I am a sports car fan who is looking for my next car. I have previously owned a 1990 Nissan 300ZX Twin Turbo and a 2005 Porsche Boxster S.


I have decided on a 2007 or 2008 Aston Martin Vantage Roadster for my next car. I am leaning towards a standard stick shift since I prefer shifting my own gears in a sports car. However, this limits my selection greatly so I am looking for input from users who are used to old-fashioned three pedal stick shifts. Does the SpeedShift paddle shifting give the same feeling as rowing the gears?


Also, I would appreciate any feedback on how Vantage owners feel about their cars!


Jeff

 

I have yet to find a car that gives me the same feeling as when shifting my own gears.


Puts a smile on my face every time I drive it!

 

I don't believe the sport shift gives the same feeling as a 3 pedal manual gearbox. I suggest you drive a sport shift before making that decision .

 

That's kinda what I thought. Thanks for the input.

 

On Earlier Vantages, manual is almost a must. Early SS can be good but you would need a good TCU tune. SS3 is definitely much better than the older automated but it can still give you vertigo sometimes if you catch it off guard

 

What he said. I had a 2007 stick Vantage, and now I own a 2016 GT with a stick both great cars. This is a big purchase, take your time and find the best car that you can afford. It is not a good deal unless you love the color combo and the options the car has on it and the condition it's in.
Ron

 

I've had both, early vantages have a heavy clutch... Much prefer the sportshift, in fact demanded it on my GT. When driven manually the sportshift provides a great involvement experience... If driven automatically it's pretty bad

 

I prefer the SSM in my Vanquish to the manual in my DBS. The shift quality of manual Astons is not great and takes some of the fun out of rowing gears. SSM is plenty involving and easy to master if you're used to driving a manual.

 

The clutch on my 2016 is much lighter than my 2007. The 2007 clutch was not overly heavy in my opinion, just not economy car light.
Ron

 

I've driven both the SSII and own a manual. Plus I owned an M5 with the SMG which is kind of similar to the SS. If I was a track rat I would see the advantage of an automated clutch but then I would only want a dual clutch not a first gen single clutch which is what the SS is.

I couldn't live with the SS transmission. The manual gearbox is really nice in my opinion. Like the rest of the car it's very analog and provides very good feedback. I would not own the car if I could only have the SS.

 

Thanks for the response, Ron. Lots of good advice in just a couple of sentences!


Jeff

 

Thanks for the follow-up on this Ron. I previously had a 2005 Boxster S and thought that clutch was just fine. I'm assuming that based on the comments that the AM might be a bit heavier than the Porsche's. When I think of a heavy clutch I think of a '67 Firebird.


Jeff

 

if you're getting a car before '09 then def go for manual, my $0.02 anyway.

 

Thanks, that seems to be the general consensus. That makes me feel good since that was my original plan.