8c or Vanquish S?

[scrubchub]

Interesting thread, I haven't been around PH long enough to see it first time around so great to read about it from the hunt for a car, through the ownership and out the other side, all in one sitting.

8C is literally the 'one' for me in terms of dream cars. James May described it perfectly - it's literally a super car poster made real.

Though as good as it looks (best ever to my eyes), if it is bordering on unusable in heavy rain then I can see how it would get wearing. Unless you could afford to have it as part of a collection then I can see why it wouldn't be a truly long term car. Especially as these days, supercars can be genuinely useable cars. Seems like a throwback to the days of cars like the Diablo - all style over function. And why not!

[ZOLLAR]

WTFWT said:

I had it 4 years all told and did 15,000 miles in it. During the last year, I only really used it once when I drove down to a wedding in Cornwall in driving rain. It deafened me and aquaplaned for the whole 6 hours down there and then the same coming back. A Golf TDI would have been a better companion. Next time out a 50p thermostat failed and it blew its coolant out (an AA man stopped at the side of the road within 3 minutes, before I had called anyone, told me all 8Cs have free AA cover, insisted he take me to a hire car place and then dropped the car back to London. It was very surreal). After that, I didn’t use it again for 6 months and put it up for sale.

There are moments when I miss it, but honestly, I had my fun with it. And, perhaps because of the faults, it was a lot of fun. Extremely easy to provoke and slide at low speed and I never tired of the noise and just the sensation of being in it. Sad as it may sound, it was just cool and it made me feel cool.

I’ve tried a bunch of super cars since and they have all left me cold (except the Noble M600 which I can’t quite get out of my head for some reason). I don’t think I would have another supercar. Ticked the box. And I’m bloody glad that was the car I chose to do it in.

Thanks for the response.

At least it's a box ticked that you can look back on with fond memories!

[ZX10R NIN]

I'd say the 8C is the one I'd go for, just to look at alone.

[thegreenhell]

WTFWT said:

Custom springs and dampers arrived now. Will give a full report when fitted and set up. The whole process has been one of discovery, frustration, hope and excitement!

Car will be dialled in on the road and at Bruntingthorpe. Will try and take some video / pics

Can you tell us more about this, or have you written about it elsewhere?

[WTFWT]

thegreenhell said:

Can you tell us more about this, or have you written about it elsewhere?

The new springs and dampers were made by Quantum with fully adjustable dampers. They supplied loads of springs and I fully tried 4 sets of springs I think.

When researching before starting the project, I found out that Dallara had been commissioned by Alfa to do all the set up work (and other cool stuff like the seats were from the Enzo). However, when Alfa sold all 500 in the time it takes to sneeze, Dallara were told not to bother. Dallara were hugely helpful in handing over a bunch of data, but confessed they hadn't got sufficiently far down the line to offer finalised solutions.

Rob Wilson did the set-up work at Bruntingthorpe for me on 3 separate occasions. The first time I tried it out on the road, it was alarmingly bad - the front and rear moving at totally different speeds and setting up an unpleasant oscillation. By the end of development, it was good. Not the difference I had hoped if I am honest in that it was still very stiff at low speed and jiggled mercilessly, although it settled in above 30mph. The big change was how flat it cornered and the balance became totally neutral so you really could just choose your angle of attack. With your bum right next to the rear axle, you really felt every degree of movement.

When the rear parcel shelf and interior was removed at the circuit, the car became almost unbearably loud and you also got to see into the innards of the fuel tank and axle etc. It really made you realise what a low volume special it was as everything looked handmade. The fuel tank looked like an endurance race tank.

It was a cool project. It did make the car better, but was it £10k well spent? Not really.

P.S. M5MarkM I was considering the Mk1 Vanquish

[thegreenhell]

Great, thanks for the update.

[WTFWT]

Funny how time moves on. I have since bought an Aston Martin V12 Vantage S. When they were new, I couldn’t get past the bonnet vents, but time moves on and my car is black with crimson bonnet carbon vents and strakes and I guess time softens perspective.

In many ways it reminds me of the 8C. It’s gorgeous, though not as rare, gearbox is a little truculent when cold, but what has surprised me is how much faster the Aston is. It doesn’t rip at the top end like the 8C did but, dear me, it has so much more power elsewhere. I bought it decatted with the Bluetooth valve button. The whole slip road thing… when you feed it the fat through 3rd and 4th… it feels violently quick. Like a solid 30% more than the 8C could manage.

I loved my time with the 8C. Did 15k miles with it. It became a YouTube star and I see it has since appeared on Harry’s garage (he slightly missed the point of the set up change - it was about making it more predictable to slide rather than more comfy). But I wouldn’t have it back. The Aston feels a step on (although the full on 900w stereo is dreadful after a few years in a top spec Jaguar). It feels a bit more Jekyl and Hyde. Can play both. The 8C was glorious, but sometimes a companion is what you need.

[cayman-black]

I think the 8C is a stunner but for the money I do think Aston Martin either V12Vantage(i just love the bonnet vents) or the Vanquish S matches it or possibly even betters it for looks as for the car itself self the Astons are far superior.