What do you guys think? Not concern over horse power or zero to 60 time. Just design, exclusivity, build quality, maintenance cost , ownership experience(driving), and reliability. Anyone here has both, or own one after the other? All thoughts are welcome.

 

on this forum we are strong supporters of the 911 TT

it is an amazing everyday machine that truly is a world class super car that can be an easy DD

reliability? TT all the way

 

; D, I am hoping to see if some on here has both. I think Porsche reliability is at 9 out of 10.

 

turbo all the way.....

 

I considered both, and I actually factored out the performance factors when I made a decision to purchase the Turbo. Better everything else...

'Rocket

 

If your looking for exclusivity, design and all of that i would definitely go with the Aston.

 

Turbo any day of the week. I know this is a Porsche forum, but I really don't have many good things to say about the V8 Vantage. My father is a big fan of Astons and has owned two of them. One being a 2007 V8V and now an 08 DB9. The two things I can say I really enjoy about the Vantage were the sound of that exhaust and just the looks of the vehicle, but that is where it stops.

My father isn't a big manual fan because of some knee surgery he had so he opted for the sportshift transmission and it was complete garbage. The transmission grabs and grabs coming from a stop in first gear. You really have to give it a nice little punch to get it to get going, it literally feels like the clutch is slipping. Of course all of that could be avoided with a 6spd so if that is what your intention is I say go for the manual.

For the cost of a Vantage and the history of Aston Martin motorsports I couldn't believe how sluggish the car was. Straight line speed failed to impress me at all, and through the corners the car wanted to understeer far more than I had expected. My fathers Vantage was also a soft top vert so I'm sure the coupe would have been much more impressive through corners.

The interior was also less than impressive to me. The navigation unit is by far the worst navigation I have seen in any car. It literally looks like a cheap version of a Garmin fitted into the wood dash. The layout of the instrument cluster has way to many buttons and they all feel super cheap. The leather was nice and I've heard a few of the new ones with the Bang and Olfsen sound system which are incredible, but for the price of an Aston Martin I would much rather buy a turbo or GT3.

Those are my reasons for really not liking the V8V, but it does a great job doing what it was built for which was to be a luxury grand touring car, although they could have made a few of the interior pieces of a better grade, and improved performance quite drastically it is a very beautiful car which does have an exclusive appeal to it. Not many people have a Porsche turbo either though!

 

if it's the V12 Vantage, then you'd have something to think about.

 

V12 is not coming to the states, but that is way too much $. That said, 2010 turbo cab with options hit $200K quickly ; [

 

Those are very good points, I am sure there are someone here look at the vantage and decided on the turbo. I am a big fan of both. The only Porsche I had is 997.1 C2S.

I am with you 100% on the look and the sound of the vantage. You are right, it is a GT, no way near turbo performance. PDK is miles apart from the sportshift. They did change the interior in 09, it is now DBS-ish. The navigation... I wouldn’t border with it at all, they been getting complain on that since day one. It is still embarrassing.

But there is something about the vantage that is very appealing to me. My concern is over cost of ownership, reliability and build quality. I am on this forum as well as amoc.org(and R8 talk), so it is great to hear it for both sides.

 

I was on the waiting list for a couple of years for the Vantage and did not even consider buying a 997. The early target specs were great. What came out was not so great - much heavier, less power, much higher price than targeted. The examples I saw coming in all had paint defects from the factory. The AM repair shop near me said AM has the absolute worst quality control of any car they have ever seen for paint. Fisheyes, runs, uneven metallic flakes, and thin/defective gel coats on the composite (fiberglass) from the factory. They have to refinish/repair these defects right off the truck - and AM brags about spending 60 hours on paint per car. I went back to Porsche and have no regrets

 

yap, I heard about the paint issues, do you think this is a hit or miss? I noticed quite a few other build quality issues myself on a few test drives two years ago. I just do not see how AM can send out product like that

 

If you are looking for exclusivity the Aston has that one down pat. I am not sure it has anything else down pat but I do like the styling. The AM and 997 Turbo are totally different cars. Go inspect and drive one of each and then make your decision. Cars are a personal choice and you should enjoy whatever you puchase.

 

I owned a Aston Martin V8 Vantage 6speed for 2 years then I sold it for my 997 TT and never looked back if that tells you anything. The Aston is more exclusive and has great workmanship and style, but as far as performance goes the 997 TT is in a different league. Like another member said, if it was the V12 Vantage that would be a better comparison, otherwise the 997 TT wins that contest hands down

 

Good question. Since I've owned both, I'll give you my perspective. My relevant car buying history has been as follows: '05 Carrera S Cab > '07 Vantage Coupe > '08 Vantage Roadster > '09 Turbo Cab. Here's my high-level summary:

Design - Vantage
Uniqueness - Vantage
Exhaust sound - Vantage
Acceleration - Turbo
Braking - Turbo
Steering - Turbo
Build quality - Turbo
Dependability - Turbo
Overall driving experience - Turbo

From my point of view, the only areas where the Aston had the edge where in the design and engine note department. There is no denying that the Aston is without a doubt one of the most beautiful cars on the road today. People tend to stop and stare when an Aston drives by. Given the plethora of Porsches and shared family design elements, Porsches are more of a common sighting these days. That being said, the Turbo blows the Aston out of the water in just about every other way though. The biggest downfall of the Aston is performance...it's just not fast enough. The engine note was fantastic, but it simply wasn't followed by spirited acceleration. This is where the Turbo shines. For the money, the Turbo is one of the fastest, best handling sports cars one can buy. Everytime I step on the accelerator I can't help but smile as the car responds like a stalking lion pouncing on his prey. The Turbo is just so damn powerful and nimble. What a joy she is to drive...and that is exactly what matters the most IMHO.