Test Drive

C

chasBMW

Member
 Hampshire
Im starting to think quite hard about changing my car so decided to have a test drive in the only other car that really gets my attention an aston V8 , I had found one that pretty much matched my spec and was within my budget and it wasnt that far away. Well it looked amazing and although it was almost 5 years old it still looked pristine (although to be fair it had only done 17000 miles so I guess it should). It really has a sense of occasion when you get in and the sound well my hair (the little I have) stood up. then I drove it and this where the dream shattered a little because although the ride was much better resolved than my Z4 it didnt feel any faster, not saying it was slow but not what I expected , that beging said its a 380bhp car , newer ones are 420bhp so may be different I guess but seem to be out of my price range (even with man maths!) then we came to the tech stuff and it was aston = win98 z4= windows7 ie its pretty rubbish even when it was new , I know at one level its not what a car is about but when you have been used to it I think you would miss it.

I think what it comes down to is , If I could afford a new V12 to have as a second car then yes I would , sadly I dont think thats going to happen though :(
 
Been there done that. Did it with a vantage, and also have done the same with a Carrera 4S. They handle that bit better, they ride much better, they have kudos, but they're not noticeably faster by seat of the pants testing. Add in double or more on the running costs and that's why 3 years down the road, I still have an e89.
 
I really like astons especially the sound of them, but they do say the 4.3 litre could do with a little more shove which the 4.7 litre dealt with, just something about the class of the car, a V12 Vantage would easily sort the power issues out as you know! :thumbsup:
 
The Aston puts the power down from 0-50mph better but from 50-150mph is not as quick as 35is. Aston auto boxes are slow compared to the BMW DCT and clunk hard down changing unless its a vantage S. The V12 is an animal but only available as a manual. The Aston's ride and handling is better on the whole but the Zed is a little more nimble on the tight stuff.
 
The car I drove had a manual gearbox which may have contributed to it feeling slower (maybe my rubbish driving didnt help :D ) , with regard to 911's my brother in law has one (not a turbo) and whilst I havent driven it and think its quite nice it doesnt do it for me , if I was going down the porsche route it would be a cayman S but try spec'ing one of those up , I got to to £58K. After spending a few days thinking it over I have decided against the aston in part because it was a little dissapointing and in part as maniac has mentioned the running costs could be very scary so I guess its time to go and talk to the BMW dealer
 
I have passengered in an AMV8 and it sounded outrageous, but as others have commented, the noise doesn't match the speed. Contrast to the E63 AMG - that thing was quick (and also sounded amazing!).
 
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