Vanquish 2015 beginners guide

[markamv]

Hi all, just recently lucked out with work and just put a deposit down on a Vanquish 8spd, 10,000 miles, meteorite silver and full black interior, picking up the beautiful girl next weekend.
Really enjoyed reading some of the opinions of clearly clued up people on here...
Bit of a dummy's general questions but are there any does and don'ts of ownership, any tips or tricks to watch out for? My car history is a Vauxhall Astra > Type-R > Rover25(!!) > E46 320cd to AMV... happy days!

[anonymous-user]

Congratulations mark. Vanquish is an amazing car. I have had my db9.2 for just over a year, my 2p is:

- go everywhere in sport mode.

- dont wash the ceramic discs with chemicals, and dry them if possible before driving if you have soaked them.

- paint correction with ceramic coating always a good idea.

- you can update the garmin nav for free if you search for the thread on ph about it.

- enjoy being let out in traffic/junctions far more regularly than usual.

- thats about it, enjoy the beast.

[tonyhall38]

Best thing you will ever buy , I know I ve 3.....enjoy it ...a real fanny magnet.....

[markamv]

Soofsayer that's awesome thanks, saw that excellent post and bookmarked it straight away! What do you do with washing it, do you trust the guy in Sainsburys car park with a gritty sponge? Particularly looking forward to your last 2 points

[markamv]

Cheers tonyhall.... haha! You drive one and tow the other 2, you must have gone for the optional umbrella to beat the ladies back!?

can I ask Tony, the P-zero / AM "bespoke" tyre "partnership".... Michelin PS range has always seemed far better than anything else.... on a 320 cd M anyway. Usually get them on lovetyres or similar, £1k-sh a full set. (103XL) Michelin PS4 or Pilot Supersport or Pirellis....?

[V8V Pete]

Never Sainsbury's or anywhere else for me. Snow foam, 2 bucket wash and dry with a microfibre towel if I can be bothered.

Consider paint protection film on the whole front end, sills and rear arches to prevent stone chips.

Drive it plenty

[markamv]

Nice Pete, thinking about it washing a car could be a pleasure from now on, optional glass of red and take your time maybe!?

the sale included "Smart Protection" something about some spray coating and 5 year warranty.... read elsewhere it amounts to 3/5ths of nothing. I'll take a look at the film situation, nice one thanks!

[anonymous-user]

markamv said:

Soofsayer that's awesome thanks, saw that excellent post and bookmarked it straight away! What do you do with washing it, do you trust the guy in Sainsburys car park with a gritty sponge?

No problem. Personally I never let anyone else wash my car apart from a professional detailer lol.

Always at home (I wont let the dealer wash it either): rinse, snow foam, rinse, 2 bucket method, blow dry, towel dry. Takes about an hour start to finish which isnt bad imo. Keeps the clearcoat relatively scratch free, the paint on my car is quite soft, I think due to it being water based (regulations) and suspect the same will be on the vanquish, so looking after the paintwork correctly is worthwhile. Ceramic coating also really helps.

The ceramic brakes can be a little divisive on opinions on how best to look after them. My own experience is that they are fine to be doused/rinsed with water when cleaning the car as long as they are allowed to dry sufficiently before driving (I believe they are porous). I use a warm air dryer to dry off the discs and pads as much as possible before moving the car and avoid driving it anywhere until the following day. Also stops the notorious ceramics break squeal for a while, which I think must be build up of material between the pads and discs which gets removed when rinsing.

Whereabouts are you based?

[markamv]

Great advice mate thanks, sounds an hour of bliss! Out of interest have you changed the brake pads on your DB9, clearly driving style but any idea on how regularly and does the bill make you wince?

Based in Notts and sevenoaks in Kent, both have AM garages luckily.

[anonymous-user]

markamv said:

Great advice mate thanks, sounds an hour of bliss! Out of interest have you changed the brake pads on your DB9, clearly driving style but any idea on how regularly and does the bill make you wince?

Based in Notts and sevenoaks in Kent, both have AM garages luckily.

Yes, it is certainly is! Not had to do anything with pads yet, mine is on 25k. I think its hundreds rather than thousands. Others are better placed to comment on pad replacement and costs.

[NDA]

I had a Vanquish - is yours the same gearbox as mine was (I assume it is)... i.e essentially a manual box with a paddle shift?

[markamv]

Its the touchtronic 3 ZF 8 speed paddle paddle that came in 2014 on the Vanquish. semi- auto I guess you'd call it.....

[David W.]

NDA said:

I had a Vanquish - is yours the same gearbox as mine was (I assume it is)... i.e essentially a manual box with a paddle shift?

Yours was different series car.

[hornbaek]

Sorry but avoiding to drive the car after having washed it is exactly what you should NOT do. It is very important that the car is driven till warm so that moisture is not trapped anywhere when garaging it. To dry the discs with pressurised air of a hot drier is fine but driving it is even better. So always take a spin after you have washed the car and never just put it away.

[NDA]

David W. said:

NDA said:

I had a Vanquish - is yours the same gearbox as mine was (I assume it is)... i.e essentially a manual box with a paddle shift?

Yours was different series car.

Ah, ok.... has the OP's a torque converter?

Mine was the original V12 Vanquish - the gearbox was 'amusing'.

[tonyhall38]

markamv said:

Cheers tonyhall.... haha! You drive one and tow the other 2, you must have gone for the optional umbrella to beat the ladies back!?

can I ask Tony, the P-zero / AM "bespoke" tyre "partnership".... Michelin PS range has always seemed far better than anything else.... on a 320 cd M anyway. Usually get them on lovetyres or similar, £1k-sh a full set. (103XL) Michelin PS4 or Pilot Supersport or Pirellis....?

When I do change it will be the p zeros.....only because I have a few spare sets

[AstonZagato]

Drive it on the paddles all the time. Far more involving and fun.

There is a trick with the gearbox that is worth knowing. It's called "powershift" or some such nonsense. You are approaching a point where you want to put the car into the powerband - such as about to overtake a car in front. Pull and hold the left paddle. the car will select the lowest possible gear immediately and you can zoom past.

As someone else said: sport always on. There is a setting in the menus that allows you to keep your last setting at every restart. Otherwise the car will default to off.

Don't drive an S version or you will have to buy one. Don't ask me how I know.

[anonymous-user]

The first rule of Vanquish ownership; secondary cat delete...

They're brilliant cars, and sit nicely between sports car and absolute GT, so as a driving experience, doesn't feel much bigger than the Vantage, and you can cover ground quickly and in lots of comfort. All the tips mentioned above cover everything I can think of. Enjoy - wonderful car

[markamv]

AstonZagato said:

Drive it on the paddles all the time. Far more involving and fun.

There is a trick with the gearbox that is worth knowing. It's called "powershift" or some such nonsense. You are approaching a point where you want to put the car into the powerband - such as about to overtake a car in front. Pull and hold the left paddle. the car will select the lowest possible gear immediately and you can zoom past.

As someone else said: sport always on. There is a setting in the menus that allows you to keep your last setting at every restart. Otherwise the car will default to off.

Don't drive an S version or you will have to buy one. Don't ask me how I know.

Thanks that's a cracking trick and I maneuver I'm hoping to complete a few times! Saw about the "block-shfiting" jumping say 5 to 8 by pulling the paddle 3 times in quick succession...