Got an itch - Aston Martin DB9 V12

Greebo

Greebo

Greebo

Caporegime
Joined
20 Jan 2005
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Co Durham
Got an itch and I am seriously looking at buying an Aston Martin DB9 V12.

Reasons?

Always swore that one day i would own an AM.
Always swore that I would own a V12 at least once in my life.

Pretty much no new V12 cars will be made now and the DB9 (IMO) is one of the best looking cars ever made.

Could be good value with little depreciation as I expect (good) V12 will only go up in price (eventually).

Thinking of buying at least the facelift post 2009 model, maybe even the 2012/13 car major facelift model. Definitely with the optional sports pack for earlier cars but the later cars come with adaptive suspension as standard.

Undecided over manual or auto. Manuals are fun and the better gearbox but its a GT not a sports car and manual cars command a £10k premium. Not sure its worth it for just the manual.

Was originally thinking a car in quantum silver even black. But then I saw this car.

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Am I mad buying a DB9? What else should I consider to scratch my v12 itch? There is of course a V12 Vantage but they just don't have the presence of the DB9 imo and just seem a bargain basement for AM? Am i judging the Vantage too harshly?
 
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Don't really know the DB9 but it looks a lovely example.

My general advise on such a car would be to buy from a dealership, which that car is and as the market is slow on some cars put in a cheeky offer and if they don't want to move much on price try to get them to throw in a longer warranty or a free service etc.
 
my neighbor has one the V12 what a sound he also has a caterham and a SQ8 for the fam.

what is your budget and what usage are you after ?
 
sither said:
my neighbor has one the V12 what a sound he also has a caterham and a SQ8 for the fam.

what is your budget and what usage are you after ?
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£60k is really where I dont want to go over. The one I linked to is overpriced (a bit) but its probably the only Volcano Red DB9 in the UK so its not like you can go buy another! Plus the carbon fibre pack inside and out was a very rarely ticked box on the option list. I can see why it cost £140k new.

BW X5 45e is my day to day car so the DB9 will be just for weekends and fun and driving holidays.
 
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This is a very un-HangTimey comment but if you are scratching this itch do you want to be sat in a £60k car thinking "damn this car looks nowhere near as good as that other one"? It seems like a heart over head purchase so get the AM V12 you want not one that could leave you with any regrets.
 
If you've never driven one, it'll be quite a lot less sporty feeling than you might expect. The Vantage is far more sporty a proposition.

If you handed me £60k and said "go buy an Aston" I'd buy a Vanquish. Literally the best sounding road car on earth, the last hand-built cars made at Newport Pagnell before the move to Gaydon, etc etc. If I could stretch the budget, I'd buy either a nicer Vanquish, a V12 Vantage or maybe stretch into a DBS if it wasn't a wreck for the money.

If you gave me a DB9, I'd sell it and buy one of the above. The V12 Vantage S is absolutely epic btw, but you need a lot more cash than £60k to buy one worth buying.
 
no Aston, but its a V12
FNemR8p.jpg
 
Not a DB9, but before I bought my 8 Series I was looking at the Aston Martin Rapide V12, ideally a Timeless (approved used) one at around £40-50k. Circa 2012, the 2014+ Rapide S is better but another £15-20k at least.

It would be my main car though and I just couldn't rationalise it. It's an older car and would involve significant running costs when being used every day. The tech is a bit old hat, but as a second car that's less of an issue; the sat nav is absolutely ancient and from an old Volvo. The engine is of course brilliant and they look the part.

I think as a general rule Aston's of this era are fairly reliable and the engines are solid.

Bamford Rose have a lot of good information and buyers guide videos. However, getting one from a main dealer would be ideal so you don't need to worry about this, at least for a year. They mentioned on the Rapide that the air con of this era is quite weak compared to other cars. Could be annoying if it's really poor and you're in warmer places.

 
DRZ said:
If you've never driven one, it'll be quite a lot less sporty feeling than you might expect. The Vantage is far more sporty a proposition.

If you handed me £60k and said "go buy an Aston" I'd buy a Vanquish. Literally the best sounding road car on earth, the last hand-built cars made at Newport Pagnell before the move to Gaydon, etc etc. If I could stretch the budget, I'd buy either a nicer Vanquish, a V12 Vantage or maybe stretch into a DBS if it wasn't a wreck for the money.

If you gave me a DB9, I'd sell it and buy one of the above. The V12 Vantage S is absolutely epic btw, but you need a lot more cash than £60k to buy one worth buying.
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Vantage S starts at about where i maxed out on the DB9. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202212132495569?sort=price-asc&advertising-location=at_cars&aggregatedTrim=S&body-type=&colour=&fuel-type=&include-delivery-option=on&make=Aston Martin&minimum-badge-engine-size=5.5&model=Vantage&postcode=DL12 0JR&transmission=&year-to=2023&fromsra

So yeah, i would probably want a better model so end up nearer £80k. Too rich yet unless I wait a few years to scratch my itch!

Vanquish to me was just the hooligan version of the DB9. From reading up its far more sportier but far more likely to through massive repair bills whereas the DB9 is much more of a GT and also more reliable. Plus you can eat clutches really fast in a Vanquish.

But yeah the Vanquish sounds better as well. Plus "It takes as long to paint a Vanquish as to build a DB9" - Anon Newport Pagnell employee

I suppose in my head the Vanquish is a "supercar" and the DB9 is very plush GT.

And there is a massive price diff. For £60k you can buy a last gen 2013/14 DB9. That budget still puts you in a 2002-2004 Vanquish. Not sure £60k on a 20 year supercar isnt going to end in tears!

Plus I remember my old boss buying a 2005 vanquish and he only owned it 9 months before getting rid as out of those 9 months it spend half the time back with Aston getting stuff repaired under warranty. He said it was a lovely car but no point owning one if you never get to drive it or you cant trust it (he had the brakes fade breaking heavily from 150mph once which scared the life of him) so he went back to owning Aventendors which never went wrong.
 
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Looking through the motors section I would ask @Gibbo


you have a great daily 60k will buy something really nice for fun.
 
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