the roof down button, it sent the dash haywire with all sorts of error messages popping up. Found an AM independent locally who fitted it and reflashed it. Part was about £500 and labour about £75. Problem solved and apparently the new parts are “improved” so that should be the end of it!

Interestingly, the AM independent said that the convertible roofs on the DB9s (and therefore DBSs) are very well engineered and give few problems compared to those on the V8Vs. Not quite sure why...

[AWV12]

Owning a DBS Volante (Manual ) since 2012 and never had a problem driving. There are several minor issues, where the roof module (especially in hot conditions) was the most worrying. For the rest small annoyences, like moisture in rear and front lights, window and door modules replaced, and the usual electronic glitches. Compared with my daily German car, not that many over the last 8 years.