Worth changing from a Vantage to a VantageS?

[JBE68]

I have a March 2010 V8 Vantage with 6k miles and a manual gearbox. She, according to the dealer, is a "showcase" model which includes every extra. While she is a fantastic car, I do wonder about changing to a VantageS partly for the semi-auto gearbox. I note that Grange have a silver 2011 model year car up at £75k which has caught my eye.

Is it worth changing? Any opinions appreciated.

Jeremy

[yeti]

JBE68 said:

I have a March 2010 V8 Vantage with 6k miles and a manual gearbox. She, according to the dealer, is a "showcase" model which includes every extra. While she is a fantastic car, I do wonder about changing to a VantageS partly for the semi-auto gearbox. I note that Grange have a silver 2011 model year car up at £75k which has caught my eye.

Is it worth changing? Any opinions appreciated.

Jeremy

Hmm. Improved brakes, improved suspension, slight change in looks, a (very) little bit more oomph. But the only reason for changing would be whether you want the ASM 7-speed box. Not a semi-auto of but a robotic manual with an auto mode (to be avoided on auto made, at least it was with ASM I)

Robgt will be along to give his effusive opinions I expect

Or maybe a roadster like Mikeyk?

If you decide to stick with the manual, think about going to Bamford Rose and have their manifolds/cats and switchable suspension (and the brakes if you can stretch. Car will be night and day from where it is now!

[JBE68]

yeti said:

If you decide to stick with the manual, think about going to Bamford Rose and have their manifolds/cats and switchable suspension (and the brakes if you can stretch. Car will be night and day from where it is now!

I try to avoid looking at this type of automotive pornography as I may not be able to help myself.

[johng39]

JBE68 said:

yeti said:

If you decide to stick with the manual, think about going to Bamford Rose and have their manifolds/cats and switchable suspension (and the brakes if you can stretch. Car will be night and day from where it is now!

I try to avoid looking at this type of automotive pornography as I may not be able to help myself.

Whatever you do, take no notice of Lewis. Who in their right mind does this to a newish Aston Martin??

[yeti]

Interesting that our two Vantage S owners, Rob and Mike are both Converts at the church of Bamford Rose. Rob has already been dunked in the holy waters of performance and hopefully Mikey will be next year...

[JBE68]

Likely 20k to change mine to an S vs £5k for the upgrade Bamford Rose? Major difference in economics.

Edited by JBE68 on Thursday 11th October 12:01

[mikey k]

yeti said:

Hmm. Improved brakes, improved suspension, slight change in looks, a (very) little bit more oomph. But the only reason for changing would be whether you want the ASM 7-speed box. Not a semi-auto of but a robotic manual with an auto mode (to be avoided on auto made, at least it was with ASM I)

Robgt will be along to give his effusive opinions I expect

Or maybe a roadster like Mikeyk?

If you decide to stick with the manual, think about going to Bamford Rose and have their manifolds/cats and switchable suspension (and the brakes if you can stretch. Car will be night and day from where it is now!

Yeti is almost right

Bigger & floating front brakes
Wider alloys & tyres
Tad more ponies & talks
Quicker steering (massive difference)
Sport button for better throttle response
MUCH better noise
Better SatNav
Better reverse gear ratio
V12V CF bumpers & sills and a few other cosmetics

I'm glad I went from my MY09 car to an S and ASM2 is superb, you won't miss a manual IME
Go drive it and leave it in manual!

Edited by mikey k on Thursday 11th October 12:10

[Henry M]

I was told by my local dealer in the U.S. that the Vantage S can now be ordered as a 6 speed manual at a price that removes the premium for the 7 speed sports shift. Good news!

Henry

[jonby]

mikey k said:

yeti said:

Hmm. Improved brakes, improved suspension, slight change in looks, a (very) little bit more oomph. But the only reason for changing would be whether you want the ASM 7-speed box. Not a semi-auto of but a robotic manual with an auto mode (to be avoided on auto made, at least it was with ASM I)

Robgt will be along to give his effusive opinions I expect

Or maybe a roadster like Mikeyk?

If you decide to stick with the manual, think about going to Bamford Rose and have their manifolds/cats and switchable suspension (and the brakes if you can stretch. Car will be night and day from where it is now!

Yeti is almost right

Bigger & floating front brakes
Wider alloys & tyres
Tad more ponies & talks
Quicker steering (massive difference)
Sport button for better throttle response
MUCH better noise
Better SatNav
Better reverse gear ratio
V12V CF bumpers & sills and a few other cosmetics

I'm glad I went from my MY09 car to an S and ASM2 is superb, you won't miss a manual IME
Go drive it and leave it in manual!

Edited by mikey k on Thursday 11th October 12:10

Mike is of course correct, but if it's important, bear in mind early S models (not many, but mine falls into this camp) have the old sat nav system

Also, I think piano black has become pretty much standard now

And from around now, all Vantages get auto wipers & lights

[yeti]

Never really understood the point of auto wipers and lights. How stupid can a person be that hasn't noticed it's raining, dark or both?

[KarlFranz]

Henry M said:

I was told by my local dealer in the U.S. that the Vantage S can now be ordered as a 6 speed manual at a price that removes the premium for the 7 speed sports shift. Good news!

Henry

Don't know about this. What is true is that the standard spec of a regular V8V is now much closer to a V8VS. You can also add additional options such as the carbon splitter and diffuser to make the spec even closer. Since you can order a V8V with a manual, you can essentially get the equivalent of a V8VS with a 6-speed, but technically it still wouldn't be a V8VS and wouldn't be badged as such.

This is prolly what your dealer meant.

[Jon39]

It is all such personal choice.

However, for almost the same cost as you mention, V12 Vantages are now becoming available.

Going from 420 to 430 bhp, might not be noticable, but from 420 to 510 bhp, Wow!

I still do not like those plastic (sorry carbon fibre plastic) bonnet grilles. Are they really essential for cooling?

[Molly GT]

yeti said:

Never really understood the point of auto wipers and lights. How stupid can a person be that hasn't noticed it's raining, dark or both?

It's not that we are stupid Lewis, rather that the car is intelligent. My Golf makes its own decisions about lights and wipers and has one touch electric windows. That doesn't make it a better car than an Aston but it would be nice if AM caught up with modern gadgets although I appreciate it would involve the dreaded weight gain!

[Molly GT]

JBE68 said:

Is it worth changing? Any opinions appreciated.

Jeremy

YES!

[George H]

yeti said:

Interesting that our two Vantage S owners, Rob and Mike are both Converts at the church of Bamford Rose. Rob has already been dunked in the holy waters of performance and hopefully Mikey will be next year...

I'd swear you're on commission

[yeti]

Ha, if only

Bear in mind I went in there with the heaviest and wobbliest car ever to leave Gaydon and fitted with the weakest V12 they made there.

What I came out the other side with was nothing short of a miracle! And I'd put it against anything comparable for the ability to cover ground rapidly.

It's all there for the taking

[MichaelV8V]

JBE68 said:

I have a March 2010 V8 Vantage with 6k miles and a manual gearbox. She, according to the dealer, is a "showcase" model which includes every extra. While she is a fantastic car, I do wonder about changing to a VantageS partly for the semi-auto gearbox. I note that Grange have a silver 2011 model year car up at £75k which has caught my eye.

Is it worth changing? Any opinions appreciated.

Jeremy

Interesting question. I have a November 2010 V8 Vantage with 5k miles and a manual gearbox. Also a "showcase" model with every extra. I tried a Vantage S, and the Sportshift 2 was so much better than the Sportshift 1 that I had tried before buying my manual. But it still didnt thrill me. The noise from the S was a bit better than mine. On the test runs, I didn't notice the different steering, and the power increase wasn't particularly obvious.

So, I reasoned I would be paying a load of money for a car without the B&O and other frills, for slightly better sound, different gearbox, and a different registration plate.

After a great deal of thought and research, I went a different route, I took it to Bamford Rose and let them do their work. The result is a car that has the most thrilling and exciting sound you can imagine, that can be switched down to sane levels when necessary. I haven't had the twin plate clutch (yet), mine shouldn't need replacing for a long time , but the exhaust mods have made the car so much more 'blippable' that the gear changes are now exciting events. It really does blip so much faster than it did before. I fitted a wider throttle pedal so I can now heel and toe easily, this perfectly complements the new capability of the engine.

Then there is the power, this thing was always quick, but now it's unbelievably fast. Windows open, exhaust valves open, throttle wide open, it's just such unbelievable fun.The back of the car squirms with excitement out of corners every time you want it to.

This really does feel like a new, very different car. I even like the colour of it more than I did before, which makes no logical sense at all, but its true. I just love the car.

So, whereas after almost 2 years with the car, it had gently descended to 7 out of 10 for enjoyment, that initial thrill of ownership having gone, the S was maybe an 8, but the BR mods have lifted it to a 10.

So you can probably guess what I'd recommend you do with your car

[sukh_m]

MichaelV8V said:

Interesting question. I have a November 2010 V8 Vantage with 5k miles and a manual gearbox. Also a "showcase" model with every extra. I tried a Vantage S, and the Sportshift 2 was so much better than the Sportshift 1 that I had tried before buying my manual. But it still didnt thrill me. The noise from the S was a bit better than mine. On the test runs, I didn't notice the different steering, and the power increase wasn't particularly obvious.

So, I reasoned I would be paying a load of money for a car without the B&O and other frills, for slightly better sound, different gearbox, and a different registration plate.

After a great deal of thought and research, I went a different route, I took it to Bamford Rose and let them do their work. The result is a car that has the most thrilling and exciting sound you can imagine, that can be switched down to sane levels when necessary. I haven't had the twin plate clutch (yet), mine shouldn't need replacing for a long time , but the exhaust mods have made the car so much more 'blippable' that the gear changes are now exciting events. It really does blip so much faster than it did before. I fitted a wider throttle pedal so I can now heel and toe easily, this perfectly complements the new capability of the engine.

Then there is the power, this thing was always quick, but now it's unbelievably fast. Windows open, exhaust valves open, throttle wide open, it's just such unbelievable fun.The back of the car squirms with excitement out of corners every time you want it to.

This really does feel like a new, very different car. I even like the colour of it more than I did before, which makes no logical sense at all, but its true. I just love the car.

So, whereas after almost 2 years with the car, it had gently descended to 7 out of 10 for enjoyment, that initial thrill of ownership having gone, the S was maybe an 8, but the BR mods have lifted it to a 10.

So you can probably guess what I'd recommend you do with your car

How much did this all cost (just a ball park figure?)

[johng39]

sukh_m said:

How much did this all cost (just a ball park figure?)

This will help

http://www.bamfordrose.com/exhaust-system.html

[JBE68]

MichaelV8V said:

Interesting question. I have a November 2010 V8 Vantage with 5k miles and a manual gearbox. Also a "showcase" model with every extra. I tried a Vantage S, and the Sportshift 2 was so much better than the Sportshift 1 that I had tried before buying my manual. But it still didnt thrill me. The noise from the S was a bit better than mine. On the test runs, I didn't notice the different steering, and the power increase wasn't particularly obvious.

So, I reasoned I would be paying a load of money for a car without the B&O and other frills, for slightly better sound, different gearbox, and a different registration plate.

After a great deal of thought and research, I went a different route, I took it to Bamford Rose and let them do their work. The result is a car that has the most thrilling and exciting sound you can imagine, that can be switched down to sane levels when necessary. I haven't had the twin plate clutch (yet), mine shouldn't need replacing for a long time , but the exhaust mods have made the car so much more 'blippable' that the gear changes are now exciting events. It really does blip so much faster than it did before. I fitted a wider throttle pedal so I can now heel and toe easily, this perfectly complements the new capability of the engine.

Then there is the power, this thing was always quick, but now it's unbelievably fast. Windows open, exhaust valves open, throttle wide open, it's just such unbelievable fun.The back of the car squirms with excitement out of corners every time you want it to.

This really does feel like a new, very different car. I even like the colour of it more than I did before, which makes no logical sense at all, but its true. I just love the car.

So, whereas after almost 2 years with the car, it had gently descended to 7 out of 10 for enjoyment, that initial thrill of ownership having gone, the S was maybe an 8, but the BR mods have lifted it to a 10.

So you can probably guess what I'd recommend you do with your car

Thanks for that. A convincing argument.