You do not need AMDS to bleed the Sportshift hydraulic lines, but it sure makes life easier.

 

Happy new year 6speed.

Let's pickup where we left off.

I went to bleed the clutch, and wouldn't you know, hydraulic fluid came out? The fluid was nasty looking, so some sorting was in order. As one of the wear items on a Sportshift car that can truly leave you stranded, I was happy to replace. The top line where it connects at the top of the transaxle is obviously the most tricky part of the job, but I found removing the rear cross brace and a long pair of wire cutters made short work of it. Installation was actually easier than removal.

I also found my brake bleeder attached perfectly to the ASM reservoir- I still did the proper manual bleed (N->1->N), but was a great way to ensure all the old hydraulic fluid was pushed out.

Installed:
CHF11S Hydraulic Fluid for ASM reservoir
SequParts silicone ASM hydraulic lines

 

If you have an earlier Vantage and are still on the original power steering fluid you need to change it from ATF to hydraulic fluid (ideally the same CHF11S as used by the ASM system). Service Bulletin info here: https://aston1936.com/wp-content/upl...sb-11-0300.pdf

Easy enough to change, disconnect the return line and suction out what you can out of the reservoir. Make sure you change your reservoir cap if it says ATF only- I had a new spare left over for my M3 that worked a treat (looks like the exact same ZF reservoir).

Only quirk is the bulletin calls for 50mL of Lubrizol which I found on eBay. It's shared by Land Rover/Jaguar/Mercedes Benz and is all the same. I will say this quieted the power steering pump quit a bit, and the hydraulic fluid proved fairly easy to bleed.



fun times

 

Next up was the thermostat, air oil separator, and PCV valve. While my car did not exhibit any symptons of a failed thermostat gasket (ie temp gauge went in the middle, still had hot heat), the gasket was very much torn as you can see below.

I originally ordered the Ford equivalent for the thermostat, but it DID NOT WORK. Perhaps the Jaguar equivalent would have, but I didn't want to take any more chances so went genuine Aston.

Fail:
Motorcraft RT1163 - Thermostat
​​​​​​Motorcraft RTS1079 - Thermostat O-ring (probably would work but was slightly thicker than the Aston)

Installed:
6G43-32-10449 - thermostat
​​​​​​6G43-32-10310 - thermostat o ring
Fully drained and bled cooling system with Valvoline Zerex Dex-cool

Original failed part on the left, Ford on the right:


Ford part left, new Aston right. You can see the new Aston T-stat has the updated integrated gasket.



Finally, the Ford T stat has a slightly longer spring which will not work.



As these parts needed to be removed anyways to get to the thermostat, also installed:

6G43-01-10086 - PCV valve
​​​​​​AD23-3B9623-AA - updated thicker O ring for air oil separator



​​​​​​

 

My car was missing 1 of the body plugs at the lifting points, so replaced all 4:

Installed:
6G33-N806457-AA x 4



So that about wraps up the maintenance reset on this car. To recap so far:
-new door, hood, and hatch struts
-new gas cap, fuel filler cap actuator
-new door strikers
-new Bosch icon wipers with wiper caps from Dan Sharp
-replaced thermostat with updated design
-flushed coolant with Valvoline Zerex Dex-Cool
-replaced PCV valve & AOS o ring
-replaced engine belt and pulleys with updated 4.7L versions
-cleaned throttle body and replaced gasket/bolts
-replaced spark plugs and all coilpacks
-replaced engine air filters and cabin air filter
-Smart EMT F1 relay for ASM
-new ASM hoses from Sequparts
-replaced ASM hydraulic fluid with CHF11S
-replaced transaxle fluid with Redline MT-LV
-cleaned transaxle filter and replaced o ring
-oil & filter change with 10W-60 Motul 8100
-replaced power steering fluid with CHF11S and Lubrizol
-replaced all 4 brakes with new OE brake rotors, Hawk HPS 5.0 pads
-new updated OE parking brake pads
-bled with Castrol SRF fluid
-polished and ceramic coated paint
-no photos but also replaced the battery with a Duracell AGM

Outstanding items- timing cover gasket. Upcoming items- new radiator/hoses (nothing wrong with current, but it's probably on borrowed time due to age), VAP twin plate clutch (I'll get the current clutch lifespan measured when I take the car to the local Aston specialist for an alignment)

I would say the maintenance clock is reset (officially marked it by resetting the dash indicator by holding the T1/T2 buttons), so I promise this will get a lot more interesting now.

Up next:
-Velocity AP muffler
-BC Racing DS Coilovers
-a 5 figure order from ECPS (lol)
-a guide on getting those magnesium wheels refinished

 

Next step is to get the car looking proper. To each their own, but I never liked the slatted grille. Enter AMR parts.

Installed
GG33-71-10799 - AMR mesh black grille kit (note, despite the implication, it is not a complete kit)
6G33-78-10517 - matching lower grille (non PDC)
AG33-78-10650 - black mesh grille for hood and fender vents

You will also need new hardware for the AMR mesh grille.
4G43-228014-AA x 2 (covers the unsightly unused bolt holes)
ED23-FTB081-AA x 6
6G33-105101-BA x 4
6G33-68D11-BA x 4

I also recommend replacing the shared bolts with the bumper and grill with 2 x 6G33-FA0115-AB. These are a bit longer than the standard bolts making it much easier to fit, and are black so they blend in much better.

Note this is for the Rest of World grille, there is another part number for North American cars which has holes for mounting the front plate, but who the heck wants to bolt a plate right in the middle of the grille?

The grilles in the fenders are by far the hardest part of this. For the passenger side, it's just 2 bolts to loosen the ECU back there which will make your life a whole lot easier in reaching that farthest nut. Seems no one attempted this in the DIYs I saw.



Note it's a bit wet still from cleaning while I had everything apart:


To complete the look, ordered from ECPS:
-N24 carbon side skirts
-N420 carbon front splitter
-N420 carbon rear diffuser

 

How difficult was it to remove the front bumper?

 

Very easy, just a few 8mm bolts and phillips screws holding it on and easy to spot. The only tricky part are the 2 hidden tabs near the headlights, but a small plastic pry tool will release these. I already add the arch liners and undertray out for another job so that helped.

 

Some necessary weight reduction, fuse 22 is for people with commitment issues:



Coating applied to the wheels, officially at the paint shop now. ETA ~ 2 weeks and the OZs will be mounted.

 

ha ha...

for some serious weight reduction, go for straight pipes... the sound is glorious.

 

You are both correct…fuse 22 in for noise abatement…and I would love straight pipes….

 

While loud exhausts don't bother me, I'm not a fan of the GT4 straight pipes. Just sounds like noise with no texture. When paired with another modification and valves locked open the factory muffler sounds properly mean. Definitely loud enough to annoy the Prius drivers around SF. Same was true for my 911- the muffler delete sounded terribly.

On that note I found out that Velocity AP is 7-9 weeks out on Vantage mufflers so I threw the OE back on. I replaced all the exhaust clamps/hardware.

Installed:
4G43-5E281-AA x 2 - header gasket
4G43-17213-BA x 2 - muffler donut gasket
4G43-5221-CA x 4- exhaust clamps (muffler to tips & cat to center pipe)
4G43-35-10026 x 2 - muffler hangers
6G43-09-10036 x 2 - muffler mounts
703121 x 4 - hanger bolts
703730 x 4 - muffler mount bolts
702698 x 6 header to cat bolts
4G43-02738-AA x 6 header to cat nuts



Also installed a set of BC Racing DS coilovers. Went for a DS over BR for the superior digressive piston design. Still, there's a huge gap in the market for suspension options for our cars. Normally would not go for BCs, but the other options are $4k and up- too much money when really all I want to do is lower the car 20mm and ditch the subpar (and leaky!) OE dampers. It's a shame you can't just buy the Bilstein dampers from the later Vantage a la carte or a decent entry level KW coilover in the $2-3k range.

Very brief initial impressions- sharper turn in, minimal to no loss in ride quality. They are a bit clunky and noisy at low speeds though, so I might see if I can figure out to fit a thin rubber pad where the springs sit and between the body mounting points. This where something like a KW or Bilstein coilover will be superior.



​​​​​​

Yes need to ditch the stock wheels ASAP:

 

I actually love those specific stock wheels; but the OZ's are going to look great! The mesh grille looks killer. I hate a front license plate in any configuration. I would rather risk the ticket. What springs did you get? BC or Swift? I am curious about the difference between the BR and DS series from BC but all of the reviews are for Civics/Miatas/Mustangs. Hard to make a decision.

 

I went with the standard BC springs- they were slightly less stiff than the Swifts. I assumed BC would set the spring rate to properly match the damper. That said would love to compare back to back, especially since the Swifts are considered an upgrade.

I think DS is a no-brainer, the BR is just the entry level design. There really is no downside to the digressive piston- better compliance at high shock speeds (think hitting bumps/expansion joints/potholes) , and better motion control at low shock speed (think turn in/braking on smooth tarmac) which in theory mimics a stiffer spring.

 

Any particular reason (other than cost) that you went for BC Racing rather than the Billsteins found on V8Vs? Most people say for road there isn't really a better setup

(except these which I'm seriously considering....)

https://bamfordrose.com/road-car-upgrades/introduction-to-aston-martin-v8-vantage-upgrades/v8-dynamic-upgrades/#1583921173533-00fa5dde-40a7