As a prospective buyer, one topic that is highlighted more than others is maintenance impact.

With that said, I have sorted thru the various posts pertaining to AM maintenance and have the following observations / questions:

Observations (nothing really new here) =
- Older models are certainly more 'wonky' - more potential for repairs and certainly higher cost potential. <This is a given with almost any (non honda, toyota) car over 5 years old>
- Newer AM models appear to be better sorted in general, but also benefit from being newer and either still under warrantee or just off warrantee. <Any car less than 5 years old should have minimal issues>
- People seem to have great reliability (seem to be post 2009 models) or they have a lemon with recurring issues (seem to be mostly the pre 2009 models)
- Yearly routine maintenance costs appear to be between $1,000 - $3,000 per year at a dealer. I would assume that most AM owners are not wrenching the cars themselves, therefore they are prime candidates for high cost routine maintenance (oil, coolant, brake fluid, differential fluid changes, brakes, minor parts). Consumables will wear with any car (brakes, fluids, tires) - take these off the table.

- Any car may have a weird issue at any time (clutch, wheel bearing, MAF sensor). Some get a 'lemon'. Sometimes issues can be attributed to abusive driving habits or neglect. My Audi had wheel bearings go at 25k miles - replacements lasted over 120k more miles. Timing belt job had to be done every 60k miles. Each car has it's 'hotspots'.


Questions (assuming newer AMs) =
- What routine maintenance are dealers doing at yearly services that drive the cost up to over $1k per visit? Or are people bundling tires, brakes, etc into that bucket?
- Am I missing something? Are AMs really so problematic and cost invasive for maintenance? Or are people paying so much because they choose not to do some of the maintenance themselves?

As a point of reference, I had a 2003 911 turbo, highly modified. Bought it in 2012. Over 1.5 years, I spend over $1,000 per month in maintenance on average (steering pump, sparks/coilpacks, brakes, clutch issue, coolant dumped due to a bad hose, welded other problematic coolant hoses, MAF sensor, boost/vac leaks, Diverter valve rebuild, I went thru rear tires in 5k miles - that's right, and I drove like a granny). I could not do most of the work on the car due to the rear engine design - just cannot easily access most components.
The last 1/2 year was solid - but I was done. Sold it at a great loss (bought for $56k, spent $22k on maintenance and mods...sold it for $44k. Was a fun car - but that was alot of maintenance cost and downtime for 7k miles per year.
For this reason, I will not go for an older, high maintenance risk.
I see the AM as an easier platform (no turbos, less plumbing).

Trying to go in with eyes wide open.

My thinking is to go for 1 or 2 year old car (AM Vantage v8 or GT). Higher cost of admission but lower maintenance potential (say $90k price as a ballpark), but some depreciation benefits and have a warrantee for a year or two. If it works out well - keep it as long as practical. If it is truly a big expense, dump it (say I get $70k out of it after 2 years). Take remaining money and get a new Cayman S - keep that for 10 years.

In the end, I think an AM is a car that you own as new as possible - use up all of the goodness - then get out of it, move onto something newer.
Feels more like a car you own for 3-5 years - does not seem like a car one wants to own for 10-12 years (unless one is prepared to invest significantly in its upkeep)

sorry for rambling...
thoughts?

 

The reason I went with the Aston V8V was that overall its an excellent 'value' as exotics go. That includes cost of ownership. I have owned my 2006 for over a year and it is rock solid and I drive it daily. It has 53k miles and runs like new. I spent ~$300 for an oil change and full inspection last year at my local independent shop, and my mechanic commented that the car was spotless and needed nothing. Regular maintenance will not break the bank, and I think most will agree that the V8V isn't prone to needing a lot of repair. The car isn't super 'exotic' in terms of mainenance... just change the fluids. (No engine out service items that I know of) There are exceptions, but don't forget people typically don't post that 'all is going fine'.. they post when there is a problem. Look for solid service history and I don't think you will have any issues... even with an older car. I think my car has had a relatively 'easy' life as the two prior owners were gentle on the car. That doesn't hurt either.

I attached the AM mainenance sheet... nothing 'scary'...

 

Thanks for the info - it seemed pretty routine regarding normal maintenance, just wanted to make sure.
Have heard of some cars requiring, as you said, engine out for some things....but not here.

 

I would assume that most AM owners are not wrenching the cars themselves, therefore they are prime candidates for high cost routine maintenance (oil, coolant, brake fluid, differential fluid changes, brakes, minor parts). Consumables will wear with any car (brakes, fluids, tires) - take these off the table.


All of this can be done by anyone who is reasonably competent with a set of wrenches etc . I intend to do as much as my capabilities and tools etc will allow .
Probably going to do my own clutch when it gets around to needing one .
My nearest dealer is a 2 1/2 drive away .
I do have a hoist and have built 2 Austin Healey's from the ground up so 'Im a little bit more than your average when it come to working on cars . But its just a hobby I don't do it for a living .

 

I'm a hobbyist/amateur mechanic, and I'm perfectly comfortable doing all the normal stuff on the car. Nothing particularly different than any other marque. Lots of torx bolts all over the place - that was the only thing that stood out, just need to get a set of those and you're good. Otherwise, I do most of my own maintenance. Things I don't do are for logistical reasons (I'm not about to drain/store/dispose of a bunch of coolant - easy enough to have coolant flushes done by a shop).

Repair items can be expensive, but that's the case with any exotic.

Clutch replacements can be costly and frequent (some people say as little as 15k miles for the clutch, it's a $5k replacement give or take $500). I personally think that it has to do with how people drive the car. I've noticed while riding with others that a lot of people ride the clutch, which is going to burn it out very easily.

As for everything else, I'll echo the what the other guys already said. Nothing too crazy.

 

While I hate to contradict Telum, my research told me that this is a misunderstood issue. What I found was that people were talking about clutches in the Sport Shift transmissions. Seems that especially the first few years ('06-'08) they were pretty easy to wear out. But in true, 3 pedal manuals, I found almost no cases of ridiculous clutch wear. Sure, a fool with no understanding of clutch mechanics could wear one out in a few years, but that's the exception.

Yes, the clutch is a weak link and prone to earlier wear out failure than one might like. But I know of many 3 pedal manuals with clutches lasting into the 40k mile range with no issues.

The great secret of these English cars is that they run and run in contradiction to the reputation that hovers around them.

 

I'm happy to be wrong if it means the manual clutch gets 2x the life of the sport shift

If it was specified that the sport shift is prone to short-lived clutches, and not the manual transmissions, then I must have missed it. But still, good news for us 3-pedal owners. 50% more pedals, 100% more clutch life!

 

I am baby amateur car enthusiast.
So far I have replaced brake pads, brake fluid, power steering fluid, Convertible roof module (it had to be flashed by dealer though), oil change, rear differential fluid on my 2009 DB9 by my self.


I do have MaxxJax 2 post lift in my garage without a lift it can be very difficult.


All of these by just learning from reading forums
and following instructions.


If I can do it, most others can do it.

 

I've had my 2008 V8 Sports shift for nearly 2 years now.

I'm finding I'm spending about $1000-$1500 a year on maintenance (one included 4 new tyres, the other included swapping out some valves that had the check engine light come on). I'm very lucky to have an excellent independent garage work on her though which keeps my costs down.

I'm currently just shy of 40k miles on her and according to my last service plenty of life on the original clutch still remaining.

She's due for her next service in 4 months, I'm expecting to have the brakes replaced then, So this year will be on the upper end of that estimate if everything else is normal.

 

thom,

check out this book:




Totally worth it. I got a '07 V8 because of that. And now a '14 V8.