Inspired or idiotic? "Cheap" V8 Vantage
Discussion
AM wanted £400 to replace them as part of a service, The only difference i could tell was it looked like the old filters had been stamped with a AM service stamp lol. 
Finally got grumpy enough with the swirly and scratched paint to do something about it. I have this week off and I've also press-ganged my youngest son who is fairly handy with detailing and paint correction. The offer of letting him use it for a couple of days for his regular commute seems to have helped with the enthusiasm....
The whole car has been painted previously and not done very well (I knew this when I bought it) so there are lots of blemishes IN the paint which no amount of polishing is going to fix. The current aim is to get the car to a very decent "10-foot" standard while I save up for a proper respray.
Borrowed an ex-boss's garage, as the weather isn't trustworthy enough to do it all outside.
Day 1 of 3
Quick wash, then into the garage and up on axle stands - wheels off and sent to my regular refurb place, as they were worse than I thought they'd be - some bubbling on the inner barrel, looks like it's had a brake fluid leak at some point..
Find the worst of the scratches and swirls
Got the car masked up ready for the first stage of machine polishing - all done now (with some small pieces of yellow masking tape to tag the areas where a bit more work is needed tomorrow)
Tomorrow will be the finishing stage of the machine polishing, followed by ceramic coating. Depending on time, we'll probably have a go at the wheel arches too - not pretty....
More photos soon....
The whole car has been painted previously and not done very well (I knew this when I bought it) so there are lots of blemishes IN the paint which no amount of polishing is going to fix. The current aim is to get the car to a very decent "10-foot" standard while I save up for a proper respray.
Borrowed an ex-boss's garage, as the weather isn't trustworthy enough to do it all outside.
Day 1 of 3
Quick wash, then into the garage and up on axle stands - wheels off and sent to my regular refurb place, as they were worse than I thought they'd be - some bubbling on the inner barrel, looks like it's had a brake fluid leak at some point..
Find the worst of the scratches and swirls
Got the car masked up ready for the first stage of machine polishing - all done now (with some small pieces of yellow masking tape to tag the areas where a bit more work is needed tomorrow)
Tomorrow will be the finishing stage of the machine polishing, followed by ceramic coating. Depending on time, we'll probably have a go at the wheel arches too - not pretty....
More photos soon....
Edited by Nigel_O on Saturday 28th May 09:27
Day 2 of 3 - another day with the DA polishers....
We got the finishing machine polish done today, along with the Autoglym ceramic treatment
Much better than the "before" piccy in my post yesterday
Obligatory reflection shot...
Tomorrow will be sorting the manky wheelarches, applying a final wax coat and fitting the newly-refurbished wheels. Can't wait to see it out in the daylight, as indoor flourescents are great for highlighting the remaining paintwork blemishes, but a pain when trying to work out when to stop chasing the tiniest marks.
We got the finishing machine polish done today, along with the Autoglym ceramic treatment
Much better than the "before" piccy in my post yesterday
Obligatory reflection shot...
Tomorrow will be sorting the manky wheelarches, applying a final wax coat and fitting the newly-refurbished wheels. Can't wait to see it out in the daylight, as indoor flourescents are great for highlighting the remaining paintwork blemishes, but a pain when trying to work out when to stop chasing the tiniest marks.
sdh2903 said:
That looks tons better 
How did you find the autoglym stuff to use?
It was very easy - clean down with the prep fluid, then apply the ceramic fluid, wait a few minutes for it to haze, then buff off.How did you find the autoglym stuff to use?
My car's paint isn't very good (badly-prepped and poorly applied - I suspect it was a quick blow-over to make it shiny for a sale). However, it is now massively better than it was and it will probably mean I can live with it for another year or so while I contemplate a full respray or a later 4.7 instead...
Finished......
Seven hours per day for two people over three days gives an indication of how bad it was.
I owe my son a huge favour and I appear to have volunteered to return the favour on his Jaaag XJ, which is rather larger than the Aston, so I'm not sure who got the better deal....
Anyway - some final piccies
Wheelarches done - surprising what a difference it makes to have properly black wheelarches
Wheels on and ready to go
After two days of dull, overcast weather, the sun even came out for the Grand Reveal
I was aiming to get the car to a "10-foot" standard, but we've gone way better than that. There are a couple of stonechips visible from a distance, but you'd have to get to within a couple of feet of the car to start to see the defects in the paint. Just about every defect that remains is IN the paint, caused by poor prep or application - nothing that can be solved with mopping and waxing.
Seven hours per day for two people over three days gives an indication of how bad it was.
I owe my son a huge favour and I appear to have volunteered to return the favour on his Jaaag XJ, which is rather larger than the Aston, so I'm not sure who got the better deal....
Anyway - some final piccies
Wheelarches done - surprising what a difference it makes to have properly black wheelarches
Wheels on and ready to go
After two days of dull, overcast weather, the sun even came out for the Grand Reveal
I was aiming to get the car to a "10-foot" standard, but we've gone way better than that. There are a couple of stonechips visible from a distance, but you'd have to get to within a couple of feet of the car to start to see the defects in the paint. Just about every defect that remains is IN the paint, caused by poor prep or application - nothing that can be solved with mopping and waxing.
Edited by Nigel_O on Saturday 28th May 09:30
I’m going with very inspired, all that car for 3 grand less, than starting price of a Golf GTi. For starters, just look at it, absolutely gorgeous, looks so special, no doubt sounds fantastic. I’m sure every drive has a sense of occasion.
I hope it treats your pockets lightly and gives you lots of enjoyment.
I hope it treats your pockets lightly and gives you lots of enjoyment.
Nigel’s son here, I’m only 30 but, this morning, I’m complaining to people at work with ‘ooh my back’ in the hopes of some sympathy, 15-20 hours ish crawling up and down a low car is quite something, I was a lot younger when I was doing this as a part-time side game…
One phone pic I got to show off the shine, is one of the bonnet. Some panels appear to have a better application of paint and so have ‘shined-up’ better than some others:
Nevertheless, an enjoyable car to work on, the prominent metallic fleck helped with the outdoor appearance, where in the garage the ripply roof and failed fluorescent lamps didn’t make it easier
Mybrown ‘Caviar Red’ jaaag next…
One phone pic I got to show off the shine, is one of the bonnet. Some panels appear to have a better application of paint and so have ‘shined-up’ better than some others:
Nevertheless, an enjoyable car to work on, the prominent metallic fleck helped with the outdoor appearance, where in the garage the ripply roof and failed fluorescent lamps didn’t make it easier
My
Edited by OGR4M on Monday 30th May 13:31
When I bought the Vantage, I pretty much knew everything that wasn't quite right - I've had (thankfully) very few surprises.
One of the things I knew about was a very slight judder in the front brakes - it could be felt when braking really gently down to a standstill. Apparently, the front brake ventilation on the Vantage isn't great, so they can suffer with lack of cooling - something I'm very familiar with from my Fiat Coupe.
Something I was also familiar with from my Fiat days was that not all "warped" discs are actually warped and sometimes a re bedding-in can cure the judder (which is actually caused by uneven deposits of pad material on the disc surface). Last week, I had a bit of a jaunt around north Wales and although much of the driving was quite sedate, some of it was fairly quick and I've now found that the warp was indeed a warp and its now much worse, so new discs are in order.
Of course, the correct thing to do is to replace with standard items, which can be had for very reasonable money compared with genuine AM discs (eg below £100 per disc). However, man-maths crept in and I've gone for 2-piece floating discs with a grey-anodised bell to match the calipers (didn't fancy bright silver). While I was there, I somehow managed to upgrade from the standard 355mm discs to 380mm, which comes with billet caliper spacers and new caliper bolts. The new bigger discs are lighter than the old smaller ones, so there's my justification....
Also, while I was abusing the bank account, I decided that re-fitting the existing pads was probably not a good idea (despite there being loads of material left), so after lots of Googling and reading of owner reviews, I've gone for some Porterfield R4-S pads.
They should be here in the next couple of weeks - photos to follow....
One of the things I knew about was a very slight judder in the front brakes - it could be felt when braking really gently down to a standstill. Apparently, the front brake ventilation on the Vantage isn't great, so they can suffer with lack of cooling - something I'm very familiar with from my Fiat Coupe.
Something I was also familiar with from my Fiat days was that not all "warped" discs are actually warped and sometimes a re bedding-in can cure the judder (which is actually caused by uneven deposits of pad material on the disc surface). Last week, I had a bit of a jaunt around north Wales and although much of the driving was quite sedate, some of it was fairly quick and I've now found that the warp was indeed a warp and its now much worse, so new discs are in order.
Of course, the correct thing to do is to replace with standard items, which can be had for very reasonable money compared with genuine AM discs (eg below £100 per disc). However, man-maths crept in and I've gone for 2-piece floating discs with a grey-anodised bell to match the calipers (didn't fancy bright silver). While I was there, I somehow managed to upgrade from the standard 355mm discs to 380mm, which comes with billet caliper spacers and new caliper bolts. The new bigger discs are lighter than the old smaller ones, so there's my justification....
Also, while I was abusing the bank account, I decided that re-fitting the existing pads was probably not a good idea (despite there being loads of material left), so after lots of Googling and reading of owner reviews, I've gone for some Porterfield R4-S pads.
They should be here in the next couple of weeks - photos to follow....
Nigel_O said:
Shnozz said:
Nigel_O said:
TBH, the exhaust flaps are only closed between (IIRC) 1,500 - 4,000 rpm anyway, so I guess it’s just for low-speed trundling and cruising. I put fuse 22 back in and couldn’t really hear much difference, so when it ‘fell out’ again, I just left it….
If Fuse 22 has been out for some time already, you might find that the flaps have seized in any event. Mine had.There's a leak from the vacuum pipes that actuate the valves, so the vacuum pump is constantly running when the fuse is inserted. Once I've fixed it, I have a remote switch that takes the place of the fuse and allows the flaps to be left open, or controlled by the ECU
one of the items on the growing to-do list....
Great car and well worth the effort you're putting in. And you've answered what next after my Alpina too, thank you.
Shnozz said:
So the 4.7 upgrade plan has been shelved?!
No - just delayed a little. I've spotted two 4.7s recently in my desired spec and budget, both of which had received recent twin plate clutch upgrades, but both of which had sold quite quickly.I can see me selling my Westfield, as it's not getting the use it had when I first bought it and my tinkering obsession is now being directed at the Aston - this will give me the funds I need to upgrade to a 4.7.
I just need to steer well away from V12s, as I'm told its one of the worst things a V8 owner can do (from a wallet perspective..)
Nigel_O said:
No - just delayed a little. I've spotted two 4.7s recently in my desired spec and budget, both of which had received recent twin plate clutch upgrades, but both of which had sold quite quickly.
I can see me selling my Westfield, as it's not getting the use it had when I first bought it and my tinkering obsession is now being directed at the Aston - this will give me the funds I need to upgrade to a 4.7.
I just need to steer well away from V12s, as I'm told its one of the worst things a V8 owner can do (from a wallet perspective..)
Well why settle for 2/3 rds of an engine when aston do so many wonderful V12's with that 'missing 1/3rd' to make you complete? I can see me selling my Westfield, as it's not getting the use it had when I first bought it and my tinkering obsession is now being directed at the Aston - this will give me the funds I need to upgrade to a 4.7.
I just need to steer well away from V12s, as I'm told its one of the worst things a V8 owner can do (from a wallet perspective..)
Longy00000 said:
Well why settle for 2/3 rds of an engine when aston do so many wonderful V12's with that 'missing 1/3rd' to make you complete?
From what I've read, the V12 is the engine that the Vantage always deserved. However, for anyone that's been with me since the start of this thread, you'll remember I was getting into AM ownership "on the cheap" by buying an entry-level car. I'm not loaded and I simply did not want to borrow to fund the car. I'm now in my last decade of my working life and I'm trying desperately to balance an incurable desire to own a nice car with the inescapable fact that I don't really have enough money in my pension.So - the cheapest V12 on Autotrader is £60k which is simply more than I'm willing to pay. I know if I drove one, I'd fall for it and my pension plans would be in tatters, so I need to stay well clear and learn to live with 'only' eight cylinders.
Perhaps if the State Pension triple-lock is fully re-instated for another few years, I could entertain it, but as things stand, short of a lottery win, it ain't happening....
Nigel_O said:
Longy00000 said:
Well why settle for 2/3 rds of an engine when aston do so many wonderful V12's with that 'missing 1/3rd' to make you complete?
From what I've read, the V12 is the engine that the Vantage always deserved. However, for anyone that's been with me since the start of this thread, you'll remember I was getting into AM ownership "on the cheap" by buying an entry-level car. I'm not loaded and I simply did not want to borrow to fund the car. I'm now in my last decade of my working life and I'm trying desperately to balance an incurable desire to own a nice car with the inescapable fact that I don't really have enough money in my pension.So - the cheapest V12 on Autotrader is £60k which is simply more than I'm willing to pay. I know if I drove one, I'd fall for it and my pension plans would be in tatters, so I need to stay well clear and learn to live with 'only' eight cylinders.
Perhaps if the State Pension triple-lock is fully re-instated for another few years, I could entertain it, but as things stand, short of a lottery win, it ain't happening....
He has sold the V12 now.
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