Discussion
Hi all,
I've been lurking here for ages, and finally cracked and testdrove a V8V on Saturday (Stratstone near Park Royal).
They had a Works driver in (sorry, can't remember his name) who was giving demos. They only had sportshift (in the 4.3 model) in stock, so I had a go in one of those.
The sportshift box was surprisingly good - I had very low expectations given the lack of love it gets in these parts. Been shown how to make it shift smoothly by the works driver made a big difference, without his demo I think I would have hated it. There's a real knack to being able to shift smoothly with it. The "auto" and "comfort" modes are both pretty terrible too.
I'm going to try a stick shift manual too, but unless it's amazing I'm very tempted with the paddle shift.
Overall I really liked the car, it did feel quite "heavy" compared to a 911, but I quite like that, especially the steering weight, and the interior is miles better. If found the seats comfortable too, but without having driven long distances it's quite difficult to say much.
The power delivery is very different to a 911, much less peaky - more torque at low revs, but less at the top end I would say. The V8V is more to my liking.
There's still a couple of things that I think I'll miss (e.g. luggage space with the rear seats folded, better visibility), but the looks, luggage access, comfort, drivability etc. are better in the V8V.
I suspect I'd like a 4.7 even more, but I can't see me stretching my budget that far, so I'm not planning to try one.
I've been lurking here for ages, and finally cracked and testdrove a V8V on Saturday (Stratstone near Park Royal).
They had a Works driver in (sorry, can't remember his name) who was giving demos. They only had sportshift (in the 4.3 model) in stock, so I had a go in one of those.
The sportshift box was surprisingly good - I had very low expectations given the lack of love it gets in these parts. Been shown how to make it shift smoothly by the works driver made a big difference, without his demo I think I would have hated it. There's a real knack to being able to shift smoothly with it. The "auto" and "comfort" modes are both pretty terrible too.
I'm going to try a stick shift manual too, but unless it's amazing I'm very tempted with the paddle shift.
Overall I really liked the car, it did feel quite "heavy" compared to a 911, but I quite like that, especially the steering weight, and the interior is miles better. If found the seats comfortable too, but without having driven long distances it's quite difficult to say much.
The power delivery is very different to a 911, much less peaky - more torque at low revs, but less at the top end I would say. The V8V is more to my liking.
There's still a couple of things that I think I'll miss (e.g. luggage space with the rear seats folded, better visibility), but the looks, luggage access, comfort, drivability etc. are better in the V8V.
I suspect I'd like a 4.7 even more, but I can't see me stretching my budget that far, so I'm not planning to try one.
theno23 said:
I have no idea, but don't you have anything better to do than watch the forum 24x7 
I know - no sleep in 312 days now, with only my American friends for company during the twilight hours.Highly recommend stretching to the 4.7 if poss. Is mileage an issue? If you don't intend doing much you could get a higher mileage version at a similar price. Is colour important? Any options that you 'must' have??
BTW paddles are great
why not give us all a 5minute period of grace or learn to type slower Jockman said:
I know - no sleep in 312 days now, with only my American friends for company during the twilight hours.
Highly recommend stretching to the 4.7 if poss. Is mileage an issue? If you don't intend doing much you could get a higher mileage version at a similar price. Is colour important? Any options that you 'must' have??
BTW paddles are great
I /could/ afford a 4.7, but it would blow all my available cash, and I really don't want to do that. I'm not that bothered by the extra power, and I can always upgrade in a few years. I might try an N400, as Stratstone are getting one in. I much prefer the red rear lights to the white ones though, and the Nurburgring logo is a bit cheezy.Highly recommend stretching to the 4.7 if poss. Is mileage an issue? If you don't intend doing much you could get a higher mileage version at a similar price. Is colour important? Any options that you 'must' have??
BTW paddles are great
Colour and mileage isn't really important (as long as the interior isn't an eyesore). I wouldn't go for white, and I'm hesitant about black, having owned a black car in London in the past. Ideally I'd like a green or blue one, but the vast majority seem to be silver/grey/black.
I'm pretty sure I want the iPod interface, but that can be retro-fitted most of the time, and is standard after 2008. I'd like the 700W stereo, but I'm not that bothered. Rear parking sensors are probably a must, maneuvering room in my road is tight.
Oh, I forgot one thing that annoyed me - something came up on the digital dash (low fuel I think) and it replaced the digital speedo with a message saying that, the button presses to get it back seems a bit complex
Also, the test cars passenger side seatbelt and door release catch failed to open during the testdrive
I was amused, but I think the guys were a bit embarrassed.The Premium stereo is discernably different (unlike the cool B&O) so grab it if it's there. Front and rear PDCs are very desirable for obvious reasons, digital messages are eradicated by simply pressing one button, door release failures are a feature of the car ie they don't like you getting out.
There's a reason why the majority are silver/grey/black, and the rears are down to personal taste
There's a reason why the majority are silver/grey/black, and the rears are down to personal taste
George H said:
Can the sportshift not do some sort of clutch learning process, where it makes the changes smoother based on your driving style? That might help some of the issues you found with it.
There is a clutch learning processes yeah, the Works driver mentioned he does it a lot (once a week maybe?), but I didn't get any idea of what it actually does. Is it automatic, or do you have to trigger it?He also said that the one I was trying was a "good one" and that some were less good, so make sure I checked the gearbox thoroughly before buying, which is interesting.
Incidentally, are there any V8V owners around London who are feeling sociable? It would be good to meet for a beer sometime to get the lowdown on ownership - though lurking on this forum has been quite informative, I know more about the pipe rack and slipper holder options on DB9s than anything else
mikey k said:
The trick with ASM1 is to NEVER use Comfort or DRive, NEVER let it go into "creep" mode and lift slightly as you change up. Easy enough that way.
As hair trigger OT champion says stretch to a 4.7 (maybe with sports pack) it will be worth it
What's so bad about creep mode mike?As hair trigger OT champion says stretch to a 4.7 (maybe with sports pack) it will be worth it
The word describes it perfectly
It is a PITA in reverse because of the high reverse gear ratio
If you put a small amount of throttle on whilst its in creep mode it confuses it, often resulting in a stall
It slips the clutch on the bit point so cannot be doing the clutch any good.
Lastly I just found it awkward and counter intuitive
It is a PITA in reverse because of the high reverse gear ratio
If you put a small amount of throttle on whilst its in creep mode it confuses it, often resulting in a stall
It slips the clutch on the bit point so cannot be doing the clutch any good.
Lastly I just found it awkward and counter intuitive
mikey k said:
The word describes it perfectly
It is a PITA in reverse because of the high reverse gear ratio
If you put a small amount of throttle on whilst its in creep mode it confuses it, often resulting in a stall
It slips the clutch on the bit point so cannot be doing the clutch any good.
Lastly I just found it awkward and counter intuitive
I found the creep mode on the 4.3 I tried to be a bit juddery, seemed like it was pulsing the clutch? I'm not sure if that would would worse the for the clutch than just slipping it while maneuvering.It is a PITA in reverse because of the high reverse gear ratio
If you put a small amount of throttle on whilst its in creep mode it confuses it, often resulting in a stall
It slips the clutch on the bit point so cannot be doing the clutch any good.
Lastly I just found it awkward and counter intuitive
OTOH it's useful to have the option when crawling in traffic.
I didn't try reverse, I'll make a note to do that.
theno23 said:
mikey k said:
The word describes it perfectly
It is a PITA in reverse because of the high reverse gear ratio
If you put a small amount of throttle on whilst its in creep mode it confuses it, often resulting in a stall
It slips the clutch on the bit point so cannot be doing the clutch any good.
Lastly I just found it awkward and counter intuitive
I found the creep mode on the 4.3 I tried to be a bit juddery, seemed like it was pulsing the clutch? I'm not sure if that would would worse the for the clutch than just slipping it while maneuvering.It is a PITA in reverse because of the high reverse gear ratio
If you put a small amount of throttle on whilst its in creep mode it confuses it, often resulting in a stall
It slips the clutch on the bit point so cannot be doing the clutch any good.
Lastly I just found it awkward and counter intuitive
OTOH it's useful to have the option when crawling in traffic.
I didn't try reverse, I'll make a note to do that.
I did 11k miles in a year in my old car and the single worst feature of the gearbox is creep mode. It lurches in traffic and takes over when you least want it to (crawling up to a junction to keep the car moving to get a quick exit and creep mode takes over
)ASMII doesn't have it and is so much better for it.
Having said all that if you understand it you can work round it
Update:
I testdrove a manual earlier today. It was on a N400, so a bit more power than the normal 4.3. It seemed surprisingly noticeable, I wouldn't have thought 20HP would really be obvious.
I think I'm going to go for a manual over a sportshift. The clutch in the one I drove was very heavy, but apparently it's due a new clutch, and one other I tried was on the heavy side, but much better. My left leg has probably atrophied a bit from years of driving clutchless cars
I do more than my fair share of town crawling, but it's not every day, so I can live with it, and it's easier to drive the manual smoothly compared to the sportshift.
There's a fair chance I'll upgrade to a 4.7 when the prices come down a bit, and might go for a sportshift then, if I'm sick of it by that point.
I testdrove a manual earlier today. It was on a N400, so a bit more power than the normal 4.3. It seemed surprisingly noticeable, I wouldn't have thought 20HP would really be obvious.
I think I'm going to go for a manual over a sportshift. The clutch in the one I drove was very heavy, but apparently it's due a new clutch, and one other I tried was on the heavy side, but much better. My left leg has probably atrophied a bit from years of driving clutchless cars
I do more than my fair share of town crawling, but it's not every day, so I can live with it, and it's easier to drive the manual smoothly compared to the sportshift.
There's a fair chance I'll upgrade to a 4.7 when the prices come down a bit, and might go for a sportshift then, if I'm sick of it by that point.
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