The new Vantage?

[Calinours]

Dewi 2 said:

CSK1 said:

I had the opportunity to take the car on various French roads and some were not billiard like believe me!

Oh dear.
France once had an enviable reputation for good road surfaces.

I've driven 40,000km all around France in the last 2 years. All types of roads. The reputation for good roads remains very well justified. There's no comparison to England (I haven't been driven in Scotland and Wales last few years).

French roads are smooth, wide, more often than not perfectly surfaced, usually free of heavy traffic (except around Paris and major cities in rush hour), free of pot holes and free of the tons of roadside litter now all too common in England. It's no joke, arriving in England from France feels like arriving in India or Africa. Outside EU? Third country? - Make no mistake, in terms of our roads, we are in reality now a 'third world' country.

The really depressing thing is that even if the will, taxes, money, skills, resources to fix our roads could be magically conjured up, it would probably take decades to properly sort the problem now. The underinvestment and bodge repairing has gone on too long.

And no, even the motorways are not completely free of potholes. I always take the M6 toll these days, less to
avoid the jams, more to avoid the terrible surface condition of the alternative.

Edited by Calinours on Saturday 21st September 09:54

[Calinours]

BenAstonV12 said:

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/big-reads/aston-m...

Interesting Top Gear review against the best car/benchmark in the segment.

While the 911 still edges it in this comparison, there are other tests where the new new Vantage shades the admittedly soon to be replaced Porker.

It would seem that the gap has been closed to the point where the Vantage can genuinely be chosen over the almighty 911 Turbo S. Quite the achievement for what is effectively just a (OK fairly heavily) revised/facelifted version of a car launched back in 2018. Kudos to AM's engineers and their commercial guys for squeezing so much out of the renegotiated M-B supply agreement.

Edited by Calinours on Saturday 28th September 22:10

[Calinours]

BenAstonV12 said:

In the US there's no "free" service. Dealerships can pretty much make up figures for each annual service. Aston really need to offer the same package in their biggest market that they do in the UK. That would make the almost guaranteed depreciation hurt a little less!

Interesting no free service in the USA. It's such a competitive market I'd have assumed there would be. I wonder the reasons? Do the FD still do the annual oil services? If not is warranty cover affected?

North America (really the US) is being edged as the most important market for AML, it's still up there, but perhaps unsurprisingly APAC (China) is where growth is strongest going forward and it looks like it might become the top market within a couple of years (current issues notwithstanding)...

Like the US, Europe remains strong, top market within Europe outside UK is interestingly forecast to be that paragon of luxury consumption, Belarus. Again it seems that the Russians are easily able to circumvent the sanctions which appear to have just resulted in high global inflation, higher energy prices and made the Russians wealthier.

Edited by Calinours on Monday 30th September 16:44

[Calinours]

The fact that any Aston can spank a 911 turbo and marginally lose to a 20k more expensive Ferrari should be cause for celebration for AML. As, IMHO, looks wise the new new Aston Vantage is also prettiest of the three, I can see it pinching significant sales from these two.

[Calinours]

Davil said:

VantageHead said:

Tonight’s Harry‘s Garage video (summary of 2024 videos) - new new Vantage in his list of top 5 WORST cars!!
His top 2 faves were his McLaren & 911 S/T.

Watch his video of the old new Vantage.
He really likes it a lot.


Then the new new Vantage.


Totally at odds with other reviewers.
Let’s be brutally honest though. Unless you drive them back to back you are just relying on a memory. Things such as ride quality can be influenced by the previous car you drove. In his case likely a Range Rover.

Edited by Davil on Tuesday 7th January 04:38

Yeah, on the list of 'most disappointing'. I was a bit surprised, but his review was lukewarm. He did think the suspension set up too firm for the UKs 3rd world roads.

Harry wasn't the only one to point that out though..

As regards not being so impressed with the frontal facelift, well, that's quite subjective and he was one of the minority that really liked the look of the old new Vantage. As regards the new dash, I'd venture that in Harry's eyes the evident uplift in the aesthetic is offset by all the nannying that has to be turned off before every drive.

Let's face it, Harry probably places greater emphasis on the ride, he's experienced and knowledgeable enough to know it doesn't have to be such a savage compromise with todays technology (ie McLaren), and he will probably be less impressed than the more juvenile reviewers by bigger turbos and ever more power. His comments on old new vs new new Vantage reflect his comments on DB11 vs DB12, if anyone cares to dig up those videos (sorry but this time I can't be bothered).

To me it seems his review is, as usual, pretty fair. If ride is important to you, and you are bothered by the crap that comes as standard with any new car, then the new new Vantage might not be the one for you. It's his view, he has probably driven more stuff than almost anyone else, he's very much earned the right and I completely respect everything he says.

It does not mean we all have to agree though, as Harry would no doubt be the first to point out. I for one can't wait for my own test drive. I suspect I'm going to absolutely love it, and turning the nannies off will become second nature until some clever specialist develops a workaround, as they surely will.

Edited by Calinours on Tuesday 7th January 21:04

[Calinours]

ThomW said:

A 911 won ECOTY? I’m shocked, shocked I tell you.

Not half as shocked as I was about the MX5 being in it at all let alone coming joint 2nd with the McLaren...

While it's always been a great little car, spiritual successor to the everyman brit sports cars of the past (and all that), it's hardly among the sort of stuff that EVO was set up to focus on, is it?

If two things can be 'joint second' - then shouldn't that have made the Vantage third....?

[Calinours]

SHIFTY said:

Looks really good but agree with some of the earlier comments

"Overall I like it but disappointed they carried over the ungainly fixed roll over hoops and exposed bit of canvas roof when open which look kind of alright on a cheaper Boxster but not on an Aston at this price level.
Why not fully conceal the convertible top under a tonneau and have retractable roll over hoops like on the VH Vantage Roadster?"

While never a fan of open top motoring, I'd also agree with this sentiment, the original VH roadster was that rare thing, an open top car that with the roof down looked just as good as the coupe.

I still think the updated coupe looks the bks though, and as noted above there's always the bigger car if it bothers too much.