Should I buy a Rapide?
Discussion
RudeDog said:
Thinking of buying a Rapide (2010 car) and I’m interested to know what owners think I should look out for when buying.
How do people find the tech in the car and are there any simple solutions for upgrading it (particularly the Sat Nav)? I’m coming out of a very modern Merc which has all the toys and I’m a little bit worried that 8-year old tech will drive me nuts!
RD
If you have an iPhone you won't be missing the most relevant tech (music/navigation) with your 2010 Rapide.How do people find the tech in the car and are there any simple solutions for upgrading it (particularly the Sat Nav)? I’m coming out of a very modern Merc which has all the toys and I’m a little bit worried that 8-year old tech will drive me nuts!
RD
All you need to do it buy a Bovee 1000 bluetooth adapter which attaches to your 30-pin ipod cable in the center console. This will enable you to stream Spotify, Apple or whatever service you use for music...and get your hands on a magnetic iphone mount for the dash for modern navigation. the iphone navigation is constantly evolving and will stay a step or two ahead with traffic and routing capabilities.
I have a 2011 Rapide (recently purchased) and the only thing i've done beyond getting streaming music and the iphone mount setup is remove fuse 3 from the in-cabin fuse box in order to open up the exhaust sound (an unbelievable and free "upgrade")
I have 2 kids (16 and 14) who find the Rapide very comfortable and fully entertaining even on longer road trips. It has become our daily driver. The driving feel is fairly engrossing and i've not felt the car lacking in tech. The only feature that might be helpful that's just not an option on our early Rapide models is the backup camera. I've become accustomed to the dimensions so it's not really an issue after the first week or so of driving it around....but at first it's a bit difficult to feel confident when backing up in congested environments.
RudeDog said:
I had my heart set on a Maserati Granturismo for the last two years however when I looked at them seriously, I realised that they were going to be a money pit.
I was tempted by a beautiful Rosso Red 2015 car that still had the balance of the manufacturers warranty (about 4 months). I inquired about extended warranty and servicing costs:
£3,400 for a two year warranty
£1,600 for a Minor service
£3,300 for a Major service
Service interval is every 12 months or 12,000 miles.
So I figured my planned two years of ownership was going to cost me £8,300 before I had spent a penny on fuel, tyres, brakes, clutch, etc. (It being Italian I would expect a bit of this)
I know that the Rapide is not going to be cheap but the one I am looking at has a 12-month warranty already and the second year will be less than £2k. Servicing costs average £1k per year (slightly more for Major and slightly less for Minor). Its much more reasonable, even if it doesn't rival Ford.
Yes been reading up on the Granturismo, they are not cheap to run (although I think I’ve read some on here saying they are pretty reliable). Also think the servicing is 24 months or 12,000 miles.I was tempted by a beautiful Rosso Red 2015 car that still had the balance of the manufacturers warranty (about 4 months). I inquired about extended warranty and servicing costs:
£3,400 for a two year warranty
£1,600 for a Minor service
£3,300 for a Major service
Service interval is every 12 months or 12,000 miles.
So I figured my planned two years of ownership was going to cost me £8,300 before I had spent a penny on fuel, tyres, brakes, clutch, etc. (It being Italian I would expect a bit of this)
I know that the Rapide is not going to be cheap but the one I am looking at has a 12-month warranty already and the second year will be less than £2k. Servicing costs average £1k per year (slightly more for Major and slightly less for Minor). Its much more reasonable, even if it doesn't rival Ford.
Good to know the Aston isn’t ruinous though. I had vaguely toyed with the idea of getting back into a TVR (quite fancy a Cerbera) but the running costs of my last ones would put the Maserati to shame! The other problem I have is I think I would need to buy a cheap daily as well as not sure I could turn up to work or customer sites in the Rapide
Have you seen this video from Harry of Harry’s garage fame?
Rapide
Maser running costs seem huge. Mate sold his as he got no end of bother with the clutch gearbox - think it was an automated manual? Another mate has a GT without issues - sounds absolutely immense chasing hom through Bavaria.
I have blogged some costs on here under my profile to help me keep track. Other than a big 'back of a tow-truck from Gaydon pilgrimage' mega-blip about 4 yrs ago over a dodgy connector block its been very stress free.
I have blogged some costs on here under my profile to help me keep track. Other than a big 'back of a tow-truck from Gaydon pilgrimage' mega-blip about 4 yrs ago over a dodgy connector block its been very stress free.
Rapide running costs are not that bad, had my 2015 for a year now and I think it was about 700 for the 2 year service. Very different car to the db9, I have an 06 volante for sunny days and it is much sportier compared to the gt nature of the rapide although the rapide is the louder and faster car.
I use my iPhone and the magnetic thingy on the vents - works a treat and as noted even Google Maps will always be ahead of the car systems. My 09 Vantage needed an upgrade to power the iPhone, only £140, but all works sweetly with Spotify and phone, no problems and decent sound when pootling along the motorway. Not as good sound as the Harmon Kardon in my C55 but then the Rapide has the B+O? Now the C55 really does have a total useless Sat Nav...
Except that sometimes it chooses the iPhone mic and speakers with phone calls, rather than the car system, although I would rather be driving than chatting, even hands free. Pudge of the screen sorts that out.
Btw I came from Cayman S and the Aston experience is so much more complete. No regrets.
Except that sometimes it chooses the iPhone mic and speakers with phone calls, rather than the car system, although I would rather be driving than chatting, even hands free. Pudge of the screen sorts that out.
Btw I came from Cayman S and the Aston experience is so much more complete. No regrets.
vernierMike said:
sometimes it chooses the iPhone mic and speakers with phone calls, rather than the car system
On my Android there is a fairly obvious setting for this (once paired) so you choose defaults for where phone audio goes and choose where multimedia audio goes. I usually choose the multimedia (sat nav) to stay on phone speaker. Was pretty chuffed that my £8 Bluetooth dongle allows phone to pair with it for multimedia (music) but allows car still to pair with phone for calls. Never thought you could run 2 Blueteeth at once!
I have a coiled right angle USB to micro USB lead to power the phone which is fed from a QuickCharge cigarette lighter USB (the std USB socket is too low current and phone actually drains when in use - seriously).
Thats a lot of Rapide research and thus the wireless and gramophone system limitations is no reason not to buy one!
Thanks for all the advice. I test drove a Black 2010 car last night and I’ve paid my deposit. It only has 16,500 miles on the clock and there wasn’t a blemish on it.
It has a marmite Chancellor Red interior but I quite like it. I really liked the sound, the engine and the steering although the gearbox is pretty rubbish. Overall, you can feel the quality and it’s definitely a big step up on the AMG I’ve currently got. The AMG is a lot faster in a brutally good way but it’s nowhere near as nice.
I know that pics are obligatory so I will try and upload done later.
It has a marmite Chancellor Red interior but I quite like it. I really liked the sound, the engine and the steering although the gearbox is pretty rubbish. Overall, you can feel the quality and it’s definitely a big step up on the AMG I’ve currently got. The AMG is a lot faster in a brutally good way but it’s nowhere near as nice.
I know that pics are obligatory so I will try and upload done later.
on the interior from me. When do you collect? Sleeping may now be difficult!ParanoidAndroid said:
How are you getting on with the Rapide now you’ve had it a few weeks?
I love it! Overall I am very happy. So much to like about it!
There are a couple of minor niggles that I have found but nothing that can't be easily rectified when I next take it to the dealer (brakes sqealing, faulty rear seat latch sensor, rattle on one side of the exhaust)
I've installed a Fuse 3 switch and figured out how to play music on a USB stick so thats all good.
I am a bit surprised at the lack of storage in the cabin (glove box and centre tunnel storage is almost non-existent) but I have now found a place to store my phone (cup holder) and wallet (door pocket).
I really like driving it around, it looks amazing both inside and out. It handles fairly well for a big car and the steering is very positive/confidence inspiring. It is not however all that fast... I tested it at the M6 Toll at the weekend and it only just scraped over the 100 thingies mark by the time you reach the National Speed Limit sign coming out of the pay booths. My last few cars would be doing over 120 thingies by that point.
I have received a lot of positive attention at work because of it... mostly due to the noise it makes!
I'd definitely recommend them so far.
RD
Check your sun visors - these rattle and it can feel like there is a dog inside the door or glovebox
If your brakes are squealing you need to take it for a blast and get them hot to deglaze.
It should do 60 in under 5 secs on a tickover rpm start - not sure what you are used to - and don't be scared if it moves around a little when pressing on - its remains VERY stable, balanced and planted albeit not sprung like a car with no springs
There is definitely nowhere to store anything in this 5m long car - I keep my wallet and house keys in the BOOT! There is a pouch on the front of the seats that is handy for prophylactics and slim mobile phones!
Never fear its might and show them what its made of!
If your brakes are squealing you need to take it for a blast and get them hot to deglaze.
It should do 60 in under 5 secs on a tickover rpm start - not sure what you are used to - and don't be scared if it moves around a little when pressing on - its remains VERY stable, balanced and planted albeit not sprung like a car with no springs
There is definitely nowhere to store anything in this 5m long car - I keep my wallet and house keys in the BOOT! There is a pouch on the front of the seats that is handy for prophylactics and slim mobile phones!
Never fear its might and show them what its made of!
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