vanquish owners?

I found some vanquish sellers in Germany gambling with the price. It's going to be an interesting to follow the prices in future.

 

I have never understood this line of thinking. I do not own any branded title cars, but have looked at some great deals and given serious thought. If you see some cars that are, so called "salvaged" cars you would know some fall into only moderately damaged category and there is nothing wrong with them (ie only needing a bumper, lights, hood, radiator). Given some situations where parts are very expensive, policy calls for only new parts, wheels and tires are damaged, or the owner is savvy in pleading a case of loss through diminished value he can get the car totaled and nothing is really wrong with the car structurally. I had a car that could have been totaled (SC430) due to a very minor light swipe but requiring a fender, bumper, hood, and xenon light (expensive part) and opted to fix the car, rather than have it totaled because I had just added new tires, fresh service and did some repairs at the time which would have been a double hit for me cost wise. Years later the car is fine wife drives it regularly and the damage is undetectable and more importantly does not have a branded title, but easily could have had one if I would have let my insurance company have it and someone else would have a pristine, low mileage, serviced car back then for little money. Actually the damage on my car (that could have been totaled) doesn't even show on a Carfax (shows you what that is worth).

It is really odd because some buyers will salivate over a "barn find" that is a rusted hulk with seized engine and claim it's gods give at a concours once restored...what's the difference if the cars are properly restored when driven or sitting side by side? IMO NOTHING other than a piece paper saying one had an accident and the other with no document branding it as as a rusted rats nest hulk at a farm.

Just know what was fixed and how well it was fixed and enjoy the car at a great price if you have the opportunity to get and fix a minor damaged branded car.

 

Midnight delivery....

Of course this would not have been complete without the unexepected: a warning "battery not charging"....

Other than that car has all the original bits and I am even getting the window sticker...

car's at a friends house until I get it registered in a week or so.
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Stunning, even in the darkest darkness. ;-)
Enjoy!

 

Sherrillt,

I agree. There are cars that are totaled with very minor damage. In the end it's still a Vanquish, and in 10 years out or longer no one will care as time will weed out the cars with true problems. Do you think buyers shy away from a Miura with accident history? I think a lot of the barn find rust buckets with original dust is ridiculous. A lot of that is eventually sanded down and then bondo'd over, yet is considered to be more collectible because of it's "Original Condition" then a car that had a minor fender bender and was repaired properly and then cared for over time. What matters to some to me is just plain ridiculous, and it tends to be people with money that aren't real car guys, and more like posers, and buy for status. But that's another story.

 

@jimangle
I've read a bit more about titled cars and you - and Sherillt - are right. It's not as bad as I thought first. There's nothing similar in Germany, so it sounded new to me.

 

welcome to the Vanquish fold. I am sure the Vanq will bring years of driving pleasure and you bought a stand out example. Did you remove the sill plates (Dave Copley) or did the dealer do it?

 

Hi all,

I'm new to FerrariChat even though I'm reading the forum since many years.
I registered because I wanted to post about the incredible and stunning Vanquish.

We are the very happy owners of a late model.
A 2007 Vanquish S, the one which was shown at the Geneva Motorshow 2007.
Besides, on the door sill plates you can read "Handbuilt in England for Geneva Motorshow 2007".
The car color is Tempest Blue and our car (chassis 2442) is apparently the unique and only Vanquish/S built in that color.
The car is in the family since 4 years and it is absolutely STUNNING.

Why the Vanquish (and especially the S) ?

- timeless design mixing charisma and sexiness
- the last ever of Newport Pagnell factory since the DB4 in 1958
- only 2578 ever made (1086 of them were Vanquish S), so a pretty rare car
- in the case of the S, more than 200 MPH of top speed, one of the fastest AM ever
- one of the most beautiful engine sounds ever, no other modern V12 Aston can beat it
- a very raw car without DSC, only a limited slip differential and traction control
- the gearbox is not an automatic with torque converter, it is a manual with electro-hydraulic clutch, which allows you to feel greatly the car while changing gears
- iconic status because the Vanquish back in 2001 was a complete new model
- it announced the following models of the current range
- while all new modern Aston are good cars, they all look like the same
- the new Vanquish 2013 (which, to me, doesn't deserve the name at all...) remains a "tuned" DB9 2013, not at all a new model as the Vanquish was 13 years ago
- it was mixing craftsmanship and modern technologies
- it appeared in James Bond "Die Another Day" in 2002

The Vanquish/S (2001-2007) will remain as one of the most iconic Aston ever made.

People are realizing more and more that the Vanquish is something quiet special.

Many have been criticizing the gearbox while 99% of them never sat in a Vanquish (I repeat that many times on other forums but that's so true).
The early models might have suffered a bit from the clutch because of the lack of magnetic sensors but that was added later. Besides, only the S clutch is available since 2005.
I can confirm here that the gearbox works perfectly fine if you know how to drive it. In fact, it works as a F1 Ferrari gearbox, the system is the same.
The clutch can last more than 35 000 miles if you respect it.

Prices in the UK are firming up.
Not surprised of US prices because they were cheaper in the US new.
The price in France back in 2007 was almost 280 000 €.
It's becoming more and more difficult to find one, especially in perfect condition.
No doubt that the value will keep on increasing over the next years.

Here are some pictures of our car and a video shot at Le Mans Classic in 2012.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzBazRINTq0

I think any car enthusiast would fall in love with the Vanquish at the first driving.
The way it drives, the way it sounds, the way it looks… this car is just MAGICAL.
I could speak about it for hours so I will stop here.

I'm happy to join the thread and glad to find back some members I already know.
And once again : congratulations to the new "Merlot Red" owner !

Armen
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Yes. It wasn't an interim but actually a spec variation or Vanquish owners could order the breaks as a performance upgrade. The car you might have seen is most likely a SDP - which is a very rare spec., since it was an expensive upgrade and Aston owners are not the type for the most part to mod their vehicles. The SDP offered everything later available on the S (improved steering, breaks, sport seats) minus HP bump. Just like a Porsche C4S has everything a Turbo has minus HP/TT.

 

Stunning!!

 

Dealer did it. no sure why. were in the trunk. will try to have my own plates made

for the salvage title not all cars are equal. someone spoke about the muiras. Well very rare cars or famous racing cars will demand high prices, crashed or not because they are rare or famous.
Here we are talking about a Vanquish not a muira. Vanqs are not rare on the market and less than 25 years so why would anyone buy a salvaged an have to tell a long story if they need to sell it? When I buy a car, the last thing I want to hear is long stories other than cool stories about the car.

but different opinion makes a market.

 

Hi again Armen and welcome to Fchat! I have been on this site for what seems like forever. Lots of great people here but mostly getting it up for Italian specimens.

Your car is indeed special. I used to own the Merak SS 75 Paris show car in my young years and I only learned that from a member of this forum, long after I sold it...

 

Thank you !
It is pretty odd to communicate in English whereas our maternal language is French, isn't it ?

The Merak is a beautiful car.
Even though you could have sold it at a higher price (as a ex-motorshow car), don't have any regret about it.
Anyway, I suppose you sold it long time ago, and the value of the car is only really increasing by now, it took time !

Coming back to the Vanquish S, you made the right choice. If there is any "special" and collectable modern Aston to buy, it is THE one.

Here are other pictures of our car, as the Geneva Motorshow 2007 car, the "Final Inspection" has been made by "Press Garage".
The two first pictures were shot at Le Mans Classic in 2012.
As far as I understood, thanks to some Aston specialists, at Newport Pagnell a small space in the factory was reserved for Press and Motorshow cars when they were completely built.


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Hi Armen, it's Bjoern from the AMOC. Here I have the proper nickname. ;-)

I didn't know your car is tempest blue. It looks like an elegant blueish grey, very nice.

 

Hi Bjoern,

Good to see you here !

Yes, the car is Tempest Blue and I have to say this color is very subtle.
Depending on the luminosity and brightness, it looks either dark grey, petrol blue (teal) and sometimes even black.

Here it is at Geneva Motorshow in 2007, under the spotlights.
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I would think that a true 2007 would be quite rare, as I was under the impression that 2006 was the last year for the Vanquish S. Maybe just here in the states.

Very nice car, I love the color!!

 

2007 was the last year. The Ultimates and - as you can see - the press car were built back then. 2007 are very rare.

 

Thank you very much.

As my friend Bjoern just wrote, 2007 was the last year of production.
The last Vanquish S was built on 19th July 2007, the day the factory closed forever.
2007 are of course rarer than 2006 model-year as it was not produced the whole year.

Concerning the US market, here is the reason why you never saw a 2007 for sale

"Although discontinued in 2007, the US got their last V12 Vanquish S, chassis 502254 a year before in June 2006. Federal law required automatic deactivation of the passenger airbag with a child in the seat and it just wasn’t worth the effort for AM to re-engineer this feature with only a years worth of production left in the model."

(Source : astonmartins.com)

 

I have had one for 4 years and added about 10 k miles to it during that time. What an amazing car it is to drive. While it is heavy it handles surprisingly well. Reliability has been fantastic though I did replace the coils and plugs which seem to cause misses around 7 years of life. So far the last few months I have been thinking of a change but when I go to look at newer Jags or Astons I see nothing better yet I would be handing over more money for a less attractive car in my opinion.

So now, after reading this forum I have renewed love for my car. I think I will go and take it off Autotrader then drive it through some canyons with the windows down.

 

Truly a work of art. Beautiful!

 

Do not hesitate to get one again... and keep it as long as you can
This car is just magnificent and deserves to be recognized as it is : one of the most iconic Aston ever.

Thank you very much.
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Do you have the blue or black S ? I did a lot of soul searching before getting the Vanquish myself. I am an italian car guy but the market is just too nuts on those now with real crap going for gold.

If your car has been treated right :keep it! it is still undiscovered which today is rare.
On this site you will see raging debate about how a great collectible the testarossa is with 7700 units made. They are only 2500 Vanqs and 1050 S only and a timeless beauty.

 

your car color looks really nice! (i have to say this again). I also was told to ALWAYS drive the car after a wash so the water dont sit. This car does not like sitting water.

 

Thank you Pat (je te retourne le compliment, tu le sais bien).
Yes, I always drive the car after the wash and generally I don't put the handbrake so that the pads don't stick to the discs.
I rarely go to car wash, most of the time, I hand-wash it myself.

 

for those who have no reservation on salvage titles, help yourslef!
Only $25K very low miles and its an S!

Copart