True, no one asked, but I always appreciate hearing the impressions others have of this car and that, soooooo.

I'm the recent new owner of a 2012 V8 Vantage S. It came with silly, H&R lowering springs, way too much wheel splay and worn inner surfaces of the tires thanks. Oh, and it scraped on everything. LA/Pasadena has some steep crowned roads (for reasons that escape me), so a low car is just a PITA.

Thanks to a kind and generous Forum member, I got a set of OEM Vantage S springs (OK, yes they're Roadster springs and mine's a Coupe, but I'm willing to accept whatever slight difference there may be). Some new shoes, Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position (good reviews on Tire Rack and I like them just fine) and she's road ready.

I'd farted around on Angeles Crest Highway a bit but was still getting a feel for the car so a review required more time at the wheel. But I knew this much. Much as I liked my '08, 3 pedal Vantage, the S and the SSII transmission are so much better. Sure, some people don't like the SSII, and that's fine, use that third pedal all you like. I'll take faster shifts thanks. I actually really like the SSII. I like that I can feel the transmission working. I like that it's raw and mechanical. Much as I like the DSG in my GTI, for a Vantage, an automated manual is so much cooler. Can't wait to try a V12 Vantage S!

This weekend brought a road trip from Pasadena up to Santa Cruz and then on to Cupertino. Not from around here? That means 5 hours of totally crappy interstate battle with people who think the left lane is for hanging out. The car made the trip so much better. A great, GREAT highway cruiser. I guess this is the GT part of it. Heaps of power on demand (to get around the left lane blockages), and a very comfy and surprisingly serene cabin. Decent mileage even at 80mph+ (22-24mpg). And the great part was that I made it from LAX to my friends house at Pleasure Point (surf spot 360 miles away) on one tank of gas, NO STOPS! I love this car more and more...

The next leg of my journey was to go from the coast, over the hill and into Silicon Valley (Cupertino). This was Sunday afternoon, a sunny, cool coastal day in Santa Cruz (fantastic for the mountain bike ride we did) but a hot day over the hill. This meant that the main highway over the hill (an awesome, twisting freeway that should be closed for weekly track day events to really do it justice) was a dark red ribbon of hell according to the great googles map. Oh, rats, so I'm going to have to drive over one of the many mountain roads through the redwood forests? Yep

The road up was exactly zero fun...except that I really got to enjoy the B&O audio. It may or may not be better than the Premium (which I loved in my '08) but it is lovely and the right recordings really come to life. The road itself would be fun but many other people in the know had the same idea as me and I was held back by reasonable people in Hyundais and wallowing SUVs. The road hits the aptly named, Summit road which follows the crest of the range. Still behind the regular folk, still zero fun. Finally, they all peeled off and left me to the remainder of Summit which would bring me to Skyline (see also; Most Awesome Roads On Earth Ever). Summit is a single lane of blind corner, impending head on hell, but it was worth it because it brought me to an empty Skyline Road.

Finally the Vantage and I could unleash. I only wish I was enough of a driver to really play with this car. As it is, it's just brilliant. The paddle shifting is quick enough (I'm not racing), and the power is as much as I can handle. A tuner GTI rode along behind me for a while and enjoyed the 4.7 liter symphony. But mostly, I had miles of mildly twisting, well paved mountain road to myself. Ok, enough about the drive, suffice it to say that this trip gave me time in every kind of driving from horrible crawling in stop and go hell, to the kind of drive that people dream about.

The car. I don't really care what anyone says to the contrary, the V8 Vantage S is a brilliant car. It is a very livable daily driver (though that's not how I use it), a great GT and a delightful sports toy. Yes, there are faster, more brilliant cars out there, but the Vantage S is hard to fault. In fact the only thing I'd change would be the seats. While I was very comfortable on my 7.5 hour drive home tonight (thanks CalTrans ), on the curving roads, I'd like more bolster and more grip in the seat. My girlfriend's Scion FR-S had what I now consider ideal seats, at least in shape and grip. I know that people think that tall bolsters make a car less comfy, less elegant, the Vantage really would benefit from them (pretty sure I won't get any argument).

I got the S because I felt like it would be a car I'd like to keep for a long while. I was right. There's so little I dislike about this car, I look forward to enjoying it for at least a few long years to come.

 

Thanks for sharing! You were in my area. I'm glad you enjoyed the drive and more so because of the Aston. Congrats and continue enjoying!

 

It's interesting that, although they are very beautiful to look at, many of us owners feel that the Sports seats on the Astons are not very comfortable on longer drives.

Glad you're enjoying your new ride.

 

I totally agree with you that the sports shift in the 4.7 engine makes an excellent combination. I enjoy the sport shift much more than my previous 4.3 and 6 Speed. The transmission is raw enough to be involving and I always manually paddle shift. As far as the seats I recently had mine had a little padded to be more comfortable, and they added a touch more on the bolsters, unfortunately it now rubs too much getting in the car and just after a few months the new leather is scuffed, so this winter they agreed to replace the leather and leave the bolsters stock, however, the added padding on the seat bottom makes a major comfort improvement.

 

Pretty much agree on every point!

 

The transmission choice is purely a matter of personal preference. I drove both a V8VS with SSII and V8 Manual. I preferred the manual but understand why others would like the automated clutch. Regarding the sport seats, I don't think they are sold in the US? Those are the ones where if you get them you lose an airbag, right?

As far as driving, I put the late model Vantage about on par with a Porsche 997 C2S. The handling is very similar and they feel about the same power wise. Of course the Porsche cannot hold a candle to the styling and overall feel of the Vantage.

 

You have the terminology confused (which is really easy to do). The Sports seats are the standard seats that are the only choice in the US. The lightweight seats are the optional carbon fiber seats not for sale here. Sports seats have side airbags, lightweights do not.

 

Thank you for clarifying!

 

Congrats! As I keep saying (although I've been too busy (partly for good reasons ) so have been away from this forum for a few months), the V8V is (still) a genuinely great driver's car -- not just a pretty face. It's a seriously underrated car.

Further supporting evidence: the current issue of EVO (issue 210, July) has a comparison test of the V8V N430 (same as an S mechanically), the new AMG-GT, the GT-R, the i8 and the 991 Turbo. The Aston didn't win outright, but they LOVED it and it did extremely well in the rankings. Moreover, the editors' comments are massively complimentary, one saying it's the car he'd spend his own money on. Come to think of it, I should start a thread about this...

 

I have a 2012 V8-S with almost 70,000 miles and love it more now than the day I bought it. It still has the original clutch and very few warranty issues throughout it's life. I have taken it to the track and I drive it like an old man with a bad attitude. It's a Great driver's car.

I am coming up on the end of it factory warranty and trying to decide if I buy the extended warranty for $3500 a year (two year max) or let her go for a new toy. Would love to hear thoughts on options (new cars, options to extend warranty for less, non-dealer maintenance options). The only problem I have with Aston Martin is the dealership/maintance cost. $1200 oil changes, $9,000 clutch swap, $1,000 tranny flush... If I should actually require service outside of warranty it could easily be $20,000+

 

I'm pondering exact same question my 2009 Warranty is up August, and I have 42,000 miles -also trouble free. Trade for almost new Vantage or keep mine till the next generation, extending warranty??? I got about 6 weeks to decide.

 

I've had my '09 V8V from new, and did not extend the warranty when the original warranty ran out after 3 years. Mine is a weekend car, so only 7800 miles now, and it had been very reliable (some things fail from mileage, some from lack of mileage, some just from time). I thought the odds of having failures of things covered by the warranty (as opposed to routine servicing, which you pay for anyway) that would cost more than the warranty itself, were very low -- I didn't extend the warranty. My cost for repairs for the two years that the warranty would have covered: $0.00. Since then, that number is about $130.

 

Now comes the hard choice... vantage V8 S, or new Vantage GT (which is basiclaly the same thing just newer but for a little bit more)...

 

True but the GT can be pretty bare bones (some prefer that) so it just depends what you want from your Aston.

 

After getting out of my normal Vantage and then sitting in a base GT the interior of the base GT looks out right cheap, but can be dressed up with available options.