I have an opportunity to convert my Rapide front end to the Rapide S front end. An owner of an S wants to convert his car to look like the regular Rapide is willing to pay me for what is needed to do the swap at local dealer. It would cost me nothing to have my front end look like an S.


I had turned it down... What are your thoughts on this

 

I like the split grill personally

 

So does he (as do I). Never thought someone would pay to convert the S back to the original. Dealer mentioned something like 15K+ to do the work and if I wanted to swap would save him money (and give me a free conversion).

 

15k for a new bumper and grille?

 

I like the older front, so you did good

 

I guess there's a lot more to it than just that. Release mechanism is different and it goes from there. Plus pieces would need to be painted. Some this is going into uncharted territory at the dealership. They've been researching every little part that would be replaced on both ends.

 

If it were a "4 owner" car or I had already modified it, then I would think hard on doing the conversion, I am fine with the way it is now.

 

I much prefer the earlier nose to the gaping mouth. My reservations would be in how good the paint was done, how much they had to blend to get everything right. Some of these colors you'd pretty much have to repaint the whole car to get the flops to match up perfectly.

If you like what you have stop second guessing, it is going to devalue your car.

 

Totally agree on all points (from either side of the conversion). Thought it was an interesting proposition none-the-less. I'll be curious to see how the customer's car comes out. Has anyone done or seen either conversion?

 

I don't believe we have seen pictures of your car yet!

 

I'll take better pictures once I get the car back from the dealer (should be tomrrow), but this is all I have (beyond the seller's pictures)

 

Kind of a theme with some of the Aston's. The original exterior versions of the Vantage and the Rapide are IMO nicer looking than the later versions. It's a trade off on better performance for the updated versions versus the beauty of the originals. Trade offs suck.

 

There's more purity to the original designs, but I do like the evolution the models made with Vantage and DB9. Rapide, the interior change and the front end were really it visually. The Vanquish inspired stitching may not be everyone's taste.


The tail is slightly lifted, but is hard to notice unless told.

 

wow brighton, what a beauty! I hope to own one someday if I can

 

Well Done. I remember back when you were talking about the acquisition, and great to see your beautiful Rapide.

Having previously owned a "shorter version", how would you compare the difference in driving experience between your 2 AM's?

I too slightly prefer the earlier grille as a more traditional AM look, although the larger updated version has grown on me as well.