I spent the last few years with an Aston Martin DB9 Manual which after a generous offer from a good friend and months of self doubt, I went ahead with the deal 
.
I had owned the car for nearly 5 years and was driving it less and less. My original intention was to keep it at all costs as a future classic but it felt like it wasn't being enjoyed or used as much as I would like. This also had an impact on it's reliability, with small niggles (some that only I would notice, but they still annoyed me) creeping up. I will never forgot the manual gearbox to V12 pairing, it was a glorious thing and I doubt I'll get to drive another as they seem to be on the way out. After test driving both the automatic/paddle vs the manual I can say that the manual gearbox completely changes the feeling of the car and is an exceedingly rare combination on the DB9.
Goodbye my friend
.
Following on from that, last year, I had added a stablemate in the form of a BMW E60 M5 which served as my more practical car (in relative terms!). I drove this car, on my first weekend of ownership, all the way to Stuttgart and back again, for a friends birthday. It performed absolutely flawlessly and hit 175mph GPS on the autobahn - Not sure where the 155mph limiter had got to...
With the departure of the DB9 looming, I seeked a potentially more radical change by looking into other options for a practical & fun car. After a few months of debating I traded the M5 in and I ended up with these, both of which were delivered last month:
Tesla Model S P90D
Caterham SV 420R
Track spec'd but road legal for the odd weekend drive
I am both delighted and ever so slightly sad at the change - I absolutely love "living in the future" with the Tesla - I use the autopilot functionality on every journey that involves A roads and I don't yet find charging a big concern. The over-the-air updates are already proving to be a revelation - I've had it about 6 weeks and already received 2 updates, one which contained enhanced autopilot and another than completely revamped the UI. I've done over 1500 miles and, other than insurance (comparable to my old policy), I haven't paid a single penny in running costs (zero on electric, zero on congestion charge, zero on car tax) - just tyre wear.
I also cannot wait to get more track time in the Caterham next year when the weather brightens up a bit as it really does alter your expectations when cornering/braking - I've already had a bit of an incident with a Silverstone wall when I touched the white line in the damp at Chapel 
which was rather embarrassing - thankfully I got off lightly.
I am ever so slightly sad as I might never drive a high capacity N/A engined car again. Turbos and engine technology have come on such a long way, and with the advent of electric cars, I just can't see a future for them outside of the very niche (OcUK Motors perhaps!). Not to mention self-driving cars.
Anyway, thought I'd share my journey with fellow petrolheads (can I call myself that anymore with a Tesla?)! I will probably update this thread if my car gets any new features/updates etc.
. I had owned the car for nearly 5 years and was driving it less and less. My original intention was to keep it at all costs as a future classic but it felt like it wasn't being enjoyed or used as much as I would like. This also had an impact on it's reliability, with small niggles (some that only I would notice, but they still annoyed me) creeping up. I will never forgot the manual gearbox to V12 pairing, it was a glorious thing and I doubt I'll get to drive another as they seem to be on the way out. After test driving both the automatic/paddle vs the manual I can say that the manual gearbox completely changes the feeling of the car and is an exceedingly rare combination on the DB9.
Goodbye my friend
.Following on from that, last year, I had added a stablemate in the form of a BMW E60 M5 which served as my more practical car (in relative terms!). I drove this car, on my first weekend of ownership, all the way to Stuttgart and back again, for a friends birthday. It performed absolutely flawlessly and hit 175mph GPS on the autobahn - Not sure where the 155mph limiter had got to...
With the departure of the DB9 looming, I seeked a potentially more radical change by looking into other options for a practical & fun car. After a few months of debating I traded the M5 in and I ended up with these, both of which were delivered last month:
Tesla Model S P90D
- Facelift
- Insane mode (3.1s 0-60 time)
- Air suspension
- Uprated speakers
- 21" wheels
- Next gen seats
- Autopilot v1.0
- Cold weather pack
Caterham SV 420R
Track spec'd but road legal for the odd weekend drive
- R Pack
- Race rollcage
- Track suspension
- Track day exhaust
- Lowered floors
- Sequential shift lights
- Kevlar race tillet seats
- Uprated front brakes
I am both delighted and ever so slightly sad at the change - I absolutely love "living in the future" with the Tesla - I use the autopilot functionality on every journey that involves A roads and I don't yet find charging a big concern. The over-the-air updates are already proving to be a revelation - I've had it about 6 weeks and already received 2 updates, one which contained enhanced autopilot and another than completely revamped the UI. I've done over 1500 miles and, other than insurance (comparable to my old policy), I haven't paid a single penny in running costs (zero on electric, zero on congestion charge, zero on car tax) - just tyre wear
.I also cannot wait to get more track time in the Caterham next year when the weather brightens up a bit as it really does alter your expectations when cornering/braking - I've already had a bit of an incident with a Silverstone wall when I touched the white line in the damp at Chapel
which was rather embarrassing - thankfully I got off lightly.I am ever so slightly sad as I might never drive a high capacity N/A engined car again. Turbos and engine technology have come on such a long way, and with the advent of electric cars, I just can't see a future for them outside of the very niche (OcUK Motors perhaps!)
. Not to mention self-driving cars.Anyway, thought I'd share my journey with fellow petrolheads (can I call myself that anymore with a Tesla?)! I will probably update this thread if my car gets any new features/updates etc.
