porche 993 to db7 vantage

[tuscrv8]

keep looking at db7 vantages and for the price i could get for my nice low millage porsche 993 i could pretty much do a straight swap 22 -23 k .
but will i regret it 993 has hardly cost a penny apart from servicing will the vantage bleed me dry
also my two boys 7 and 8 years old like to go out in the car will they fit in the back {i would like a manual car or touchtronic at a push]
must say the db7 has always been the dream car for me and now i could afford one i would not want it to turn into a nightmare

[yeti]

tuscrv8 said:

993 has hardly cost a penny apart from servicing will the vantage bleed me dry
also my two boys 7 and 8 years old like to go out in the car will they fit in the back

I had a DB7 Vantage and 964 Targa at the same time, very different cars. The DB7 will feel much, much bigger, smoother and faster, especially if you get a manual! However, you will lose that pinpoint handling feel and lightness in the front end that you're used to. It's a point-and-squirt muscle car really.

Costs for my 964 were a replaced fan for about £400, the costs for my DB7 were huge and constant, but I bought a car I wanted and accepted it needed work to make perfect. I think the biggest bill you could get for a 993 would be the expected rebuild at 120k but the DB7 could throw anything up at you and more than once a year. It will in all liklihood cost much more to own than the 993, not least with a 6k/6 month service (that is generally done every 12months though).

No, 2 kids will not fit in the back, not of a Volante anyway. One in the front, one in the back no problem, unless you're under average height. But then the 993 doesn;t have much leg room either, maybe not much in it.

You need to take a test drive and you'll either fall in love or you won't. I did fall in love!

[don4l]

yeti said:

You need to take a test drive and you'll either fall in love or you won't. I did fall in love!

This is very good advice.

When I asked for a test drive, I really didn't know what to expect. Three minutes after I got behind the wheel, I was utterly smitten. I didn't want one, I needed one.


So, take a test drive. You will either fall in love with it, or you might be unmoved by it. You won't know until you try it.

Don
--

[XlBilbo]

I haven't seen many manual Vantages for sale. The Touchtronic is not flappy paddle and is a bit of a parp. You would be better going for a GT, although they are more expensive. The handling is crisper and you would be more likely to find a manual.
Just my thoughts, but you won't get anyone sitting behind the driver in any of them!
Good luck with your search. They are fabulous cars. FSH is crucial. Low mileage isn't.

[petecowie]

not sure how much Db7 you will get for 22-23K, think you will have to add some more for a good car. I checked on your location otherwise would have brought my Manual Vantage Volante for you to have a test fitting as a prospective member of the Aston family. It certainly is a better feeling in an Aston than a Porsche - more special, hence my currently looking at DB9s

[tjb]

I can't comment on the 993, having just moved to a GTA from an Ultima which I wasn't using because of having two small children.

I'm 5'11" and can drive it with the seat all the way forward. In this position my six year old fits fine behind me on a booster seat, and I think she will for several years. I don't think it would work in a manual as left leg space isn't generous so changing gear would require the seat to be quite a bit further back. I'm getting used to the Touchtronic, prefer the sequential gear shift to the buttons on the wheel.

Can't comment on costs as I've only had it three weeks!

Another vote for taking a test drive, and taking the boys with you.

[yeti]

don4l said:

When I asked for a test drive, I really didn't know what to expect. Three minutes after I got behind the wheel, I was utterly smitten. I didn't want one, I needed one.

Exactly the same for me. Got out of my lovely XKR 4.2 and thought I'd time-warped back into a classic car it. I'd heard a lot of bad things about DB7s, all the old Jag-in-drag hilarity but this was dispelled within a few minutes with that chunky small steering wheel in my hands and the V12 in front! Oh, and the looks...

I was much more impressed with my DB7 test drive than I was with the DB9.

Take the kids and go for a drive, no other way to know.

Edited by yeti on Saturday 25th June 23:43

[LordBretSinclair]

yeti said:

I'd heard a lot of bad things about DB7s, all the old Jag-in-drag hilarity but this was dispelled within a few minutes with that chunky small steering wheel in my hands and the V12 in front! Oh, and the looks...

I was much more impressed with my DB7 test drive than I was with the DB9 was.

Me too !

[verminator]

I have had my DB7 vv manual, for 2yrs. Love the look and sound of it. Has been very reliable, but I did have a full report and service, including coils before i bought it. Mine wasn't a particulaly low mileage example (50k), and it is a volante, but I had to pay 30k for it even though it is a very early car. I think you may well have to pay a little more than your price for a nice car. One thing to bare in mind is the horrendous fuel consumption. Good luck with your search.

[wokkadriver]

verminator said:

I have had my DB7 vv manual, for 2yrs. Love the look and sound of it. Has been very reliable, but I did have a full report and service, including coils before i bought it. Mine wasn't a particulaly low mileage example (50k), and it is a volante, but I had to pay 30k for it even though it is a very early car. I think you may well have to pay a little more than your price for a nice car. One thing to bare in mind is the horrendous fuel consumption. Good luck with your search.

Very dependent on the weight of your foot and the distance, I have found! My DB7 v (manual) does around 18mpg if I am pootling around short distances, but goes up to around 26-28 on a longhaul drive up the motorway.

Yes, there are some eye watering expenses (plugs and coil packs shipping in at over £1000, for example) and a recent new radiator (bonnet off, and it is a combined matrix, so oil cooler, air con etc all part of the same deal. New rad = new coolant, aircon re-gas and oil... bugger).

I'm currently working out best value for new brakes, but I'm getting there. For me it is a second car, so is purely for the pleasure it gives me... and nothing trumps an Aston

The manual was essential for me - much better than a previous XKR - however, the clutch is heavy and a day driving through London will leave you cursing (and knackered!)

Back seats not too bad - but, I'm 6'2 and the seat is all the way back for me - touching the back seats. That said, shorter journeys with the seat forward to allow space is entirely feasible...

I was tempted by the GT variant for its handling. power and brake improvements, but I was really turned off by the interior though - didn't like the carbon and aluminium stuff one bit. As I would be spending most of my time looking at the interior, the 'at limits' performance which I would rarely use was easily ouweighed!


Best of Luck!