Hi guys,

I'm looking at getting a low mileage '07 or '08 AMV8 as a daily driver.

I drive around 16k miles per year and I think I would keep the car for at least 2 years.

What do you think? Bad? Will the maintenance be prohibitive?

Thanks!

 

why not have a small SUV on the side and split the DD duties. using a sports car every single day can get tiring. sometimes you just wanna park without worrying, and the lessened mileage on the AM will help curve the wear-and-tear (think curb rash, door dings, leather bolster wear) tremendously.

 

That is a good idea. A quiver is better than an arrow.

 

I drive daily

 

With current fuel prices, I'm not sure if it's a good idea, unless you work for big oil

On a serious note though, winter weather and the lack of rear seats might be an issue, but I think overall it's fine. I know enough people who use SL AMGs as their daily drivers.

Of course, this is assuming you have rear parking sensors for use within the city, as it really helps alot

 

thanks for the input guys! I really appreciate it.

as for the winter weather, I live in LA, so we don't have winter! lol

regarding the gas mileage, how bad is it? right now I drive an e46 M3 that gets about 19.5mpg, will it be worse?

thanks again!

 

Yes, it will be worse but it is a very small fraction of the cost of owning and operating. Don't sweat it. You can afford it.

 

It can easily be a daily driver. I drove a 996TT daily as my last car and the AMV8 is much more comfortable IMO. I am very happy I made the switch. The AM does not really punish you as much as the Pcar on uneven pavement. The premium audio is amazing as well.

Adam

 

Cool, thanks for the responses guys!

 

I have had one of the first 2006 V8 Vantages for 2 1/2 years with virtually no issues whatosever. Warranty is 3 years. If you are considering it obviously you can figure out if it has enough room for your daily needs. It is great fun to drive and a great HPDE track car - I run it with PCA clubs and fair quite well. Car still draws compliments and stares after all this time. Talk to a dealer about scheduled maintenace costs - they aren't cheap but you can go in with the knowledge in advance - you certainly want to stay with the scheduled program while under warranty.

 

A friend of mine has been using it as his daily driver for 2 years now,its a 2006 model 6speed manual and has no issues to speak of rather than considering high performance stock brakes squeaking ( happens in many cars my SLK, 997 Turbo etc ).

You will love the car, it sounds great and the interior quality is just top notch, this car truly feels special for its rather small exterior. The stitching,wood, leather and alacantra really does differentiate it from other marquees especially the crystal ignition button.

 

awesome, sounds good! thanks so much for the responses.

I called up O'Gara Coach in Beverly Hills a few months ago regarding the maintenance intervals, they said $1k for 10k miles, $2k for 20k miles and $3k for 30k miles... Sounded fine to me. I take it that aside from that and brakes (which I'm assuming are $900 max to replace the pads and rotors per end, someone please correct me if I'm wrong) and tires, that I should be good.

 

I used my 08 AMV8 exclusively as a daily driver in Orange County for about six months with no problems. I ended up adding a SUV for more seats and hauling when I need it. I don't think the Vantage is any worse of a daily driver than any other 2 seater.

Now that I moved back to Houston, I don't drive the Aston as much. Mostly because the roads are **** and it gets way more attention.

 

Aston V8 Vantage is a very usable, and reliable daily driver. I also find my 2002 DB7 Vantage (v12) to be extremely reliable. I've put an average of 1,000 miles per month on the car in the 1.5 years I've had it. Freeway it gets 22mpg, overall it's about 16 I think but I don't really monitor that.

Not sure where you're located, but the Pacific Northwest dealer (Park Place) has outstanding service (Vince is just totally in tune with Aston.)

Aston Martin extended warranties can be purchased for around $2.5k/year. That will give you a sense of the average expected maintenance cost on a yearly basis. My Aston has been so reliable, I decided not to add the warranty for my second year of ownership.

Comfort and quiet of the car (mine has sport exhaust, and is silent inside with windows up) is outstanding. Stop-and-go, even in hot weather, is not an issue for the car. I'm not a fan of F1 (Sport Shift in AM terms) style transmissions for non-track cars, and I think that would be a clutch eater if you were thinking in-town daily driving.

09 V8V's have more horsepower than all the prior V8V's, and the supercharged V8V has 545hp and massive torque. My DB7 outruns V8V's on most (if not all) performance measuers up to 2008, but I'm guessing the 2009 will outperform my DB7 V12.

Regarding brake squeal... I've run the stock brakes (with cross-drill look rotors) and now the GT style brakes. I have never had brake squeal with either.

 

Huh? Supercharged V8 Vantage from the factory