Badge Snobbery?
Discussion
So I'm ready to swap the 4.3 for a 4.7 Vantage when I decide to take a quick look at an Audi R8.
To cut a long story short, it's fantastic to drive, has a pretty good interior (it's not quite up to the standard of a Vantage) and is a bit different.
Price to change for a very fully loaded R8 is looking about the same as a good spec Aston.
I am extremely tempted but something is holding me back.
Is it just the badge.............?
To cut a long story short, it's fantastic to drive, has a pretty good interior (it's not quite up to the standard of a Vantage) and is a bit different.
Price to change for a very fully loaded R8 is looking about the same as a good spec Aston.
I am extremely tempted but something is holding me back.
Is it just the badge.............?
Nice loking car apart from the fins on the side.
I found the R8 uneventfull.
Does exactly wht is says on the can!
It just drives itself, no skill whatsoever required from the driver.
Totally safe especially in the wet, just not exciting.
The Aston however is special, feels great every time you enter the cabin and fire up the V8.
If your after something special & exciting try the Gallardo.
The LP560 does not fail to excite.
The Ferrari F430 is also a superb car.
Anyhow best of luck with your new purchase.
I found the R8 uneventfull.
Does exactly wht is says on the can!
It just drives itself, no skill whatsoever required from the driver.
Totally safe especially in the wet, just not exciting.
The Aston however is special, feels great every time you enter the cabin and fire up the V8.
If your after something special & exciting try the Gallardo.
The LP560 does not fail to excite.
The Ferrari F430 is also a superb car.
Anyhow best of luck with your new purchase.
bikeracer1098 said:
Nice loking car apart from the fins on the side.
I found the R8 uneventfull.
Does exactly wht is says on the can!
It just drives itself, no skill whatsoever required from the driver.
Totally safe especially in the wet, just not exciting.
The Aston however is special, feels great every time you enter the cabin and fire up the V8.
If your after something special & exciting try the Gallardo.
The LP560 does not fail to excite.
The Ferrari F430 is also a superb car.
Anyhow best of luck with your new purchase.
Uneventful in what way (it's a magazine phrase that I never really understand; were you expecting a charging elephant?)I found the R8 uneventfull.
Does exactly wht is says on the can!
It just drives itself, no skill whatsoever required from the driver.
Totally safe especially in the wet, just not exciting.
The Aston however is special, feels great every time you enter the cabin and fire up the V8.
If your after something special & exciting try the Gallardo.
The LP560 does not fail to excite.
The Ferrari F430 is also a superb car.
Anyhow best of luck with your new purchase.
LP560; gorgeous but we are not comparing like-for-like.
F430; great car but not for every day (and dropping like a (very heavy) stone.
Thanks for the feedback; it's pushing me towards another Vantage.....
By uneventfull, I meant that the car does not do anything particularly well. As they say it does not light my fire.
Performance is OK.
Handling is OK (predictable but not exciting)
Looks are OK.
Its typical of Audi, it does everything well, but nothing is exeptional or special.
You have also got to live with that dreadfull cheap looking QUATTRO badge on the passenger side dashboard.
It certainly does not ooze class like the Aston and it will not make you feel special!
However it's your choice.
Performance is OK.
Handling is OK (predictable but not exciting)
Looks are OK.
Its typical of Audi, it does everything well, but nothing is exeptional or special.
You have also got to live with that dreadfull cheap looking QUATTRO badge on the passenger side dashboard.
It certainly does not ooze class like the Aston and it will not make you feel special!
However it's your choice.
bikeracer1098 said:
By uneventfull, I meant that the car does not do anything particularly well. As they say it does not light my fire.
Performance is OK.
Handling is OK (predictable but not exciting)
Looks are OK.
Its typical of Audi, it does everything well, but nothing is exeptional or special.
You have also got to live with that dreadfull cheap looking QUATTRO badge on the passenger side dashboard.
It certainly does not ooze class like the Aston and it will not make you feel special!
However it's your choice.
The R8 does do quite a few things pretty well (you are in a bit of a monirity here I think) but another drive of both cars is in order today before I decide.Performance is OK.
Handling is OK (predictable but not exciting)
Looks are OK.
Its typical of Audi, it does everything well, but nothing is exeptional or special.
You have also got to live with that dreadfull cheap looking QUATTRO badge on the passenger side dashboard.
It certainly does not ooze class like the Aston and it will not make you feel special!
However it's your choice.
I would never buy an R8 at this point in time (beside the fact that I would never buy one anyway). The V10-powered version is coming very soon and then, IMO nobody really nobody wants to buy that RS4-powered standard R8 anymore. For it's look,s it's massively underpowered. The V10 will be just about right in terms of performance and looks.
My advice: Take the Aston or wait for the R8 V10.
My advice: Take the Aston or wait for the R8 V10.
Just thought I'd add a different perspective to this topic in that I've previously owned a 4.3 Vantage and now have an R8, that I've owned for a year...which is a long time for me to own any car since I have tended to change quite frequently! Totally agree with Bikeracer that the Vantage is more of a 'special' car and the R8 could be described as 'uneventful' because it is so capable, but I really believe that you have to live with a car for a while to be able to truly discover both its strengths and weaknesses and believe me when I say that the R8 does have some serious strengths!
Even now after 12 months of ownership it still causes a stir when I drive it (might help that I do live in the sticks and have only seen one other R8 in my neck of the woods) but the best bit is the way it goes when you nail that V8, it is an awesome car with IMO just the 'right' amount of power for UK back roads etc. I'm sure others will disagree but to the OP, it would be worth the extra test drive and of course, I've not yet driven a 4.7, did have a test drive booked but had to cancel.
Even now after 12 months of ownership it still causes a stir when I drive it (might help that I do live in the sticks and have only seen one other R8 in my neck of the woods) but the best bit is the way it goes when you nail that V8, it is an awesome car with IMO just the 'right' amount of power for UK back roads etc. I'm sure others will disagree but to the OP, it would be worth the extra test drive and of course, I've not yet driven a 4.7, did have a test drive booked but had to cancel.
whoami said:
bmartin said:
For it's look,s it's massively underpowered.
That's what people say about the Vantage 
Ive been in an R8 recently, personally I like the looks, and the concept, and I love fast Audis...but theyve always been practical fast estates with big engines that Ive owned.
I think it says it all when the Audi supercar is outrun by their latest hot estate
...only joking...we all know the hotter R8 is coming 
Inside, It was just like any other hot Audi - a nice place to be...but not really *that* special...whereas the Vantage feels special every time.
I think I will own an R8 one day - it will make an excellent daily driver sportscar for me to do 20-30K miles a year in...I will just wait until they are 3yrs old + and £35-40K (once usual Audi depreciation sets in and novelty wears off) - they will be a bargain then.
I think it says it all when the Audi supercar is outrun by their latest hot estate
...only joking...we all know the hotter R8 is coming Inside, It was just like any other hot Audi - a nice place to be...but not really *that* special...whereas the Vantage feels special every time.
I think I will own an R8 one day - it will make an excellent daily driver sportscar for me to do 20-30K miles a year in...I will just wait until they are 3yrs old + and £35-40K (once usual Audi depreciation sets in and novelty wears off) - they will be a bargain then.
(Cannot agree on this, the Vantage looks like a fast GT, but not anything like a supercar. The R8 on the other side has this mid-engine, I-can-catch-you-easily supercar look and in this context, 420 horses are just not enough.)
I don't know what the roads are like where you are, but in the real world (in the UK) ie dodgy,poorly surfaced back roads and the occasionally decently surfaced A road, 420bhp is more than enough. And just because a car is mid-engined and good to look at, doesn't mean it has to be categorised as a 'supercar'. The Vantage may look like a fast GT but in reality it is universally condemned as not quick enough and in fact has been descibed as a sports car and not a GT. IMO the R8(V8) is aimed at the 911 Carrera, Carrara S and the C4S and in that respect it succeeds emphatically.
The Vantage is undeniably Aston's junior car and purely for that reason it will get compared with the R8 due to pricing, size, output etc but like I said before it definitely has a 'special' feel, but the R8 cannot be dismissed as an alternative, unless of course you suffer from that fateful disease so common of 'old' Aston owners....badge snobbery!;)
I don't know what the roads are like where you are, but in the real world (in the UK) ie dodgy,poorly surfaced back roads and the occasionally decently surfaced A road, 420bhp is more than enough. And just because a car is mid-engined and good to look at, doesn't mean it has to be categorised as a 'supercar'. The Vantage may look like a fast GT but in reality it is universally condemned as not quick enough and in fact has been descibed as a sports car and not a GT. IMO the R8(V8) is aimed at the 911 Carrera, Carrara S and the C4S and in that respect it succeeds emphatically.
The Vantage is undeniably Aston's junior car and purely for that reason it will get compared with the R8 due to pricing, size, output etc but like I said before it definitely has a 'special' feel, but the R8 cannot be dismissed as an alternative, unless of course you suffer from that fateful disease so common of 'old' Aston owners....badge snobbery!;)
SAGPACK said:
I don't know what the roads are like where you are, but in the real world (in the UK) ie dodgy,poorly surfaced back roads and the occasionally decently surfaced A road, 420bhp is more than enough. And just because a car is mid-engined and good to look at, doesn't mean it has to be categorised as a 'supercar'. The Vantage may look like a fast GT but in reality it is universally condemned as not quick enough and in fact has been descibed as a sports car and not a GT. IMO the R8(V8) is aimed at the 911 Carrera, Carrara S and the C4S and in that respect it succeeds emphatically.
The Vantage is undeniably Aston's junior car and purely for that reason it will get compared with the R8 due to pricing, size, output etc but like I said before it definitely has a 'special' feel, but the R8 cannot be dismissed as an alternative, unless of course you suffer from that fateful disease so common of 'old' Aston owners....badge snobbery!;)
Sorry, didn't know the real world is only in the uk, but fair enough The Vantage is undeniably Aston's junior car and purely for that reason it will get compared with the R8 due to pricing, size, output etc but like I said before it definitely has a 'special' feel, but the R8 cannot be dismissed as an alternative, unless of course you suffer from that fateful disease so common of 'old' Aston owners....badge snobbery!;)
I did not say 420 hp is not enough for public roads (although I very much prefer the 'ring to explore a cars potential) but from my very personal point of view, the R8 looks a lot faster than it actually is. The look promises 500+ hp and performance on GT3 or even GT2 level. But it is "only" on-par with the latest M3 - and even the RS4 achieved about the same laptime on the 'ring.
The Vantage looks 400+ hp and that's what it got lately
However, you are right, the R8 is an excellent car and for some people it might be kind of an alternative to the Vantage. Only these two cars do have such a different approach..
Good choice 
Thanks chaps
The car is Meteorite (should be slightly easier to clean than my current black car), manual, Sports Pack, the usual bits and pieces.
The car is in stock, not a factory order. Most dealers have a fair selection in stock with no real need for a factory order unless you are going for an off-the-wall spec or colour.
Ended up with a reasonable deal and yes the Aston support deal kicked in. It's only availalbe on cars the dealers had in stock prior to 1st September with extra support for existing customers.
They also told me that Aston are planning to cut new stock for 2009 for UK dealers by 50%.
Should be picking it up at the end of next week.
The car is Meteorite (should be slightly easier to clean than my current black car), manual, Sports Pack, the usual bits and pieces.
The car is in stock, not a factory order. Most dealers have a fair selection in stock with no real need for a factory order unless you are going for an off-the-wall spec or colour.
Ended up with a reasonable deal and yes the Aston support deal kicked in. It's only availalbe on cars the dealers had in stock prior to 1st September with extra support for existing customers.
They also told me that Aston are planning to cut new stock for 2009 for UK dealers by 50%.
Should be picking it up at the end of next week.
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