Hello everyone
I realised yesterday that I'd not posted about replacing the M5 V10 last August. As it has been some time since I've made a big-ish post here, I thought I would take advantage of a lazy Sunday afternoon to bash out an update.
Around this time last year I found myself a little bored of the M5. In particular I had missed driving a manual, both for the involvement and the sense of satisfaction that arises from the perfect gear change - something that never happened in the M5 due to the lurchy SMG III gearbox.
I spent quite a bit of time looking at options in the 50-100k range, and had no real practicality or special requirements. I ideally wanted something from one of the luxury or sports brands (so e.g. Audi R8 was out), and was considering more or less anything fast and cool in that space. The final list of contenders included the Ferrari F430, Lamborghini Gallardo, Porsche 997 Turbo/GT3, and the car I finally bought - an Aston Martin V12 Vantage. The Aston appealed to me most because of the naturally aspirated 6.0L V12 with a manual (there aren't very many!), the quite analogue driving experience, the great design and lovely interior, combined with the Aston image and brand - which seems to attract fewer idiots than others. Mine is an immaculate one-owner 2012 model and had covered 17k miles when I collected it, now on just over 20k (most of which came from a trip down to Bordeaux the day after collection!). While not dissimilarly priced to the Ferrari or Lambourghini, I got a younger, lower mileage and warrantied approved used 'Timeless' car for my money.
I bought the car from Aston Martin Works, which is the Aston-owned dealership with a restoration and heritage centre at the historic home of Aston Martin in Newport Pagnell. It's a fantastic location with some seriously cool metal about, and with some properly skilled craftspeople at work. They are even building new cars on site, such as the DB4 GT Zagato's that they call 'continuation' models, available exclusively as a package with a new DBS GT Zagato for only £7.2 million. I'll take one in each colour! Back in the workshop they have Astons and Lagondas from across the world 'coming home' for service, repair, and upgrades in a way I'd have never imagined. The entire experience with Works was and continues to be flawless. It's how you would imagine and want every dealership experience to be, with any request being met, and the team doing exactly what they say they are going to do, at the date and time they say they are going to do it. Every phone call returned and every email responded to same-day, before and after purchase. I have been treated fantastically even though I made what will have been a relatively small purchase for Works. From being collected from the train station in a DBS Superleggera, to the full vehicle debrief and tour of the heritage and restoration centre when collecting the car, to being invited to a champagne and canape evening for Christmas - they know how to treat their customers, and I have nothing but praise for them. Highly recommended for anyone looking to buy an Aston Martin.
Now, on to the car...
Mechanical and dynamics
The Aston V12 is a great engine. It's an all-aluminium, quad overhead cam, 48 valve unit. The design has its heritage in a concept study by Porsche Engineering, which created the architecture for the Ford Duratec V6, that was developed in to the Aston V12. These engines were originally built by Cosworth and then by Aston in a purpose-built engine plant, conveniently as part of Ford's Niehl engine manufacturing complex in Cologne. It combines smooth power delivery and plenty of low end torque with a frantic onset of power and sound intensity as it revs round to the near 7000rpm limiter. You find yourself hitting that limite rquite a lot in early driving as the power doesn't just not tail off, it actually feels like it wants to keep going - something obvious when you see the torque and power charts, with the torque building until high in the rev range. This is not a 'sleepy' engine. The result is that it is as lovely to drive in busy traffic as along an open road. Peak outputs are 517HP @ 6500rpm and 570Nm @ 5750rpm, which feels plenty for the 1680 kilo kerb weight. The exhaust note is very pleasing in the 1500-3000rpm range, which is obviously where a lot of time is spent, and also sounds great on overrun. Right now it's actually at Works having the 'official' secondary catalytic converter delete, which shaves off a few Kg, adds a few HP, but crucially adds plenty of extra noise. Can't wait! Performance is 0-60mph in 4 seconds, and on to a gearing-limited top speed of 190mph. Fuel economy is up to 18-20mpg on a motorway run, and in the 12-14mpg range around town. Single digit economy easily achievable if pressing on. I'm achieving around 15mpg on average. If it were 5mpg it would still be worth it
The earlier V12Vs came with a Graziano 6-speed manual transmission, in contrast to the 7-speed Sportshift III SMG-like gearbox and then in dog leg manual form in the later V12V 'S' cars. While the six-speed isn't as unique as the dog leg, it performs well and I've no qualms. It's nice and direct, quite 'knuckly' in fact, and the ratios and shifting work well with the V12. A real pleasure compared to SMG! It has a limited slip differential, and with the 295-wide rear tyres does a decent job of getting the power down. However, I've been unimpressed with the official Aston 'AM8' Pirelli P Zero tyres - which could be as they are bit aged - so I've just chucked them for Michelin Pilot Sport 4S's and expect these will do a better overall job.
The V12V is an easy car to drive. The clutch is easy to work with, the gearbox is easy to work. The brakes are.. good. Very good. Ventilated and cross-drilled carbon-ceramics, with 398mm discs and six-piston calipers up front, and 360mm with four-piston on the back. You're never going to run out of brakes on the road, and they look particularly serious and intentional behind the wheels. Suspension is independent double wishbones all round, with no modes or functions - just regular old suspension, tuned and balanced by Aston to be part of the character of the car. It's firm for sure, but compliant enough for London duties if you avoid the worst pot holes. With a bit of speed it rides well enough on British roads and there is no body roll. The back end will move about under power in a playful and encouraging way. Together with the nicely weighted, precise, and relatively short ratio steering, overall handling and drive is entertaining and rewarding. You have a sense you are driving quite a serious car, and it will manage some considerable speed, but the manual gearbox and relatively simple controls mean you get to enjoy every mile per hour, in a way that you don't in many more modern 'point and squirt' cars.
Design and tech
Let's start with the tech, which will be quick as there isn't very much! It has a very crude navigation system that I have never used - luckily Aston had the wisdom to put the screen in a flap so you can keep it permanently hidden under the dash. The 'Premium' audio system option mine has fitted (which runs on a separate dot matrix display) is fairly decent, almost as good as the Logic7 system in the M5, and it has the Bluetooth A2DP link so I can connect Spotify on my phone and maintain a good sound. It has electrically adjustable heated seats, electric windows and auto-dimming mirrors, cruise control, climate control, xenon headlights... and that's about it. Wipers are manual, lights are manual. It's nice having a car with buttons, that when you press the buttons the car does what you expect, and the rest of the time it doesn't do that thing. How refreshingly simple!
Inside the cabin of the V12V is a pleasing place to be. Material quality is high - premium leathers on seats, dash and doors all hand-stitched, carbon fibre door handles, solid aluminium gearstick and gaiter polished to a satin finish, major switchgear buttons in glass, alcantara headlining, aluminium instrument cluster, and so on. Things are also luxurious in the details, such as the solid metal hinge for the sun visors, or the glass crystal key that has a little Aston wings badge inside. Photos show you the interior, but unfortunately don't convey the material quality or how special it all feels when you're sat inside.
The V12V is based on the VH platform first introduced with the DB9. I think many people would agree that the VH-based DB9, DBS, Vantage, Virage and Vanquish of this era are among the most beautiful cars ever produced. The Vantage is a bit stubbier than a DB9 or Vanquish but looks great from every angle. A classic and curvaceous front-engined coupe that draws fans from all backgrounds and ages. The V12V is a bit more obnoxious than the sleeker V8 Vantage, coming as standard with carbon-fibre bonnet slats - ostensibly to help the cool the V12, and I can attest to there being enough heat coming out of them to blur your view when stationary - carbon fibre front splitter, carbon fibre rear diffuser, more aggressive side skirts, and special 19" lightweight forged alloy wheels. It's a car you turn and look back at several times when walking away.
Summary
If I had to choose a word to describe the V12V it would be 'special', if not for what the car is, but how it makes you feel. I really wanted to have something enjoyable to own and drive and the V12V delivers on that, from the elaborate start-up sequence at the beginning of every journey, to the universally positive reaction from passers by - in terms of comments, as well as photos and videos by the public. The car is full of details, too many to list here, that evoke the heritage of Aston Martin and speak to the reasons I love the car. There's a fantastic and somewhat overwhelming official owners club, that seem to be running a hundred events a year across the world and are regularly off on European tours - all detailed in the monthly and quarterly magazines. I'm not sure I'll get too involved, but it is another part of the experience for those that have the time.
I am extremely happy with the Aston and have become a bit of a convert to the marque. It's a car equally suitable for plodding around a rainy London in, or rolling up to the Savoy in for a black-tie event, or to take for a blast along some A and B roads.
As mentioned, I've just replaced the tyres and it's in having the exhaust work. I will post an update with my feelings on that once I've spent a bit of time with it.
Here are some photos, including one taking by the salesman of me grinning from ear to ear on pickup. Lastly, many of you may remember the Top Gear review of the V12V that ended Season 13. If you haven't seen it, it's definitely worth a watch - I have embedded the link below.
Any questions and I'll be happy to answer
Cheers!
I realised yesterday that I'd not posted about replacing the M5 V10 last August. As it has been some time since I've made a big-ish post here, I thought I would take advantage of a lazy Sunday afternoon to bash out an update.
Around this time last year I found myself a little bored of the M5. In particular I had missed driving a manual, both for the involvement and the sense of satisfaction that arises from the perfect gear change - something that never happened in the M5 due to the lurchy SMG III gearbox.
I spent quite a bit of time looking at options in the 50-100k range, and had no real practicality or special requirements. I ideally wanted something from one of the luxury or sports brands (so e.g. Audi R8 was out), and was considering more or less anything fast and cool in that space. The final list of contenders included the Ferrari F430, Lamborghini Gallardo, Porsche 997 Turbo/GT3, and the car I finally bought - an Aston Martin V12 Vantage. The Aston appealed to me most because of the naturally aspirated 6.0L V12 with a manual (there aren't very many!), the quite analogue driving experience, the great design and lovely interior, combined with the Aston image and brand - which seems to attract fewer idiots than others. Mine is an immaculate one-owner 2012 model and had covered 17k miles when I collected it, now on just over 20k (most of which came from a trip down to Bordeaux the day after collection!). While not dissimilarly priced to the Ferrari or Lambourghini, I got a younger, lower mileage and warrantied approved used 'Timeless' car for my money.
I bought the car from Aston Martin Works, which is the Aston-owned dealership with a restoration and heritage centre at the historic home of Aston Martin in Newport Pagnell. It's a fantastic location with some seriously cool metal about, and with some properly skilled craftspeople at work. They are even building new cars on site, such as the DB4 GT Zagato's that they call 'continuation' models, available exclusively as a package with a new DBS GT Zagato for only £7.2 million. I'll take one in each colour! Back in the workshop they have Astons and Lagondas from across the world 'coming home' for service, repair, and upgrades in a way I'd have never imagined. The entire experience with Works was and continues to be flawless. It's how you would imagine and want every dealership experience to be, with any request being met, and the team doing exactly what they say they are going to do, at the date and time they say they are going to do it. Every phone call returned and every email responded to same-day, before and after purchase. I have been treated fantastically even though I made what will have been a relatively small purchase for Works. From being collected from the train station in a DBS Superleggera, to the full vehicle debrief and tour of the heritage and restoration centre when collecting the car, to being invited to a champagne and canape evening for Christmas - they know how to treat their customers, and I have nothing but praise for them. Highly recommended for anyone looking to buy an Aston Martin.
Now, on to the car...
Mechanical and dynamics
The Aston V12 is a great engine. It's an all-aluminium, quad overhead cam, 48 valve unit. The design has its heritage in a concept study by Porsche Engineering, which created the architecture for the Ford Duratec V6, that was developed in to the Aston V12. These engines were originally built by Cosworth and then by Aston in a purpose-built engine plant, conveniently as part of Ford's Niehl engine manufacturing complex in Cologne. It combines smooth power delivery and plenty of low end torque with a frantic onset of power and sound intensity as it revs round to the near 7000rpm limiter. You find yourself hitting that limite rquite a lot in early driving as the power doesn't just not tail off, it actually feels like it wants to keep going - something obvious when you see the torque and power charts, with the torque building until high in the rev range. This is not a 'sleepy' engine. The result is that it is as lovely to drive in busy traffic as along an open road. Peak outputs are 517HP @ 6500rpm and 570Nm @ 5750rpm, which feels plenty for the 1680 kilo kerb weight. The exhaust note is very pleasing in the 1500-3000rpm range, which is obviously where a lot of time is spent, and also sounds great on overrun. Right now it's actually at Works having the 'official' secondary catalytic converter delete, which shaves off a few Kg, adds a few HP, but crucially adds plenty of extra noise. Can't wait! Performance is 0-60mph in 4 seconds, and on to a gearing-limited top speed of 190mph. Fuel economy is up to 18-20mpg on a motorway run, and in the 12-14mpg range around town. Single digit economy easily achievable if pressing on. I'm achieving around 15mpg on average. If it were 5mpg it would still be worth it
The earlier V12Vs came with a Graziano 6-speed manual transmission, in contrast to the 7-speed Sportshift III SMG-like gearbox and then in dog leg manual form in the later V12V 'S' cars. While the six-speed isn't as unique as the dog leg, it performs well and I've no qualms. It's nice and direct, quite 'knuckly' in fact, and the ratios and shifting work well with the V12. A real pleasure compared to SMG! It has a limited slip differential, and with the 295-wide rear tyres does a decent job of getting the power down. However, I've been unimpressed with the official Aston 'AM8' Pirelli P Zero tyres - which could be as they are bit aged - so I've just chucked them for Michelin Pilot Sport 4S's and expect these will do a better overall job.
The V12V is an easy car to drive. The clutch is easy to work with, the gearbox is easy to work. The brakes are.. good. Very good. Ventilated and cross-drilled carbon-ceramics, with 398mm discs and six-piston calipers up front, and 360mm with four-piston on the back. You're never going to run out of brakes on the road, and they look particularly serious and intentional behind the wheels. Suspension is independent double wishbones all round, with no modes or functions - just regular old suspension, tuned and balanced by Aston to be part of the character of the car. It's firm for sure, but compliant enough for London duties if you avoid the worst pot holes. With a bit of speed it rides well enough on British roads and there is no body roll. The back end will move about under power in a playful and encouraging way. Together with the nicely weighted, precise, and relatively short ratio steering, overall handling and drive is entertaining and rewarding. You have a sense you are driving quite a serious car, and it will manage some considerable speed, but the manual gearbox and relatively simple controls mean you get to enjoy every mile per hour, in a way that you don't in many more modern 'point and squirt' cars.
Design and tech
Let's start with the tech, which will be quick as there isn't very much! It has a very crude navigation system that I have never used - luckily Aston had the wisdom to put the screen in a flap so you can keep it permanently hidden under the dash. The 'Premium' audio system option mine has fitted (which runs on a separate dot matrix display) is fairly decent, almost as good as the Logic7 system in the M5, and it has the Bluetooth A2DP link so I can connect Spotify on my phone and maintain a good sound. It has electrically adjustable heated seats, electric windows and auto-dimming mirrors, cruise control, climate control, xenon headlights... and that's about it. Wipers are manual, lights are manual. It's nice having a car with buttons, that when you press the buttons the car does what you expect, and the rest of the time it doesn't do that thing. How refreshingly simple!
Inside the cabin of the V12V is a pleasing place to be. Material quality is high - premium leathers on seats, dash and doors all hand-stitched, carbon fibre door handles, solid aluminium gearstick and gaiter polished to a satin finish, major switchgear buttons in glass, alcantara headlining, aluminium instrument cluster, and so on. Things are also luxurious in the details, such as the solid metal hinge for the sun visors, or the glass crystal key that has a little Aston wings badge inside. Photos show you the interior, but unfortunately don't convey the material quality or how special it all feels when you're sat inside.
The V12V is based on the VH platform first introduced with the DB9. I think many people would agree that the VH-based DB9, DBS, Vantage, Virage and Vanquish of this era are among the most beautiful cars ever produced. The Vantage is a bit stubbier than a DB9 or Vanquish but looks great from every angle. A classic and curvaceous front-engined coupe that draws fans from all backgrounds and ages. The V12V is a bit more obnoxious than the sleeker V8 Vantage, coming as standard with carbon-fibre bonnet slats - ostensibly to help the cool the V12, and I can attest to there being enough heat coming out of them to blur your view when stationary - carbon fibre front splitter, carbon fibre rear diffuser, more aggressive side skirts, and special 19" lightweight forged alloy wheels. It's a car you turn and look back at several times when walking away.
Summary
If I had to choose a word to describe the V12V it would be 'special', if not for what the car is, but how it makes you feel. I really wanted to have something enjoyable to own and drive and the V12V delivers on that, from the elaborate start-up sequence at the beginning of every journey, to the universally positive reaction from passers by - in terms of comments, as well as photos and videos by the public. The car is full of details, too many to list here, that evoke the heritage of Aston Martin and speak to the reasons I love the car. There's a fantastic and somewhat overwhelming official owners club, that seem to be running a hundred events a year across the world and are regularly off on European tours - all detailed in the monthly and quarterly magazines. I'm not sure I'll get too involved, but it is another part of the experience for those that have the time.
I am extremely happy with the Aston and have become a bit of a convert to the marque. It's a car equally suitable for plodding around a rainy London in, or rolling up to the Savoy in for a black-tie event, or to take for a blast along some A and B roads.
As mentioned, I've just replaced the tyres and it's in having the exhaust work. I will post an update with my feelings on that once I've spent a bit of time with it.
Here are some photos, including one taking by the salesman of me grinning from ear to ear on pickup. Lastly, many of you may remember the Top Gear review of the V12V that ended Season 13. If you haven't seen it, it's definitely worth a watch - I have embedded the link below.
Any questions and I'll be happy to answer
Cheers!