Goodbye V8V..... Hello V12V
Discussion
Well I finally drove one last week after being warned not to until the time was right & I can understand why 
. I felt like I was sleeping with another woman when I took the test drive as my faithful V8V was sitting in the garage unaware of my flirtation with a younger model; and I felt dirty. Anyway I am a bloke, so I am now looking to trade the missus in for a 20 year old with bigger pipes 
. I dont feel guilty at all now . Today I picked up my new pride and joy and said goodbye to my much loved V8V.
Initial impressions are that I miss the flappy paddles (personal choice I know) and the noise of the V8V exhaust note. The V12V is deeper, but quieter and does not pop and bang as much, but still a glorious sound, just different.
Anyway, enough of the sad goodbye.......
If I were 12 (and I am not yet that old mentally) my text message to my friends would start OMG. It is crazy fast, just leave it in sport mode as the throttle response is far sharper and just makes it nicer to drive. The suspension is firmer and body roll noticably less than the V8, but certainly not uncomfortable. The sports seats hug you closely and are extremely comfortable. It goes like a scolded cat, although first gear just sees wheelspin and traction control (cold temperatures no doubt), grab second and WOW, grab third and crikey erm 68MPH officer ...... honestly. The speedo should be in warp factor, not MPH. The most noticable difference is the torque; it has bucket fulls of the stuff.
I have driven through towns in the christmas mayhem and the clutch is light enough for that, motorway and it is an easy, effortless cruiser; but it belongs on the twisty stuff and that is where the smile gets bigger. I love this car already, if you are thinking of buying one, just get it done. You will not regret your decision and if moving up from a V8V, you will never look back. I could waffle for hours, but I need to go and drive it again, just because I can. Dont get me wrong, I loved the V8V and would have happily continued with one, but now I have tasted the V12V there is no going back.
Cheers
John
. I felt like I was sleeping with another woman when I took the test drive as my faithful V8V was sitting in the garage unaware of my flirtation with a younger model; and I felt dirty. Anyway I am a bloke, so I am now looking to trade the missus in for a 20 year old with bigger pipes . I dont feel guilty at all now . Today I picked up my new pride and joy and said goodbye to my much loved V8V.Initial impressions are that I miss the flappy paddles (personal choice I know) and the noise of the V8V exhaust note. The V12V is deeper, but quieter and does not pop and bang as much, but still a glorious sound, just different.
Anyway, enough of the sad goodbye.......
If I were 12 (and I am not yet that old mentally) my text message to my friends would start OMG. It is crazy fast, just leave it in sport mode as the throttle response is far sharper and just makes it nicer to drive. The suspension is firmer and body roll noticably less than the V8, but certainly not uncomfortable. The sports seats hug you closely and are extremely comfortable. It goes like a scolded cat, although first gear just sees wheelspin and traction control (cold temperatures no doubt), grab second and WOW, grab third and crikey erm 68MPH officer ...... honestly. The speedo should be in warp factor, not MPH. The most noticable difference is the torque; it has bucket fulls of the stuff
.I have driven through towns in the christmas mayhem and the clutch is light enough for that, motorway and it is an easy, effortless cruiser; but it belongs on the twisty stuff and that is where the smile gets bigger. I love this car already, if you are thinking of buying one, just get it done. You will not regret your decision and if moving up from a V8V, you will never look back. I could waffle for hours, but I need to go and drive it again, just because I can. Dont get me wrong, I loved the V8V and would have happily continued with one, but now I have tasted the V12V there is no going back.
Cheers
John
Mako V12V said:
Good write up John, thanks for sharing and welcome to happyland 
Thanks, I thought that I would just share my first impressions for any V8V owners stuck with the dilemma; with some of my humour .What a machine, I am just sad I waited until now to buy one. A special thanks to the previous owner for looking after it so well. I am looking forward to more driving tomorrow. I hope it does not rain Wednesday so I can take it to the AMOC xmas dinner
.LordBretSinclair said:
Contrary to popular belief Aston Martins do not disintegrate in the rain. Please not another garage queen 
12,000 in 2 years in my last one and a trip around Europe; Certainly not a garage queen. I just see no point in making it filthy inside (unmade car park) should the weather be foul.
!!!!AMGreg said:
Great write up. I was in exactly the same position earlier in the year. Isn't the V12V fantastic!
Oh yes Baron Von Alders said:
I was in the showroom wandering around whilst you did the handover & drove away - looked awesome
Aha so that was you What are you looking for next then?Cheers Archie, sounds like you had fun, I loved every moment of the hack around Europe. It has to be the best car to do it in..
JohnG1 --> Its paid for, I am just skint
.... trust me.Cheers Guy, I hope I can get to some of the meets and share a tall tale
johng39 said:
Baron Von Alders said:
I was in the showroom wandering around whilst you did the handover & drove away - looked awesome
Aha so that was you What are you looking for next then?Baron Von Alders said:
Vantage was in for a winter check so rather than just eat up all the freebie pastries I was wandering around and working out how many kidneys I need to sell to get the DBS
I looked at the Lightning Silver DBS, but it is too long for the garage. Forget the kidneys, just sell your soul to the devil . You need the kidneys Gassing Station | Aston Martin | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff