Hi guys,

The search for an Aston V8 Vantage is never ending. I came upon a supposedly good specimen that was kept in a temperature controlled garage, etc. Since I'm not local to California, my biggest qualm was hidden damage. I asked the salesguy if he would be willing to run a paint gauge meter over the car if I overnighted one to him. He said they had one and would do it for me. He comes back to me saying that the car was reading 8 mils to 12. I recently had a friend check out a different Aston and measurements were 5 to 6, which I would expect. The sales guy did say that he called the local Aston dealer and the dealer said that Astons are like that because they're hand painted.

What do you guys think?

Thanks,
Chester

 

Hand painted?

What does that mean?

 

Not painted by robots. There are actual humans waving the paint guns to cover the metal. I know the Lotus Elise/Exige is hand painted as well.

Chester

 

23 microns = 1 mil so basically he's saying there's about 184-276...those are too much of a variance. Aston Martins do have an amazing paint job, but you'd never know it coming from the factory. They don't take the time to properly finish the paint and expect the dealer to do it.

Depending on where it is in CA, let me know, I'd be happy to go down and measure the paint and give you my feedback. You'd be paying for a service we offer for pre-owned vehicle inspection.

Variances of 1-2 mils is acceptable, but 4 mils is a bit too much. It could have been repainted. We wouldn't know unless it was properly inspected.

Hope this helps.

 

Thanks for the information. Unfortunately, it appears that you're too far away from San Francisco.

Thanks for the offer, though.

Regards,
Chester

 

Is it a newer car or early run. Early Aston's had thin paint and many problems. As for variance, they are hand sanded between coats and could cause unusual variance, however Moe is spot on.