Everytime I think of Aston Martins, a picture of a wannabe toff clutching RAC membership, broken down on a wet motorway with it pouring with rain springs to mind.
This is probably not what Aston Martin want but there you go....
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www.astonmartinracing.com/gallery.htm
Hardly a wannabe toffs car.
I will be seeing it's race debut in Sebring in just a few weeks... :-)
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Sebring sounds brilliant...green with envy.
You are not saying that Astons are owned by real toffs are you? :)
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Leading Aston owner HRH Charles, Prince of Wales, must surely rank as a 'toff' :-)
The biggest 'wannabe' vehicle must surely be the BMW 316i
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De-badged of course and with tragic poverty spec trim!
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\"Nothing less than 8 cylinders will do\"
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When I got my BMW 316i new back in 1992, I debadged it....
I groan inwardly everytime I think about it now.
I didn't even have the cash to go and buy the optional alloys, that might have allowed the deception to be better executed.
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One other memory of that car was the BMW 316i Auto they lent me whilst mine was being serviced.
I rate it as one of the most dangerously underpowered cars I have ever driven.
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Yep. That engine is puny even with a manual but in an auto it is only slightly faster than walking.
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I used to have the 316i Compact with an auto gearbox (wasn't my choice!..).
the best bit was that to get the car moving off the line, the auto box would always let it rev up to the limit just to get some power out of the engine. This meant that whoever was in the adjacent lane would hear this BMW rev up and think there was a race on....
So boring....
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on the theme of car brands and the image they portray: I remember the Audi ad from some years back when an obnoxious BMW type test drove an Audi and rejected it...but I often find Audi drivers just as aggressive as BMW drivers. So as far as I am concerned the image Audi tried to portray is not borne out by their owners. And these days more often than not when I am cut up it is by a diesel driver desperate to prove he can go just as fast if not faster than anyone else. Not a brand issue I know, just a generalisation.
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The give away with debadged 316i BMWs is the single exit exhaust. The straight sixes have a twin tailpipe.
I know I'm sad before anyone says!
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\"Nothing less than 8 cylinders will do\"
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Not going to defend BMWs, other than to say my next one will be a 535d and not debadged.SWMBO says I should be looking to change soon.
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So, about the image of my Berlingo ..........................
please don't waste your breath!! I don't give a damn!!!
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So, about the image of my Berlingo .......................... please don't waste your breath!! I don't give a damn!!!
Hope this doesn't acuse ofence, but that's just what I'd expect from a Berlingo owner! Someone who doesn't want a car as a style icon, just as a comfortable, economical and practical way of getting around.
I guess if I was to complete my stereotype, it's that a Berlingo owner is more likely to do DIY than other drivers.
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"Hope this doesn't cause ofence, but that's just what I'd expect from a Berlingo owner! Someone who doesn't want a car as a style icon, just as a comfortable, economical and practical way of getting around."
Quite - and you missed out the word "cheap"!! - though "economical" might be your diplomatic way
of putting it!
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"Berlingo owner is more likely to do DIY than other drivers."
Not yet! Nowt gone wrong in 17K - might give it an oil change soon though - always find that my cars appreciate that - bit like topping up my wine glass!
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This is becoming quite interesting, any thoughts on a 10 year old BMW 520i owner?..ummm the car is 10 years old, not the driver.
I would contribute, but I don't think I have been in the UK long enough to form any opinions on car brands/images here.
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"Berlingo owner is more likely to do DIY than other drivers."
If so, in my case the image is highly misleading.
(Inverse snob, maybe - tight-fisted, certainly - but *not* a DIYer)
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"Berlingo owner is more likely to do DIY than other drivers." Not yet! Nowt gone wrong in 17K - might give it an oil change soon though - always find that my cars appreciate that - bit like topping up my wine glass!
Sorry, I wasn't actually thinking of car maintenance. I just reckon that my stereotypical Berlingo driver is more likely to be spending his spare time with a toolkit than on the golf course or in the nightclubs
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my stereotypical Berlingo driver is more likely to be spendinghis spare time with a toolkit than on the golf course or in the nightclubs
You can get a lot of golf clubs in the back of a Berlingo. Come to think of it, you could probably get an entire electric golf buggy in there. And in the evening there's plenty of space for dancing, horizontal or otherwise...
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"I often find Audi drivers just as aggressive as BMW drivers. So as far as I am concerned the image Audi tried to portray is not borne out by their owners" (blue 2)
I don't remember this, even before I had one myself and must now be counted as biased. Many of us go for Audis just because they are more understated than BMWs or German taxis. Which is why I think Audi have made a bad mistake with the new in-your-face radiator grille: it's just as aggressive in the metal as in pictures. A no-cost option of a body-coloured number plate surround would tone it down considerably, and allow people the choice.
I woulldn't allow something like that to put me off another Audi when the time comes, but there are some who will.
(Of course if I were a BMW driver I would say something rude to blue 2....But I'm not, so he's entitled to his opinion!)
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Everytime I think of Aston Martins, a picture of someone who has not allowed money to overpower his taste springs to my mind.
Someone who sees past the brashness of Ferrari, who wants a car which exudes class not 'footballer'.
I see an Aston Martin as something more than a car, something special - especially on this island. If you drive the aforementioned ferrari, what will be the average persons view of you as you pass them on the street? Poser? Flash? Arrogant?
that just doesn't seem to be the case with an Aston. In the UK at least, it's almost like the people's supercar.
When I got married, I drove around in an Aston Martin V8 vantage for a weekend. The responses I got were incredible. People smiled at the car as it went past. People on the motor way passed, went across two lanes, and let me overtake again so they could get a better look. I got thumbs ups, waves and grins. I even got strangers running over to talk to me, asking me about the car.
How such an incredible marque, that raised such feelings in people can be so discounted, I don't know.
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Thank-you BazzaBear.
"Everytime I think of Aston Martins, a picture of someone who has not allowed money to overpower his taste springs to my mind."
You should copyright that and offer it to AM marketing.
In many peoples eyes, Astons and Bentleys have always been the 'English Gentlemans' car. I would love to own a Vantage Volante but funds don't permit yet (BRG with magnolia leather please).
Kevin...
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"How such an incredible marque, that raised such feelings in people can be so discounted, I don't know"
I love Aston Martins also, have owned a few, no loads of people who own the marque and also went to church to get married in my BRG Aston Martin Vantage. This was a famous (in Aston circles) car that was the first Auto Vantage produced, owned by an Aston director, book featured and had having had a 25K restoration. My last Aston, sold last year, was a BRG V8 Volante fuel injection with magnolia (sorry BazzaBear!), with Ronal (Vantage) alloys and perfect condition. I have owned a few between.
Although I love the Aston Martin marque, the pre DB7 Vantage cars are like going out with the prettiest girl ever and then finding out she has a disorder that makes her kick you in the shins every 5 minutes.
All my cars were FSH and bought from marques specialists. All were a pain. I could go into the inherant design faults that make driving the cars unpleasant, the rip-off dealers, the poor handling and the unpleasant fact that even with oodles of power they are just so overweight with the effect of denting performance.
My Aston despite a service a week before broke down at my wedding. I have been left clutching my RAC membership at least 4 times in the period I owned my cars and yes I am probably a wannabe toff!
Now for the most confrontational bit. If you want a car that drives like an Aston Martin and will get you to your destination without a fuel stop and breaking down, buy a Ford Capri 2.8i. Drives just like a AM V8.
Sits back and waits to get verbally assassinated!
Oh last thing. If any of you think I am just off on an ego trip above, due to the ebbs and flows of business, I can just about run a car at the moment let alone an Aston! However, dreaming of owning one is much better than owning one.
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Someone who sees past the brashness of Ferrari, who wants a car which exudes class not 'footballer'.
Unfortunately, most Premier league footballers will have a Aston (and a Ferrari and a Porshe and a ....) in their drives these days.....
I do agree with the comments on the Public's extraordinary sentimentality towards the AM marque - one of my collegues had a mid-90s DB7 for a while and he would often get people waving, smiling and giving him a thumbs-up as he drove by. In petrol stations he would be approached, congratulated for his choice and shaken by the hand etc. I doubt that would happen if he was driving a Ferrari, though if he was in Italy........
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>> Someone who sees past the brashness of Ferrari, who wants a >> car which exudes class not 'footballer'. >> Unfortunately, most Premier league footballers will have a Aston (and a Ferrari and a Porshe and a ....) in their drives these days.....
Ah well, that'd be the DB7 effect. To be honest, as beautiful as it undeniably is, I've never been a true fan of the DB7. I wouldn't (and for that matter, neither did any of the workers at Newport Pagnell) class it as a true Aston, just a souped up Jaguar.
It was designed at Jaguar, but at the time Ford would not let them build it, as they didn't think the manufacturer was in a position to make it a success, so it was passed over to AM.
Given the choice of the whole stable, I would find myself unable to look past the V8 Vantage, and I don't think you'd see that car in many footballers driveways.
Retro - obviously I'm not in a strong arguing position since you've owned and run several Astons. Regardless of unreliability though, there is just something about an Aston which trancends the normal considerations of owning a car.
While I only had the Vantage for a weekend, I certainly didn't find any problem with the handling, bearing in mind that I know it's a big heavy car, and treated it accordingly. And the acceleration was unbelievable, even without taking that weight into account.
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In fairness, they are very good looking cars and nicking a Clarkson analogy it was just so cool to say "Shall we take the Aston tonight?" when we were going out.
Also my wife has just looked over my shoulder as I am writing this and accused me of being a hypocrite. Basis for her argument, deep down I would still have another if I had the disposable. Tragically she is probably right and yes it would be an 80's Vantage.............with RAC membership of course!
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I think that if you want a car that says "Style, performance and class over money" you can look no further than the Ferrari stable mate Maserati.
All massers are gorgeuos to look at, sound lovely and drive like ther performance cars they are.
understated they don't scream look at me but they always turn heads.
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