RE: Aston Martin Rapide AMR revealed
Discussion
love the lime or yellow when Aston do it round the lips, but this stripe seems a bit off, IMO
the chap, above, with the body entirely in a dark colour (burgundy? black?) has it right, I reckon
I do prefer the fascia without fog lamps (the CDs as another comment here says)
for me this car is all about the front 3/4 view -- the sweeping arc of the front wing and the "chic cheek" of the large grille
the coupe-inspired treatment of the dog leg C-pillar adds to the drama as well as the offset beltline back there
the chap, above, with the body entirely in a dark colour (burgundy? black?) has it right, I reckon
I do prefer the fascia without fog lamps (the CDs as another comment here says)
for me this car is all about the front 3/4 view -- the sweeping arc of the front wing and the "chic cheek" of the large grille
the coupe-inspired treatment of the dog leg C-pillar adds to the drama as well as the offset beltline back there
Nerdherder said:
Makes no sense but still I love it. Has anyone seen a Rapide in the wild by the way? I wonder how rare these beasts are.
Seen a few not loads, and went to Silverstone Classic a few years ago in a Rapide S, sadly only as a passenger but did get to go out in the parade around the track as part of the 100 year celebrations. Truly brilliant GT car, sounds amazing, rides and handles outstandingly well for a car of its size, and because it’s an Aston the interior is a truly awesome place to be. Not a massive amount of room in the back of it though, more enough for a shortish trip than enough for your friends to be comfortable on a trek to Scotland for example. RudeDog said:
Mines looks almost identical to yours (sa_20v) although I think my wheels are slightly different.
You're a man of taste! 
They're special cars. Do you stay mostly in sport just for the throttle response?unsprung said:
the chap, above, with the body entirely in a dark colour (burgundy? black?) has it right, I reckon
It's Amethyst Red. Looks burgundy when overcast and almost flip paint purple in the sunshine - a couple of friends have called it brown! 
It's not very Aston (black, silver, grey) but I'm not an Aston guy...sa_20v said:
RudeDog said:
Mines looks almost identical to yours (sa_20v) although I think my wheels are slightly different.
You're a man of taste! They're special cars. Do you stay mostly in sport just for the throttle response?
The gearbox is the worst thing about the car. I find it OK in sport mode once you're moving but getting off the line, regardless of Sport mode or not, I find that its either too brutal or it changes gear when you still want power. If it had something as good as a Porsche PDK box or maybe just a modern gearbox like the ones used in AMGs then it would be a much better drive. Overall I do love it though.
Apart from the lights, which I didn't think suited the Zagato's either, I really like the styling of this. I think it's the perfect blend of good looks and brutishness which is exactly as an Aston should be for me. Just a plain colour with no accents and a simple but classy interior scheme would do me as oppose to what is being offered.
Its a funny concept and I don't really get it - the Rapide to my (biased) eyes remains the best looking 4 seater GT out there (Bentley Continental challenging hard at the moment though...), And,seriously, don't even mention the admittedly capable Panamera - its far too ugly and one prod of the V12's starter button and its long forgotten about
Its a magnificently balanced and grippy car with fabulous steering feel and chassis throttle balance - its also an absolute bargain at the moment and rare as hens teeth. Mine has been rock solid reliable for 4 years now. Forget the go faster bits though at £200k
- its all about leaving the DD alone on the weekend and taking your kids with you, and in a car that handles better than anyone might dare to think, looks like a supermodel (ok a big one ) and one that makes the hairs on your arm stick up at 7000rpm :
Its a magnificently balanced and grippy car with fabulous steering feel and chassis throttle balance - its also an absolute bargain at the moment and rare as hens teeth. Mine has been rock solid reliable for 4 years now. Forget the go faster bits though at £200k
- its all about leaving the DD alone on the weekend and taking your kids with you, and in a car that handles better than anyone might dare to think, looks like a supermodel (ok a big one ) and one that makes the hairs on your arm stick up at 7000rpm :
My first post on the PH forum after much passive enjoyment in the past. Catalyst for the post is that I am finally getting back into AM ownership after a 9yr gap, previous ownership experience was 2005 MY DB9 coupe owned between 2008-9 while living in Asia - scary depreciation experience but despite that I loved it and have vivid memories of the excitement of starting that beautiful V12 and sheer fun of the driving experience! In the intervening years I scratched my 911 itch via a few years with a 997.II C4S coupe, liked the car but never “loved” it and it was almost too sensible and user friendly and apart from the first week of ownership (and the odd track day) never made my hair stand straight with excitement the way every DB9 journey did...
Fast forward to 2018 and after much diligence and browsing on PH sales list and elsewhere plus deposits placed (and rescinded) on new DB11 and DBS/new Vanquish at local dealer ...and I finally found the AM that ticked every box for me - the Rapide AMR. By good fortune I managed to find an allocation and expect to take delivery of a Scintilla Silver (with China Grey stripe) model later this year.
Read the earlier post on who is the target market for this car and it’s a fair point given the v small niche this car fills - I must be one of the few in the target market: wanted a limited edition/production run car to mitigate depreciation risk, two rear seats that could actually fit my kids (10+11yrs old), a GT that we can actually do family trips in so that I get to use it on more occasions than a 2+2/2 seater. Debated a Vanquish S Volante given limited production but small seats would mean much less use for me, at the same price point pondered a used FF or waiting a while for GTC Lusso depreciation but my wife thinks they are ugly and wouldn’t give me a pass despite the bigger rear seats (and I wasn’t sure how FF/GTC would age/hold value once initial steep depreciation had happened).
Anyhow - Super excited about rejoining the AM family...appreciate the patience with this inaugural and lengthy post!
Fast forward to 2018 and after much diligence and browsing on PH sales list and elsewhere plus deposits placed (and rescinded) on new DB11 and DBS/new Vanquish at local dealer ...and I finally found the AM that ticked every box for me - the Rapide AMR. By good fortune I managed to find an allocation and expect to take delivery of a Scintilla Silver (with China Grey stripe) model later this year.
Read the earlier post on who is the target market for this car and it’s a fair point given the v small niche this car fills - I must be one of the few in the target market: wanted a limited edition/production run car to mitigate depreciation risk, two rear seats that could actually fit my kids (10+11yrs old), a GT that we can actually do family trips in so that I get to use it on more occasions than a 2+2/2 seater. Debated a Vanquish S Volante given limited production but small seats would mean much less use for me, at the same price point pondered a used FF or waiting a while for GTC Lusso depreciation but my wife thinks they are ugly and wouldn’t give me a pass despite the bigger rear seats (and I wasn’t sure how FF/GTC would age/hold value once initial steep depreciation had happened).
Anyhow - Super excited about rejoining the AM family...appreciate the patience with this inaugural and lengthy post!
I get it if you are wealthy yet only have one parking space.
But personally I just prefer the two car system. Make the daily driver 4-door practical and refined. SE spec, balloon tyres, it’s all good.
And then make the weekender fun and full of driver appeal. It’s for this reason I’m not really into the whole M5 / RS6 thing.
This isn’t really one or the other to me. But each to their own, would never knock another’s choice of how to spend their hard earned.
But personally I just prefer the two car system. Make the daily driver 4-door practical and refined. SE spec, balloon tyres, it’s all good.
And then make the weekender fun and full of driver appeal. It’s for this reason I’m not really into the whole M5 / RS6 thing.
This isn’t really one or the other to me. But each to their own, would never knock another’s choice of how to spend their hard earned.
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