V8 Vantage - what's it really like?
Discussion
Used the heated screen today and it definitely did work - no idea why it was so rubbish at clearing the screen yesterday but at least that's one thing that doesn't seem to be broken.
I still can't decide if the heated seat is working or not. It's definitely not getting as hot as I remember though, so I suspect that isn't working. May try sitting in the passenger seat later to compare!
For whatever reason - despite its apparent problems - I'm loving the car at the moment and have used it for work every day this week.
I still can't decide if the heated seat is working or not. It's definitely not getting as hot as I remember though, so I suspect that isn't working. May try sitting in the passenger seat later to compare!
For whatever reason - despite its apparent problems - I'm loving the car at the moment and have used it for work every day this week.
Update time.
Car had its MOT a week or so back and passed with no advisories. Today it had its service at Spellbound - the Indy I use in Farnham. For anybody else in the area, they're in roughly the same place but have moved buildings and downsized significantly since I was last there so I wonder if they'll still be there next year. I hope so since I'm generally happy with their work.
I suspect that my basic service cost may be an unpleasant surprise because I asked them to confirm that the problem with the driver seat heating was the seat pads. When i called them for an update this afternoon it seems that diagnoses involved taking the seat out (in fact, I think he said they still need to put the 'seats' back in) so I guess I have a fair labour charge added to the service.
They also listed some other work, with prices. Because I booked on a promotional offer, I am entitled to a 15% labour discount for this service and any associated work. I reminded them of this after being given the prices, and apparently that's already been applied.
1) Replace bank 1 sensor 1 oxygen sensor due to slow response fault code. £220.38 + VAT
2) Replace brake pedal switch(fault code logged). £52.84 + VAT
3) Replace faulty handbrake calliper on o/s/r (refit old pads) £312.39 + VAT
4) Replace o/s/f upper wishbone due to bush moving in arm. £334.98 + VAT
5) Replace fuel filler cap tether. £57.49 + VAT
6) Replace wiper blades (free fitting) £46.37 + VAT
1) doesn't surprise me - car showed an emission warning about 5 months ago (it's probably even mentioned in this thread) - I cleared it and it hasn't happened since. I can do this myself and it looks like that would save me about £100 so will not authorise that work. Given that it's only thrown the code once, and just passed emissions at an MOT I doubt I will do it yet anyway.
2) Although it's logged a fault code, it's working now and again passed an MOT. I'll keep an eye on it - obviously I don't want people driving into the back of me but if it does need doing I'll do it myself. I'm a bit reluctant to do it without a bit more evidence because I remember stupidly turning the ignition on when I had the centre console disconnected and I got a Christmas tree of warning lights. So although I can't imagine why that might cause a brake pedal switch fault, I wonder if it's left over from that.
3) They tell me that the pads are low (they are a bit low but not enough that I felt they needed replacing when I did the main pads in the autumn, even though I had bought some). However, they are saying that the calliper is only clamping properly sometimes. That might explain why my handbrake sometimes works better than others. However, I'm not sure that means the calliper necessarily needs replacing and even if it does, Aston Bits list used ones. I will investigate this myself when the weather warms up slightly. If I have to repair or replace the calliper I will fit the new pads at the same time, so there is no point them doing it.
4) Aston Bits list the part for just over £240 plus delivery. So at least £250 delivered. That makes £150 Inc VAT for them to do it quite appealing - so they can.
5) The wire snapped where it fits to the cap a few months back - I keep meaning to fix it. I am not paying £60 for a new bit of wire - I'm pretty sure I can re-attach the wire, albeit a few mm shorter.
6) I nearly got them to do this. I've seen that I could get other blades (Bosch / Michelin) but I've always thought the Vantage wipers were very good, so why change. Aston are only about £2 cheaper if I buy the blades from them so no real saving doing it myself. But, I don't remember any indication that they needed replacing - I think they worked fine - and even if it is the same price (or cheaper by the time I've driven to Aston to get the new parts) it just feels wrong letting them do this - even though it's labour free. I'll give them a good check when I get the car back and pay attention the next time I use the car in the rain, and replace if necessary.
Not expecting the car back until Thursday. Guess the bill will be over £1k but well under £1,500 so not too dreadful - but I may have to spend a few hundred more, particularly if I have to buy a handbrake calliper.
Overall, reasonably happy.
Car had its MOT a week or so back and passed with no advisories. Today it had its service at Spellbound - the Indy I use in Farnham. For anybody else in the area, they're in roughly the same place but have moved buildings and downsized significantly since I was last there so I wonder if they'll still be there next year. I hope so since I'm generally happy with their work.
I suspect that my basic service cost may be an unpleasant surprise because I asked them to confirm that the problem with the driver seat heating was the seat pads. When i called them for an update this afternoon it seems that diagnoses involved taking the seat out (in fact, I think he said they still need to put the 'seats' back in) so I guess I have a fair labour charge added to the service.
They also listed some other work, with prices. Because I booked on a promotional offer, I am entitled to a 15% labour discount for this service and any associated work. I reminded them of this after being given the prices, and apparently that's already been applied.
1) Replace bank 1 sensor 1 oxygen sensor due to slow response fault code. £220.38 + VAT
2) Replace brake pedal switch(fault code logged). £52.84 + VAT
3) Replace faulty handbrake calliper on o/s/r (refit old pads) £312.39 + VAT
4) Replace o/s/f upper wishbone due to bush moving in arm. £334.98 + VAT
5) Replace fuel filler cap tether. £57.49 + VAT
6) Replace wiper blades (free fitting) £46.37 + VAT
1) doesn't surprise me - car showed an emission warning about 5 months ago (it's probably even mentioned in this thread) - I cleared it and it hasn't happened since. I can do this myself and it looks like that would save me about £100 so will not authorise that work. Given that it's only thrown the code once, and just passed emissions at an MOT I doubt I will do it yet anyway.
2) Although it's logged a fault code, it's working now and again passed an MOT. I'll keep an eye on it - obviously I don't want people driving into the back of me but if it does need doing I'll do it myself. I'm a bit reluctant to do it without a bit more evidence because I remember stupidly turning the ignition on when I had the centre console disconnected and I got a Christmas tree of warning lights. So although I can't imagine why that might cause a brake pedal switch fault, I wonder if it's left over from that.
3) They tell me that the pads are low (they are a bit low but not enough that I felt they needed replacing when I did the main pads in the autumn, even though I had bought some). However, they are saying that the calliper is only clamping properly sometimes. That might explain why my handbrake sometimes works better than others. However, I'm not sure that means the calliper necessarily needs replacing and even if it does, Aston Bits list used ones. I will investigate this myself when the weather warms up slightly. If I have to repair or replace the calliper I will fit the new pads at the same time, so there is no point them doing it.
4) Aston Bits list the part for just over £240 plus delivery. So at least £250 delivered. That makes £150 Inc VAT for them to do it quite appealing - so they can.
5) The wire snapped where it fits to the cap a few months back - I keep meaning to fix it. I am not paying £60 for a new bit of wire - I'm pretty sure I can re-attach the wire, albeit a few mm shorter.
6) I nearly got them to do this. I've seen that I could get other blades (Bosch / Michelin) but I've always thought the Vantage wipers were very good, so why change. Aston are only about £2 cheaper if I buy the blades from them so no real saving doing it myself. But, I don't remember any indication that they needed replacing - I think they worked fine - and even if it is the same price (or cheaper by the time I've driven to Aston to get the new parts) it just feels wrong letting them do this - even though it's labour free. I'll give them a good check when I get the car back and pay attention the next time I use the car in the rain, and replace if necessary.
Not expecting the car back until Thursday. Guess the bill will be over £1k but well under £1,500 so not too dreadful - but I may have to spend a few hundred more, particularly if I have to buy a handbrake calliper.
Overall, reasonably happy.
I think sometimes dealers think these cars come in with owners willing to write blank cheques.
So far on my V8 the servicing costs have been reasonable, but I've had some frankly horrendous quotes for parts/replacement bits that I'm sure some people are willing to just pay. Not me. Always worth a challenge.
Finding myself in the PH classifieds quite often these days looking for a replacement for my Vantage, but really not sure what to go for next.
So far on my V8 the servicing costs have been reasonable, but I've had some frankly horrendous quotes for parts/replacement bits that I'm sure some people are willing to just pay. Not me. Always worth a challenge.
Finding myself in the PH classifieds quite often these days looking for a replacement for my Vantage, but really not sure what to go for next.
justin220 said:
I think sometimes dealers think these cars come in with owners willing to write blank cheques.
So far on my V8 the servicing costs have been reasonable, but I've had some frankly horrendous quotes for parts/replacement bits that I'm sure some people are willing to just pay. Not me. Always worth a challenge.
Finding myself in the PH classifieds quite often these days looking for a replacement for my Vantage, but really not sure what to go for next.
I think their prices a fairly reasonable for the work they've quoted - and I kind of like that they go through the car so thoroughly.So far on my V8 the servicing costs have been reasonable, but I've had some frankly horrendous quotes for parts/replacement bits that I'm sure some people are willing to just pay. Not me. Always worth a challenge.
Finding myself in the PH classifieds quite often these days looking for a replacement for my Vantage, but really not sure what to go for next.
But I agree, sometimes garages can come up with scary prices!
There was another addition to the bill today. When I booked the car in, I'd had a squeaking belt for a few weeks - despite having the modified pulley, which had already been replaced 2 years ago to replace a squeaking belt (and the pulley they replaced was already the modified part).
It stopped squeaking a few weeks ago, and I'd forgotten all about it - but they mentioned it when I dropped the car off. I told them to forget about it since it had stopped.
However, they contacted me this morning and said that when they moved the car, the belt was squeaking - so I asked them to check why.
They have replaced the belt (~£80 fitted) - I'm a little annoyed they didn't check with me first - I don't think "check why" really means "fix it" but it's a fairly minor cost so I can live with it. The reason I'm annoyed is probably more to do with the fact that it seems to squeak every year, regardless of whether I have belt / pulley replaced so if that was the solution I would have been tempted to ignore it - I suspect it would not have squealed in summer anyway, and I wouldn't be surprised if the new belt is squealing again by next winter.
But anyway - car is now ready for collection and I will get it after work. Total bill is £1241.17 (inc) which is less than I expected. The wishbone was ~£400 inc fitted, and the belt was another ~£80 which means the service cost - including diagnosing the problem with the heated seat, which seemed to involve removing the seat - came in at ~£750. Whilst some of my friends would say that's at least 3 times what a service should cost, I think it's pretty reasonable.
It stopped squeaking a few weeks ago, and I'd forgotten all about it - but they mentioned it when I dropped the car off. I told them to forget about it since it had stopped.
However, they contacted me this morning and said that when they moved the car, the belt was squeaking - so I asked them to check why.
They have replaced the belt (~£80 fitted) - I'm a little annoyed they didn't check with me first - I don't think "check why" really means "fix it" but it's a fairly minor cost so I can live with it. The reason I'm annoyed is probably more to do with the fact that it seems to squeak every year, regardless of whether I have belt / pulley replaced so if that was the solution I would have been tempted to ignore it - I suspect it would not have squealed in summer anyway, and I wouldn't be surprised if the new belt is squealing again by next winter.
But anyway - car is now ready for collection and I will get it after work. Total bill is £1241.17 (inc) which is less than I expected. The wishbone was ~£400 inc fitted, and the belt was another ~£80 which means the service cost - including diagnosing the problem with the heated seat, which seemed to involve removing the seat - came in at ~£750. Whilst some of my friends would say that's at least 3 times what a service should cost, I think it's pretty reasonable.
Edited by davek_964 on Thursday 8th March 12:52
On the flip side, my old M135i & M235i cost £300 in servicing but were losing 5k a year in depreciation, which is why I switched to the Vantage, because (disaster permitting) the runnng costs shouldn’t be any worse.
Funny how we accept hidden costs (depreciation) but it’s a real stinker when you have to pay out a 4 figure sum!
Funny how we accept hidden costs (depreciation) but it’s a real stinker when you have to pay out a 4 figure sum!
davek_964 said:
But anyway - car is now ready for collection and I will get it after work. Total bill is £1241.17 (inc) which is less than I expected. The wishbone was ~£400 inc fitted, and the belt was another ~£80 which means the service cost - including diagnosing the problem with the heated seat, which seemed to involve removing the seat - came in at ~£750. Whilst some of my friends would say that's at least 3 times what a service should cost, I think it's pretty reasonable.
That's not bad at all, I'm thinking about jumping over to one of these and this sort of threads helps 
S1-NOS said:
On the flip side, my old M135i & M235i cost £300 in servicing but were losing 5k a year in depreciation, which is why I switched to the Vantage, because (disaster permitting) the runnng costs shouldn’t be any worse.
Funny how we accept hidden costs (depreciation) but it’s a real stinker when you have to pay out a 4 figure sum!
I swapped depreciation for service bills some years ago. Have barely suffered a penny in depreciation since (made money on 1 TVR and on my Exige), but then equally have had service bills no less than about £1k since, up to some of nearly £10k. Swings and roundabouts. Some years I think I should just finance something new with a warranty and negligible chance of faults, other years I have got lucky and needed nothing other than an oil change and fuel.Funny how we accept hidden costs (depreciation) but it’s a real stinker when you have to pay out a 4 figure sum!
Shnozz said:
I swapped depreciation for service bills some years ago. Have barely suffered a penny in depreciation since (made money on 1 TVR and on my Exige), but then equally have had service bills no less than about £1k since, up to some of nearly £10k. Swings and roundabouts. Some years I think I should just finance something new with a warranty and negligible chance of faults, other years I have got lucky and needed nothing other than an oil change and fuel.
Same here.A few months ago, i considered being sensible and reducing my cars and buying a new MX5. Until I realised that depreciation meant it would cost more to run for 3 years than either my Vantage or the 360. Which is insane.
olv said:
Did they say what was wrong with your heated seat? My driver one doesn’t work and I’ve checked the fuses for it which seem fine. Fearing that’s it’s something more expensive to resolve.
They confirmed it was the seat pads / elements. I had a quote for that before the service which I think was about ~£550 Inc, a lot of which is labour top strip the seats. I think I started a thread about it and mentioned it there. I may buy the parts and the get an upholsterer to do it, which I suspect will be cheaper. But will probably wait until autumn now.[quote=davek_964]Update time.
Car had its MOT a week or so back and passed with no advisories. Today it had its service at Spellbound - the Indy I use in Farnham. For anybody else in the area, they're in roughly the same place but have moved buildings and downsized significantly since I was last there so I wonder if they'll still be there next year. I hope so since I'm generally happy with their work.
I suspect that my basic service cost may be an unpleasant surprise because I asked them to confirm that the problem with the driver seat heating was the seat pads. When i called them for an update this afternoon it seems that diagnoses involved taking the seat out (in fact, I think he said they still need to put the 'seats' back in) so I guess I have a fair labour charge added to the service.
They also listed some other work, with prices. Because I booked on a promotional offer, I am entitled to a 15% labour discount for this service and any associated work. I reminded them of this after being given the prices, and apparently that's already been applied.
1) Replace bank 1 sensor 1 oxygen sensor due to slow response fault code. £220.38 + VAT
2) Replace brake pedal switch(fault code logged). £52.84 + VAT
3) Replace faulty handbrake calliper on o/s/r (refit old pads) £312.39 + VAT
4) Replace o/s/f upper wishbone due to bush moving in arm. £334.98 + VAT
5) Replace fuel filler cap tether. £57.49 + VAT
6) Replace wiper blades (free fitting) £46.37 + VAT
1) doesn't surprise me - car showed an emission warning about 5 months ago (it's probably even mentioned in this thread) - I cleared it and it hasn't happened since. I can do this myself and it looks like that would save me about £100 so will not authorise that work. Given that it's only thrown the code once, and just passed emissions at an MOT I doubt I will do it yet anyway.
Davek 964,another interesting post on your ownership.
I too have the same issue with an O2 sensor which needs changing and I'd like to do it myself. I enjoy wielding the spanners but not sure how difficult this would be on my back on the garage floor. I have looked but to yet find a decent detailed write up on doing this so i would be interested to know how you get on.
Please keep us updated if you crack on with it.
Car had its MOT a week or so back and passed with no advisories. Today it had its service at Spellbound - the Indy I use in Farnham. For anybody else in the area, they're in roughly the same place but have moved buildings and downsized significantly since I was last there so I wonder if they'll still be there next year. I hope so since I'm generally happy with their work.
I suspect that my basic service cost may be an unpleasant surprise because I asked them to confirm that the problem with the driver seat heating was the seat pads. When i called them for an update this afternoon it seems that diagnoses involved taking the seat out (in fact, I think he said they still need to put the 'seats' back in) so I guess I have a fair labour charge added to the service.
They also listed some other work, with prices. Because I booked on a promotional offer, I am entitled to a 15% labour discount for this service and any associated work. I reminded them of this after being given the prices, and apparently that's already been applied.
1) Replace bank 1 sensor 1 oxygen sensor due to slow response fault code. £220.38 + VAT
2) Replace brake pedal switch(fault code logged). £52.84 + VAT
3) Replace faulty handbrake calliper on o/s/r (refit old pads) £312.39 + VAT
4) Replace o/s/f upper wishbone due to bush moving in arm. £334.98 + VAT
5) Replace fuel filler cap tether. £57.49 + VAT
6) Replace wiper blades (free fitting) £46.37 + VAT
1) doesn't surprise me - car showed an emission warning about 5 months ago (it's probably even mentioned in this thread) - I cleared it and it hasn't happened since. I can do this myself and it looks like that would save me about £100 so will not authorise that work. Given that it's only thrown the code once, and just passed emissions at an MOT I doubt I will do it yet anyway.
Davek 964,another interesting post on your ownership.
I too have the same issue with an O2 sensor which needs changing and I'd like to do it myself. I enjoy wielding the spanners but not sure how difficult this would be on my back on the garage floor. I have looked but to yet find a decent detailed write up on doing this so i would be interested to know how you get on.
Please keep us updated if you crack on with it.
Damn.
Yesterday, the 360 was MOT'd - and passed. Great I thought.
Except that on my way home with the Vantage, my right indicators suddenly started flashing quickly - and bulb failure came up on the dash.
In fact, all indicators were working - but the rear was dimmer than the LHS, and clearly has water in it again - the sealant I tried to fix it with last year has dried, cracked and let water in.
This time, I managed to find an orientation that allowed me to get the light in the oven to dry out. That's a good thing, and avoided 3 hours with a hairdryer blowing air through the drilled holes.
However - the bad thing is that I found a thread on this which suggested setting the oven to 120. That seemed a tad high to me, but since it was apparently the right temperature that's what I did. And melted the end of the lens.
So, now I definitely need at least one rear light. I have always wanted clears, and this is the excuse to get them - but initial checks last night seem to suggest that whereas they were ~£800 a year or so back, they are now ~£1,500???? I need to do some more research today - Aston Bits seem to have a new clear set for ~£950 - although it says "grey surround" which I don't understand. At least my red lights don't have any surround around the lens - only the center strip which you have to move to the new lights.
They also have a used RH rear lamp in red which is ~£450 - which a tad expensive for a used lamp I think, but might be something I have to consider.
If anybody else has suggestions of where to get a RHS rear red lamp - or a clear set for a decent price - I'm listening!
Yesterday, the 360 was MOT'd - and passed. Great I thought.
Except that on my way home with the Vantage, my right indicators suddenly started flashing quickly - and bulb failure came up on the dash.
In fact, all indicators were working - but the rear was dimmer than the LHS, and clearly has water in it again - the sealant I tried to fix it with last year has dried, cracked and let water in.
This time, I managed to find an orientation that allowed me to get the light in the oven to dry out. That's a good thing, and avoided 3 hours with a hairdryer blowing air through the drilled holes.
However - the bad thing is that I found a thread on this which suggested setting the oven to 120. That seemed a tad high to me, but since it was apparently the right temperature that's what I did. And melted the end of the lens.
So, now I definitely need at least one rear light. I have always wanted clears, and this is the excuse to get them - but initial checks last night seem to suggest that whereas they were ~£800 a year or so back, they are now ~£1,500???? I need to do some more research today - Aston Bits seem to have a new clear set for ~£950 - although it says "grey surround" which I don't understand. At least my red lights don't have any surround around the lens - only the center strip which you have to move to the new lights.
They also have a used RH rear lamp in red which is ~£450 - which a tad expensive for a used lamp I think, but might be something I have to consider.
If anybody else has suggestions of where to get a RHS rear red lamp - or a clear set for a decent price - I'm listening!
Ok, so :
Aston want £728.58 + vat for a new red lamp, and £961.86 + vat (£1154.94) for an entire clear light kit.
However - Paul (the guy I bought my new grill from a year or so back) can give me the clear kit for £950 (£875 for the pair + £75 for the high level boot light) - plus a part ex for my working light, which will be agreed when he sees it.
So, I need to remove the remaining working rear light and the high level light in the boot - and we have pencilled in Sunday for me to collect the new lights.
I am tempted to stick with the red high level light - although I want clears for the corners, I think the high level light looks OK in red (it's almost invisible on a black car) so I will decide in the next few days whether to change it. It's certainly less hassle to avoid taking it out, and would bring the price down a tad - but we'll see. Think I need to search for pics of black cars with clear lights and see what the high level light looks like.
Aston want £728.58 + vat for a new red lamp, and £961.86 + vat (£1154.94) for an entire clear light kit.
However - Paul (the guy I bought my new grill from a year or so back) can give me the clear kit for £950 (£875 for the pair + £75 for the high level boot light) - plus a part ex for my working light, which will be agreed when he sees it.
So, I need to remove the remaining working rear light and the high level light in the boot - and we have pencilled in Sunday for me to collect the new lights.
I am tempted to stick with the red high level light - although I want clears for the corners, I think the high level light looks OK in red (it's almost invisible on a black car) so I will decide in the next few days whether to change it. It's certainly less hassle to avoid taking it out, and would bring the price down a tad - but we'll see. Think I need to search for pics of black cars with clear lights and see what the high level light looks like.
davek_964 said:
I need to do some more research today - Aston Bits seem to have a new clear set for ~£950 - although it says "grey surround" which I don't understand. At least my red lights don't have any surround around the lens - only the center strip which you have to move to the new lights.
Grey surround 
Gassing Station | Aston Martin | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff