2009 Aston Martin V8 Vantage

What would you daily drive if you won the lottery? I don’t play the lottery much, but this is still a question I ponder quite frequently. Well, I think I finally have the answer…

This weekend, Aston Martin kindly invited me to sample their new 2009 V8 Vantage. Although the sheet metal is basically unchanged (and seriously, why mess with it?) the car had received some modest updates, and the V8 had been bumped up to 4.7 liters and a very healthy 420 hp. Hey, that’s good enough reason to invite loyal customers and a few lucky journalists to come check out the new car.

Aston Martin had seven or eight cars out on display at the country club when I got there, and three of them were brand new ‘09 Vantage demo cars. The Park Place Motors guys asked me if I wanted to drive the Coupe or the Roadster. It was a perfect, sunny 80-degree day, so this was really no question for me. They only had the Roadster in the Sportshift version, but I’d never driven a car with one of these Magneti Marelli systems (the same used by Ferrari and Lamborghini), so I was curious. The particular example I got to drive was white with a dark reddish-brown interior. This wouldn’t be my first color choice, but it still looked stunning. Continue reading…

Ryan from Park Place Motors took me out for the drive on the back roads of Redmond, and I shot this short video with him behind the wheel. Even from the passenger seat I knew two things: the exhaust note is just about perfect, and the Vantage is also probably the stiffest convertible I’d ever sat in. The car felt rock solid down the narrow, slightly uneven two-lane road.

A mile or two down the road Ryan pulled over so we could trade places. With the Sportshift cars you have to go through a somewhat silly routine with the e-brake, which is mounted to the left of the driver seat. Luckily, there isn’t much other gadgetry to be distracted with. I fiddled with the mirrors a bit and then we were off.

Now, about this whole Sportshift thing. I only had a short time with it, and I’m sure it would grow on me, but honestly, I’m not totally sold on it. It’s not nearly as smooth a garden variety automatic when it’s in automatic mode, and it’s just not the same as driving a manual. I felt disconnected, like I was playing a video game. I even bounced off the rev limiter once in 3rd (hmmm, now how fast would that be…?). But anyway, back to the car…

The motor spins up nicely and has plenty of torque. I already told you about that exhaust note. The steering is sharp. The brakes felt a bit soft but the car had been thrashed the whole day. But the car is just great to drive. It’s not raw like a Ferrari, and not overly insulated like a German sports sedan. The Vantage offers the perfect GT experience, with plenty of growling attitude on reserve for when you need it.

We got stuck in traffic a bit on the way back and so we had a chance to talk about the car. Ryan told me that this car is popular with customers who don’t want to be noticed like you get noticed in a Ferrari or a Lambo. It’s also a bit more practical and comfortable. And, even at $120k, it offers quite a bit of value. They’ve been selling a lot of them over at Park Place Motors.

I’d like to take a moment to praise Aston Martin for making this a true soft-top, not another corny retractable hardtop. They had a green Roaster there and it looked stunning with the canvas top up. I hope they keep it that way. And honestly, I think the Roadster looks better than the Coupe.

We got back and parked the car with the others. I was sad to give back the slick-looking key fob, but it had been a long day for those guys and they needed to go home. I snapped some more pics while they started to pack up.

So back to the lottery question. Yeah, I’d have a bunch of Ferraris, and a Mopar for every year from 1963 to 1971. But for a daily driver I think I might just go for the beautiful V8 Vantage. 

The black and red cars in the pics came with the sport package (which comes with the five spoke wheels). And you may have noticed the Le Mans car in one of the photos above–look for a post on that tomorrow.