I am thinking of a used Vantage in a few yrs, but wanted to get a sense from the community of the maintenance. I've heard $2-3k brake jobs and probably expensive oil changes/maintenance. Of course, this comes with owning a beauty, but realistically, how much/how often are people being affected?

Insurance will probably run $300 a month? For 27 yr old with perfect record.

 

My Vantage has been as reliable as any new P-car I have owned. There are aftermarket parts available and after warrenty there are several good shops (at least in my area) that can compete w/ a dealer if you wish to shop around. AM sevice cost is nothing like a F-car or Lambo cost. More like a P-car that is properly maintained ... I have not had a brake service but know there are good aftermarket rotors & pads - they are brembo brakes and pads as stock items. As for the oil service - yes the first year "oil change" was about $1100 but there was other checks and service included - cut the extras out and it is about the same as a P-car dealer.
Again I have had great service from my dealer and a local shop doing some mods ...

 

Michael, $1100 sound like a lot for a service. What else did they look at? I wonder what insurance will be (I am paying aout $150 a month now thru mercury with perfect driving record- age 27)

 

It was the one year service - like a 15K mile service on a P-car; AM dealer thoroughly checks the car head to toe (along w/ fluid changes), takes several hours to properly complete and if anything is wrong it is repaired for free. This was explained by the salesman when I bought the new car - price was quoted too, prior to me writing the check. If you are buying used these are the things you need to look for on any car - did the owner keep up w/ factory recommended maintenance or did the "cheap" out. Example - had you kept up w/ factory maintenance on your MY 2000 996 and the engine then let go (and this happened to quite a few cars) - then Porsche rerplaced it for free - mant cases if mileage was over warrenty period. F-car quote I received for one year service on a 360 was $7-10k depending on valves/belts and associated wear (I was also told the same for a 430). I know of several folks that do not do this initial service and put the car up for sale .... buyer beware ...
A little thought on a high end car purchase ... do what you are doing, ask lots of questions so you know the monthly payment is not all what ownership costs ... sorry I do not want to sound like a "know it all" ... I have had a few knocks in the past and try to make sure others do not have them too.

 

Thanks for the tips Michael, he's not the only one looking...

 

No problem - I think the whole 6speeders idea is to share those lessons learned and try to be objective about your mods - good and bad. I am just a regular nut that still plays with cars. If you have any other Vantage questions please ask ... I've done a few mods to my '07 vantage and have taken it on the track so am starting to get an idea of how they tick ... if I do not know the answer I will tell you so rather than make it up.

 

how much does the 10k mile and 20k.... mile maintenance cost? what about the tires, how long do the stock tires last? anything else you would like to share with a prospective AM customer..
thanks

 

I did ask the out year maintenance questions but I do not remember the exact figures - they were in line, cost wise, w/ my experience w/P-cars, so I made my purchase. This is a bored-out new Jag engine (4.2 to 4.3 Ltr) and Ford was very much involved with the design to use as much synergy as possible with their brands, ie. design/cost/parts - when they bought AM they were thinking they needed to step up reliability big time. I am not too worried about valves, belts and other things ... I believe this will be a reliable engine and drive train. I would pose future maintenance cost questions to your local dealer or possibly a favorite shop. I do not want to give you the wrong figures. I have traveled and talked w/ several dealers around the county - for some reason they all seem to have the fairly same honest attitude about costs and the cars. This might be a revilation that a bit of honesty actually will not scare a customer away - you can afford it or not - if not, you will be back when you can - what a concept!
My suggestion is stop by a dealer and chat w/ the AM service manager - they will give you the skinny on warrenty maintenance costs.
As far as tires - they are stock Bridgestones or Pirellis (Sp?) nothing more - as in not a super sticky version that goes away in 5k miles - wear really depends on how you drive ... I like Mich's and will switch after mine go out.
My car is 1 1/2 years old w/ only 9k miles (tires are fine) - I need to get out more ! Have read other folks posts w/ 20-30k miles and no issues either. I have been on the track a couple of times and just completed a 2k road trip - thru west NC on killer mountain roads and a 12 hr. non-stop return - no issues at all. Actually was not tired after the 12 hrs. - can not say that about my 996 GT3 or 996 tt - different seats and both seat sets had issues on long trips.
I think P-cars are just tanks - then again we are seeing some issues w/ new 3.4 & 3.6 motors at high mileage - roller bearings as an example. I do not know anyone w/ a Vantage at 100k miles so not sure what the big picture is. Then again who has a F-car 360 or 430 w/ 100k miles - bet that would be a resale nightmare!
I guess the short answer is AM is not using British Leyland parts(pre- DB7) ... thank god !!!

 

Indeed, maintenance costs are on par with an equivalent Porsche.

 

I would imagine dealers to be a lot more expensive to maintain than private AM service providers.

 

Naturally, but the question is - will they void your warranty after discovering you have your car serviced at a non-official shop.

 

Hey guys,

Wondered if Aston offers an extended warranty for vehicles that are still under the factory warranty? I drive an M3 that I warrantied with BMW for 7 years/60000 miles for about $3500. I am looking to get an '07 AM Vantage V8 and I do not want to have a $90k car without any kind of warranty. Thanks for your attention.

 

It's kind of funny answering my own question, just got off the phone with Bellevue Aston, WA. AM has a 2 year/unlimited miles service contract for $4300. The number is a bit more than what I would have thought...