Being pulled towards an AM Vantage - Help

[DeXtreme]

Hey everyone, a little background before I ask for advice. TLDR; help me pick between a used vantage and the Emira.

Sitting at #14 for a dealership in Connecticut (USA), supposedly getting the car end of summer from what the dealership thinks. I somewhat doubt and don’t want to wait another summer to enjoy a sports car, so I went shopping and keep getting stuck on the Aston Martin Vantage (which has a guaranteed delivery date once I send a check lol).

A used 2019/2020 is going for around $100-115k, and they have significantly more power, and seem to get high marks on fun driving profile, plus they’re super sexy and almost on the same level as the Emira, in a more subtle/refined way.

I’m getting the car to jump in each morning and let loose on the way to the gym, and basically to blow off steam when I can.

Am I missing something about the car that someone with experience might know? It’s a good deal quicker (for pure exhilaration, not to win races), the exhaust sounds deeper than I care for but it is absolutely mean, even the stereo is quite a bit better which I love to blast music on.

Interior is meh, but I’m just tryin to put my hair down for 20 min each day and feel alive, I worry coming from a Tesla model 3 performance that my expectations on the sheer rush of acceleration is going to be let down with the Emira, although I do prefer the engagement of a manual.

Help! Anyone have advice one way or the other for this comparison?

 

[Cachaco131]

AM Running costs will lead to bankruptcy.

 

[Cutting42]

Hey everyone, a little background before I ask for advice. TLDR; help me pick between a used vantage and the Emira.

Sitting at #14 for a dealership in Connecticut (USA), supposedly getting the car end of summer from what the dealership thinks. I somewhat doubt and don’t want to wait another summer to enjoy a sports car, so I went shopping and keep getting stuck on the Aston Martin Vantage (which has a guaranteed delivery date once I send a check lol).

A used 2019/2020 is going for around $100-115k, and they have significantly more power, and seem to get high marks on fun driving profile, plus they’re super sexy and almost on the same level as the Emira, in a more subtle/refined way.

I’m getting the car to jump in each morning and let loose on the way to the gym, and basically to blow off steam when I can.

Am I missing something about the car that someone with experience might know? It’s a good deal quicker (for pure exhilaration, not to win races), the exhaust sounds deeper than I care for but it is absolutely mean, even the stereo is quite a bit better which I love to blast music on.

Interior is meh, but I’m just tryin to put my hair down for 20 min each day and feel alive, I worry coming from a Tesla model 3 performance that my expectations on the sheer rush of acceleration is going to be let down with the Emira, although I do prefer the engagement of a manual.

Help! Anyone have advice one way or the other for this comparison?

Ain't nothing under $200k that will match the Tesla M3P acceleration anyway so forget that idea. Not much over $200k that will either. (I am an M3P owner as well)

My advice is do both. You won't get an Emira for 6-9 months at best, buy the AM run it for the 6-9 months, keep the deposit and when the Emira arrives sell it on.

You will have enjoyed the AM in the meantime, you can still look forward to the Emira and if you want to stick with the AM, just flip the Emira.

 

[lion shf]

Hey everyone, a little background before I ask for advice. TLDR; help me pick between a used vantage and the Emira.

Sitting at #14 for a dealership in Connecticut (USA), supposedly getting the car end of summer from what the dealership thinks. I somewhat doubt and don’t want to wait another summer to enjoy a sports car, so I went shopping and keep getting stuck on the Aston Martin Vantage (which has a guaranteed delivery date once I send a check lol).

A used 2019/2020 is going for around $100-115k, and they have significantly more power, and seem to get high marks on fun driving profile, plus they’re super sexy and almost on the same level as the Emira, in a more subtle/refined way.

I’m getting the car to jump in each morning and let loose on the way to the gym, and basically to blow off steam when I can.

Am I missing something about the car that someone with experience might know? It’s a good deal quicker (for pure exhilaration, not to win races), the exhaust sounds deeper than I care for but it is absolutely mean, even the stereo is quite a bit better which I love to blast music on.

Interior is meh, but I’m just tryin to put my hair down for 20 min each day and feel alive, I worry coming from a Tesla model 3 performance that my expectations on the sheer rush of acceleration is going to be let down with the Emira, although I do prefer the engagement of a manual.

Help! Anyone have advice one way or the other for this comparison?

I think they look ridiculous. And huge

 

[DeXtreme]

I think they look ridiculous. And huge

That’s what she said

 

[DeXtreme]

Ain't nothing under $200k that will match the Tesla M3P acceleration anyway so forget that idea. Not much over $200k that will either. (I am an M3P owner as well)

My advice is do both. You won't get an Emira for 6-9 months at best, buy the AM run it for the 6-9 months, keep the deposit and when the Emira arrives sell it on.

You will have enjoyed the AM in the meantime, you can still look forward to the Emira and if you want to stick with the AM, just flip the Emira.

This is probably what I’ll do, and if I lose 30k I just don’t get to build a garage and my life is ruined

Jk, one life to live so might as well go for it.

 

[emiraspain]

They say one in the hand is better than 2 in the bush, although some times that depends on the bush.....
I would, as mentioned above, get the AM. Most people think it looks great, personally I think it looks far more classy than the Emira, it looks more solid and made of metal, whereas the Emira looks as if its not, its kind of in the way the paint reflects the light... Of course this is the case, but even still...
The interior in both cars is way below par, BUT the AM, although bulbous, you know is comfy and again, classy.
There is simpy no competition between the cars, one is starting at 60k UK and the other starts at 120k UK ish....

THe 2 engines are light years apart.
Maybe hard to find a manual AM?
If it still has a warranty, even better, although to be honest, that engine is pretty shell proof and AM's are far more reliable than a historical Lotus or Ferrari for that matter.
Ive driven both, but not to a prolonged degree, and the AM is much much more of an occasion. It may and will depreciate more though......

 

[Mctaff]

I had the old shape vantage for 7 years, bought 4 years old at about 55% of list.

Depreciation 20k gbp over the 7 years.

2 extended warranty claims settled without any argument. Warranty 1500gbp… didn’t bother after year 2

Typical servicing was above 1000, not main dealer. One year was 5k when it needed suspension brake disks and other bits…. The car was 9 years old at that point.

Cheapest quality car I’ve ever run. Much cheaper than my M3, which was a little cheaper in servicing costs but had double the depreciation… admittedly from new

I test drove the new vantage and emira back to back. Vantage blew me away, emira I found a little underwhelming.

Do it!!! As above, you can always swap the vantage for the emira when it arrives…

 

[Mctaff]

I think they look ridiculous. And huge

Definitely a fair bit wider, but similar height and length.

 

[Tonyshepp]

They say one in the hand is better than 2 in the bush, although some times that depends on the bush.....
I would, as mentioned above, get the AM. Most people think it looks great, personally I think it looks far more classy than the Emira, it looks more solid and made of metal, whereas the Emira looks as if its not, its kind of in the way the paint reflects the light... Of course this is the case, but even still...
The interior in both cars is way below par, BUT the AM, although bulbous, you know is comfy and again, classy.
There is simpy no competition between the cars, one is starting at 60k UK and the other starts at 120k UK ish....

THe 2 engines are light years apart.
Maybe hard to find a manual AM?
If it still has a warranty, even better, although to be honest, that engine is pretty shell proof and AM's are far more reliable than a historical Lotus or Ferrari for that matter.
Ive driven both, but not to a prolonged degree, and the AM is much much more of an occasion. It may and will depreciate more though......

I've driven the manual and auto new vantage. The manual was hard for me having a dog keg 1st gear and the gar knob is awful. The auto is much better. Two issues with Vantage, no glove box and infotainment was old when it was put in 4 years ago though you can get Android Auto configured on the unit.
AM is a GT with sporting pretensions.

 

[Kentviking]

I had the old shape vantage for 7 years, bought 4 years old at about 55% of list.

Depreciation 20k gbp over the 7 years.

2 extended warranty claims settled without any argument. Warranty 1500gbp… didn’t bother after year 2

Typical servicing was above 1000, not main dealer. One year was 5k when it needed suspension brake disks and other bits…. The car was 9 years old at that point.

Cheapest quality car I’ve ever run. Much cheaper than my M3, which was a little cheaper in servicing costs but had double the depreciation… admittedly from new

I test drove the new vantage and emira back to back. Vantage blew me away, emira I found a little underwhelming.

Do it!!! As above, you can always swap the vantage for the emira when it arrives…

FWIW I will add to Mctaff's praise of AM ownership (as too often you only read about bad experiences on forums). I had a DB9 Volante for about 5 years. bought at about 5 years old with 21k on clock at about 40% of original price. Most owners look after their cars and mine looked like new, I lost another 15k of depreciation in my 5 years and 15k miles of running. Servicing costs at main dealer were usually between 1-2k pa all inclusive. Insurance was cheap at c400 pa. Nothing major went wrong, just consumables and the necessary spark plug switch out. Smiles per mile I don't think I have had a better car...so classy and drop dead gorgeous (not so taken by latest vantage on that point mind, and was a little underwhelmed by the v8 noise in the cabin when I tested it, but no arguing with the refinement and feel)

 

[Mctaff]

I think it’s fair to say the new vantage design is an acquired taste!

I was so disappointed at the new vantage launch event - the old car was a real thing of beauty in comparison- but it’s grown on me since then.

 

[Sirtreeman]

Had one for 2 years, loved it, but would agree with others that its more GT than Sports car.

I tracked it and did the NC500, gave it up as expected the Emira to have been delivered not long after, but got an interim that does the job until hopefully the Emira lands in January.

I've only had one test drive but came away feeling it's what I was after in terms of involvement with refinement.

You won't be disappointed with the Vantage, albeit the tech was old when I bought it so it's ancient now!

 

[DeXtreme]

You guys are awesome, thank you for helping support my poor financial decisions to spice up my life.

Great feedback from prior owners about depreciation and maintenance, I’m on the hunt for one still in a factory warranty but the best deals are 2019’s it looks like, likely cuz they’re out of warranty.

Again, appreciate everyone chiming in

 

[Magicman]

It looks like a big hatch back mx5 with an interior from a 90s Sci fi spaceship. Hope that helps

 

[SPoivre]

First, you can ignore most of the advice regarding running costs from people in the UK. For example, people in the U.K. who say the extended warranty is about 1500 aren’t even close to US pricing. Dealer price for the extended warranty in the US is about $4500. Dealer annual service is about $1800- 2500. I had one warranty issue that turned into to a complete shitshow and was on the verge of litigation before the local dealer covered the costs because corporate wouldn’t. I think AM corporate is. completely useless and would never buy another AM product. Life is too short to deal with crappy customer support. Overall, figure any repair will cost 2-3x that versus a run of the mill Porsche.

Second, the new Vantage, as mentioned above, is definitely more a GT car. I didn’t find anything similar to an Emira. It’s more powerful but also feels much bigger and heavier. The Vantage may be the sports car of the AM lineup but it is still more muscle car than sports car. I don’t have my Emira yet but I’m expecting it to be a much better backroad car that I can wind out on occasion. The Vantage is probably too much car to whip around on the twisties.

 

[Mctaff]

What was your warranty issue they rejected? I found them very amenable re warranty claims… uk though

Can’t believe the US pricing that’s silly!

I found repairs similar, if perhaps slightly higher than Porsche pricing… of course, uk again…

 

[SPoivre]

I posted a long rant on Pistonheads….don’t want to repeat here.

AMG V8, Water Damage to Ignition Coils and Plugs - Page 1 - Aston Martin - PistonHeads UK

www.pistonheads.com

Note: My research revealed the part had a similar issue with the AMG cars however Mercedes eventually had a recall and extended the warranty to ten years on the coils. Aston just stuck their head in the sand. I guess thud us what happens when you deal with a company that is close to broke.

In the US, it seems AM dealer repair costs are more in line with Ferrari and McLaren and Porsche more towards Audi and BMW. In addition, independent repair shops for AM are rare, as opposed to independent Porsche which are easy to find ( in some parts of the country, at least). That might help keep Pcar ownership costs down.

 

[Mctaff]

Ouch that’s nasty. Odd one given you’d imagine Mercedes would be providing the engine warranty as the manufacturer….

 

[Jonhklee]

I had the old shape vantage for 7 years, bought 4 years old at about 55% of list.

Depreciation 20k gbp over the 7 years.

2 extended warranty claims settled without any argument. Warranty 1500gbp… didn’t bother after year 2

Typical servicing was above 1000, not main dealer. One year was 5k when it needed suspension brake disks and other bits…. The car was 9 years old at that point.

Cheapest quality car I’ve ever run. Much cheaper than my M3, which was a little cheaper in servicing costs but had double the depreciation… admittedly from new

I test drove the new vantage and emira back to back. Vantage blew me away, emira I found a little underwhelming.

Do it!!! As above, you can always swap the vantage for the emira when it arrives…

Heard one drove pass me today. Sounded amazing. Must admit it was a bit “meh” to look at these days…… makes me think of as an older man’s car; a bit “irrelevant” to today. A terrestrial TV channel to YouTube channel if you like.