RE: Advantage Prodrive

RE: Advantage Prodrive

Friday 4th May 2007

Advantage Prodrive

James Mills drives the Prodrive Aston Martin V8 Vantage



Normally, when it comes to cars, it’s hard to get excited about anything as mundane as a button. But in the Prodrive Aston Martin V8 Vantage, one button in particular becomes something of an obsession. The soul stirring name, head turning styling, mouth watering construction and a spec’ sheet that’ll impress your 911-driving mates all play second fiddle to one little alloy disc on the steering column.

Prodrive exhaust tweak lets you hear the V8
Prodrive exhaust tweak lets you hear the V8
With the engine started you prod, push, jab and, well, just smile. It activates Sport, Standard or Quiet modes, but trust me on this one, the only setting a PHer will be interested in is the full-on war cry, Sport. This is front-row of the gig entertainment. Where the regular 4.3-litre V8 won’t show its true colours until 4,000rpm - where upon an exhaust valve opens in the exhaust and you finally get your money’s worth - pressing this little button sets the valve to playtime.

Quite why it took Aston Martin’s GT racing partner, and now owner, Prodrive, to think of making the most of existing technology is beyond us. Doubtless the legislators can be blamed. But as an after-market conversion, Prodrive’s neat little bundle of tricks is free from keeping bureaucrats in jobs. Praise be.

Carbon front and rear lip spoilers cost £2,937
Carbon front and rear lip spoilers cost £2,937
To accompany the war cry, there’s a little bit of war paint too; nothing too Adam Ant and over the top, mind, just enough of a hint to warn 911 drivers that this is a V8 Vantage on the hunt for scalps. There’s a thin black lip of carbon fibre running along the bottom of the now familiar wide-mouth Aston nose, which together with a discreet carbon fibre rear wing slashes high-speed lift by a significant 45 per cent.

The aero package will set you back £2,937. Throw in another cheque for £6,239 and you can have the exhaust together with an engine upgrade. Its remapped ECU engine management unit – read snappier throttle response - and sports catalysts liberate a handy 45bhp and 23 Ib ft of torque. That’s enough that you’ll feel the difference, as well as hear the difference…

The result is akin to a sprinter who’s just had their arms untied from behind their back. New life and energy radiates from this V8 Vantage. And as for the newfound soundtrack, no car enthusiast in their right mind could help but fall for the exhaust’s bellow.

An extra 45bhp from the 4.3 litre V8
An extra 45bhp from the 4.3 litre V8
Purely in the interests of science, we invited along a 911 GT3 RS (996) complete with sports exhaust and there could be no arguments over the results. The Prodrive V8 stretched the broadest grins across faces as it sailed past under full throttle. As party tricks go, this one will definitely win you new friends.

As for the engine, its newfound performance sits at the top of the rev range, so you need to roll your sleeves up and get stuck in to reap the rewards. Do so and you’ll experience a car that thrives on revs.

The added firepower helps drop the 0-62mph time to 4.7seconds – but it’s the changed character of the car, not the raw stopwatch times, that really grab you. On an open valley road with the full 8,000rpm deployed, sound bouncing off the hillsides and exhaust popping on the over-run, there comes a moment where you feel you might have found your very own little bit of motoring nirvana.

But not so fast, because there’s still the not inconsiderable matter of how Prodrive’s V8 Vantage carries itself…

Prodrive chassis improves regular Vantage
Prodrive chassis improves regular Vantage
Fortunately, they’ve been busy with the suspension too. The third and final option in this makeover is a Bilstein damper and Eibach spring set-up for the suspension, complete with switchable control from the cockpit that can be yours for £5,581. If you like the look of the lighter, larger 19” forged Prodrive alloys and Pirelli P Zero Corsa rubber, that’ll be £3,995. All of which brings the complete conversion to a hefty £18,752 over and above a V8 Vantage. Hmmm, how about a Porsche 911 Turbo, anyone?

Nevertheless, for all the 911 Turbo’s stunning pace and ability, the Prodrive V8’s interactive front engine/rear-wheel driving characteristics have a strong appeal of their own.

In the dry, you can pitch the car hard into long fast bends, feeling all four-wheels load up before playing around with the throttle and adjusting its stance to your taste. There's more composure too from the rear axle under acceleration and over bumpy road surfaces. Yet although it’s the baby of the Aston range, it still has that hefty feel which requires a degree of manhandling to get the best out of it – a characteristic of modern Astons you’ll either love or loathe.

...but leave the firmest damper setting for the track
...but leave the firmest damper setting for the track
A word of warning however: when cold or wet, those Pirellis will keep you on your toes – the rears can lose grip swiftly, and without a great deal of progression. You’ll need to be quick with the steering inputs, especially when you’ve cancelled the driver aids.

Most of the time, you’ll drive the car in the standard damper setting. The composed body control allows you to tackle the roughest, most undulating and cambered roads without breaking into a sweat. But for those occasions when you venture onto a track, the sport setting is ideal for some fast and furious action. Nevertheless, try running that setting on any of the UK’s shabbily surfaced roads and you’ll tire of it faster than Bernard Manning at a Women’s Institute meeting.

As for the brakes and gearbox, they’re left untouched. But despite our best efforts to cook the brakes, they never showed any signs of weakness, while the gearshift – although no master class in the art of slick-shifting – somehow fits with the car’s macho undertones.

The end result is a car that PHers will love. It may not have the edge in every respect, but it serves up a great big slug of character that makes the V8 Vantage a more desirable proposition. It isn’t cheap, but Prodrive has had no end of interest from existing owners, so clearly it’s hit the target.

But the one thing that leaves a lasting impression is that neat little button on the steering column...





 

Author
Discussion

rimmer

Original Poster:

6,679 posts

205 months

Thursday 3rd May 2007
quotequote all
goes as good as it looks and drives like it too what more could you want????

bogie

16,342 posts

271 months

Thursday 3rd May 2007
quotequote all
I still cant quite stomach nearly £6.5K for an ECU remap, a sports cat and back box though

by my reckoning thats about £3K of hardware at the most...even a custom remap and 8 hours of RR time is about £1K ...just a shame no-one else has cracked the ECU yet, otherwise Im sure a Quicksilver backbox, sports cat + remap would do the job for about £2K less.

..now if that £2K includes fitting and an engine warranty up to 3 years old etc then its probably worth it

waynepixel

3,972 posts

223 months

Thursday 3rd May 2007
quotequote all
No offence but this car should have this performance out of the box as standard. The V8 make the Porsche look a bargain.

bogie

16,342 posts

271 months

Thursday 3rd May 2007
quotequote all
Porkers have always been a (relative) bargain and punched above their price tag ...nothing new there... You can buy cars 1/2 the price of either car that are faster still....I dont think you can compare a low volume hand built car with a mass produced, high volume one, price wise, the economies of scale just arnt there (with indentical components on both cars you could justify 10-15% more on the low volume one just for parts)

As for the horsepower of the V8...sure another 40-50bhp out of the box would be nice...as would another 100bhp....but then theyd have to up the power on the DB9 to match.

A bit like Porsche with their Cayman...they cant go giving that the power it deserves otherwise they may steal their own (more profitable) 997 sales ...so its left to the aftermarket guys to do it instead

...I still dont get Prodrives pricing though - for £6.5K you should be able to get a light pressure supercharger kit + remap etc and have another 70-100bhp....not just a new exhaust

RayVonn

1,352 posts

215 months

Thursday 3rd May 2007
quotequote all
It's just too expensive. I've got a Vantage and it desperately needs more power, but I wonder just how much of a difference it would be from a Vantage with just fuse 22 removed and a free'er flowing air filter.

And the whole package just under 20k, no way. I'd rather buy a TVR Griffiths for fun and probably still have a few quid in my pocket.

bogie

16,342 posts

271 months

Thursday 3rd May 2007
quotequote all
and the wheel/tyre upgrade...Aston quote the Pirelli Corsas as the stickier option in those sizes on the 19's so you can just run the sticky rubber anyway (and get 95% of the benefit) ..sure a couple of Kg of unsprung weight is always good..but not £3K good


personally I think they are missing a trick here - the wheels/tyres, aero stuff and suspension will only offer any real world benefit to those who intend to track the car (not many) ...whereas I suspect a lot of owners would go for another 40bhp or so if it were a few grand for a back box/remap etc.

but then I guess its just marketing - if you can afford a £80K car then the upgrades have to be reassuringly expensive too

Murph7355

37,651 posts

255 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
Carbon spoiler looks like a false tit.

bad_roo

5,187 posts

236 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
Good article.

johng1

3,462 posts

204 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
This might be the wrong place to ask, but does anyone have any ideas on the effet this will have on the reliability of the V8 Vantage. I have two (rich) friends with DB9s who complain that the car is wonderful but always has niggling little problems - power windows will jam, that sort of thing. I know one person with a V8 Vantage that he finds reliable but the battery has gone flat after being left in a garage for two weeks.

I am not knocking Aston Martin - I want to buy one - but I don't think the standard model has enough poke, hence the interest and the question.

Thanks!

johng1

3,462 posts

204 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
effect not effet...

Ashok

598 posts

258 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
Just to clarify, Aston Martin is not actually owned by Prodrive but rather by a consortium led by David Richards (who just happens to own Prodrive as well).

jonny tvr

4,533 posts

280 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
I agree with the fact that the pricing doesn't make sense, I wonder what the results would be if you gave a quarter of the money to a talented independent tuner on the Vantage. I bet they could get twice as much extra bhp and the same handling for a quarter of the cost.

bogie

16,342 posts

271 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
johng1 said:
This might be the wrong place to ask, but does anyone have any ideas on the effet this will have on the reliability of the V8 Vantage. I have two (rich) friends with DB9s who complain that the car is wonderful but always has niggling little problems - power windows will jam, that sort of thing. I know one person with a V8 Vantage that he finds reliable but the battery has gone flat after being left in a garage for two weeks.

I am not knocking Aston Martin - I want to buy one - but I don't think the standard model has enough poke, hence the interest and the question.

Thanks!


well the engine is in a fairly low state of tune, so a new exhaust and a remap wont harm it...its not as if they are bolting on another 100bhp by forced induction etc.

as for niggles etc - dont buy a hand built British car if you dont want niggles ...most cars will flatten a battery in 2-4 weeks if you have a tracker/alarm/other electrical subsytems still live etc - even my old Audi RS6 would do this.

You just have to a) use it more b) use the provided battery disconnect switch as documented in the owners manual, C) use the Aston battery conditioner

Niggles is different to "reliability" in my book...I can cope with niggles (things need adjusting from time to time etc) and having 3 British low volume cars you need to accept this..."reliability" to me means does it ever let you down, wont start etc and Im sure they are as reliable as any other car in this respect

MrKipling43

5,788 posts

215 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
Does anyone else recognise this article, the pics and the name of the author?

In case you dont:

www.windingroad.com

robinoz

130 posts

250 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
All the tuning parts are exactly 6x more expensive than for a MKV Golf GTI. If people will pay it...

bogie

16,342 posts

271 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
well nobody has paid it yet - I guess that is to be seen

I think I will enjoy the car as is and wait another 12-18 months for the factory to catch up with a higher powered version

bad_roo

5,187 posts

236 months

Friday 4th May 2007
quotequote all
MrKipling43 said:
Does anyone else recognise this article, the pics and the name of the author?

In case you dont:

www.windingroad.com


Guy's got to make a living.

Miguel

1,030 posts

264 months

Saturday 5th May 2007
quotequote all
bogie said:
well nobody has paid it yet - I guess that is to be seen

I think I will enjoy the car as is and wait another 12-18 months for the factory to catch up with a higher powered version


And if the factory does make a higher powered version, will it be called the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Vantage?

bad_roo

5,187 posts

236 months

Saturday 5th May 2007
quotequote all
Miguel said:
bogie said:
well nobody has paid it yet - I guess that is to be seen

I think I will enjoy the car as is and wait another 12-18 months for the factory to catch up with a higher powered version


And if the factory does make a higher powered version, will it be called the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Vantage?


The V8 V-Squared?

Pugsey

5,813 posts

213 months

Saturday 5th May 2007
quotequote all
Admittedly it was a developement car I tried some months back but I'm sure it was close to the finished article. Based on that I'd suggest that the suspension mods are well worth the money but I'm not so sure about the engine work which really only made itself felt over the last 1500 rpm or so - IMO not really needed in the Aston, whereas the benefits of more 'tied down' suspension were apparent from the off and right through all speed ranges and different types of driving.