Keep in mind, driving these cars hard is not what hurts them. Lack of and improper maintenance is.

In fact, mileage really tells you nothing. Cold starting typically puts more strain and "wear" on the engine than hours of fast driving ever will.

A decent inspection will tell you about the important stuff. Brake status, tire wear, suspicious noises and most important to engine life, compression. But unless someone really overcooked the thing, the engine isn't the weak spot. In general, these cars don't have "issues". Yes, parts wear out and they are expensive to replace. Know this going in.

 

Considering that I live in Toronto, Canada there may be cold starts. My garage is heated but I may park it on occasion in a not heated location.

My Ducai Supersport hates cold starts as well.

 

There's is a start procedure for after storage that protects the engine, it is in the manual, as I have a healthy climb to my primary, I use it frequently.

 

Cold start means the engine hasn't been running and the oil has settled, leaving engine internals less lubricated in the first few seconds after starting. That's normally when most engine wear occurs.

When I had a Porsche if it sat for a number of days I'd remove the fuel pump fuse and crank the engine to prime it before starting. Not sure if there is something like for Aston's.

 

Yeah, by "cold" one normally means mostly the lack of recent running. But temps do make a difference, especially in sub zero places like Canada.

But again, it's not like Astons have some special sensitivity here. All internal combustion engines have these same issues. That's all I was saying.

Just get an inspection, any inspection, you'll be fine. What are you worried could be wrong? The brakes and clutches wear out. An inspection will tell you how much wear there is. Tires wear out. Nothing else goes wrong with these cars. Just get one.

 

Thanks for the motivation. My biggest concern is getting stuck with a 8,000 repair bill in addition to the 1,000 monthly financing payments.

I am putting a good chunk down, aprox 30,000.

 

I hope you are buying a real manual transmission, not an automated manual. They are the same transmission but it's potentially easier to judge the life of the clutch in a true manual.

Also, service history! If you know the clutch or brakes have been done at x miles, you can estimate the life left on those parts. If you don't know, you should assume you'll have to replace.

 

Yes absolutely, proper manual

Both options have hit aprox 60km. Hence certainly going to make sure that they have had clutch replaced.

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After market wheels on the black one. Stay away.

And the wheels on the silver one don't look like a factory wheel that I've ever seen. Also avoid. Unless the wheels are really top shelf (as in, lighter or somehow empirically better than stock), I always avoid a car with aftermarket wheels. suggests that the originals met with an untimely end. Plus, they're really cheap and ugly.

 

i tend to agree with this. there are some great aftermarket wheels out there, but i'd avoid 22's on a V8V like the plague (like the black one). first and foremost, the ride quality is going to be greatly reduced. second, they reflect very poorly on the taste of the previous owner - who knows what else could have been done to that car during their ownership.

the set on the silver car look like chrome-plated DB9 wheels (possibly factory, swapped from a DB9 onto that car).

 

You looking for assurances on an 8-year-old car that a moderate repair bill is not going to happen - and it can! It's a machine, and all machines will break down with time and use, regardless who makes it. I would say that if you can't comfortably afford a $ 8,000 repair bill then an out-of-warranty Aston is a poor choice. Better to buy a late model BMW M3 still in warranty service and sleep easier at night. You may be stretching a little too thin....

 

Really? Do my HRE P40's make my car look cheap?

I have my stock wheels all boxed up in the basement.....

 

Nope.
" unless the wheels are really top shelf (as in, lighter or somehow empirically better than stock)..."
Yours are fine.

 

Why not put less money down and put a few thousand aside for an emergency repair fund?

 

Never did understand this reasoning. Sure removing the fuel pump fuse will keep the engine from firing up, but all the internals are still moving when you are cranking. So what exactly does this do to reduce engine wear on a cold engine?