Recently i've been trying to decide between a V8 Vantage and a 997 GT3. With the former being an extravagance of beauty and class, but lacking in the performance department, and the latter-not quite as pretty, but the bench mark for today's performance standards, I'm struggling to find my Goldilocks. Today however, i had the great pleasure of taking an amazing test drive (45 minutes with a combination of freeway, business/residential, and back road twists) in an 07 Vantage. Seriously, if anyone is looking to get a great deal on an Aston, contact Debbie Johnson at Cole European Motors in Walnut Creek. She was nothing but the best! Extremely patient, helpful, informative, and best of all, lenient.

Anyways, here are my thoughts... (please keep in mind that this is all just my opinion)

First the good...

Exterior
-Aesthetically, nothing compares. Enough said, you just have to see one in person to understand.

Interior
- Love the big crystal "START" button. The gauge cluster is gorgeous! The rev counter going the opposite way takes a little getting used to, but is beautiful nonetheless. The seats are extremely comfortable, with a thousand adjustments so you can get your seating position just right. The telescoping steering wheel, small and thick, is perfect.
-The sound system is amazing.

Performance
-The steering is beautiful, light, and extremely responsive. It gives great feedback as to exactly what the car is doing.
-The turn in is great, sharp as you'd expect. You turn and the car goes, simple as that. And for such a heavy car (3500 lbs) body roll is still kept to a minimum, even in the tightest of left to rights.
-The exhaust note is to die for! Unfortunately it only gets good after 4500 rpm, although this can easily be changed by removing fuse 22 which is the exhaust silencer.
-Brakes are great! Excellent initial bite with great modulation. I didnt get to push it hard enough for long enough to experience weather fade was a problem or not.
-Power is extremely predictable and very controllable.

Now the bad...

Exterior
-The door handles are a bit tricky at first, but otherwise, no complaints, its perfect.

Interior
-Way to busy for my tastes. Thousands of buttons and switches for music, climate control, navigation, seating position, etc...
-The seats, while extremely comfy, like most, dont have enough lateral support. In corners I (5'11'', 170lbs) found myself fighting to hold myself in place. I had to grip the steering wheel tightly instead of letting the seat do the work.
-The E-brake in this car is ridiculous. Unlike conventional E-brakes, this one doesnt lock in place. You pull it up and a light lets you know weather its on or off, then it goes right back down.

Performance
-You can really feel the car's weight, not so much through the corner, but exiting it. 380 hp was definitely not enough for this car. And for normal cruising, if you're outside the power band (below 3k), for get it, down low, this car struggles.
-The clutch release point is extremely high, and the gear box IMO, is terrible--clunky, imprecise, and gated way to close--it almost feels cheap. And while its not as heavy as i expected (with all the early criticism), there is much to be improved on.
-The throttle is extremely unresponsive (and i thought the Turbo was bad). And while the pedals are close, allowing for easier heel toe downshifts, you've really got to roll your heel to rev match well.

All in all this is a great sports car-uncompromised beauty matched with all the performance you'd expect out of a GT car, this Aston (while in need of a better gear box and more power) is beautiful. Performance wise however, Porsche (the Turbo and GT3 at least) is in a different league and i'd take either any day of the week!

Now if only i could get into a 7 GT3. Anyone in the Bay Area wanna help me out?

 

That's standard and part of AM's heritage.

Not a bad review though you're comparing a hardcore sports car (GT3) with a cruiser (AM). I know how AM designed it with the 911 as the direct competitor but the GT3 isn't it's direct competitor in anything other than price range.

Saying that, i'd still compare them both and would go with the AM as i've had a 997 and would like to join my fathers ranks

Josh.

 

Ya, its not something i couldnt get used to, just caught me off guard i suppose.

 

sounds like you need a vantage rs.

 

I wouldnt mind one Dont have quite that kind of cash unfortunately.

 

I have been driving my buss associates Vantage 07 Paddle for the past few days I could not concure more on your thoughts, and I had a 2007 GT3 already.

 

Vantage I had great fun in and looking at, albeit a bit slow compared to what im use to in a weekend car, it's looks and feel make up for it.

BUT as I told you before, the GT3 has the looks, the sound, telepathic steering feel, it just feels SO RIGHT for a damn sport's car!!!!!

 

Wait for the 2009, its supposedly getting 440hp engine treatment. To me I think the best aston is the Vanquish S, I drove the ultimate edition model and the fit and finish was on par with many cars such as Bentley, I was surprised because there are many people always saying the interior feels cheap.

 

Thanks Marc! Why did you decide to sell the 997 3?

 

Sorry to revive the thread, but I've had the same dilemma, but with the Vantage and 997 Turbo. I, too, took a long (1+ hour) test drive in an '07 Vantage and I agree completely with your report. That said, it's so damn beautiful it's hard to resist (like a high-maintenance, but sexy girlfriend).

My issue comes down to whether I want a 997 Turbo as my only car ($140K sticker) or get a Vantage and a VW GTI or something as my DD. We get snow where I live and I would NEVER drive the Aston in snow. That said, I'm leaning pretty heavily toward the Turbo.

Let us know what you decide.