Thanks for your support and following! As I've said before and will continue to say countless more times in the future, that I appreciate each and every one of you, that enjoys the thread, My purpose wasn't to fanatically indoctrinate people over to Aston Martin, just because I happen to enjoy it but, just a single owner's perspective for a brand that is world renowned but, doesn't see a tidal wave of support or venues like Corvette does, among other top brands.
I felt an obligation to write about my experiences that would help others on the fence about purchase, be less intimidated, or just general knowledge that one person can pass on to another....

Yes, the newer Aston's are quite something, no argument there...So, I would agree with your statement about the DB9 being a timeless classic, because videos and column pieces are still branding it with that moniker.... Thanks for adding to the thread and I appreciate your support.

Until next time... Thanks for following along...

 

Always appreciative for the participation....Thank you!

Yes, I concur, the new ones are really something....The DB9 within a couple years, was already tagged with the moniker of "timeless classic" and it's aged very well...Back in the day, when Casino Royale was released, that was the final tipping point for me...I knew someday I was going to get one, and my enthusiasm for it has only gotten deeper after 7 years....There's just "something" different about owning an Aston Martin. You take the good with the bad but, other than the first couple years of teething, getting it back in shape, it's been a generally positive ownership experience....You know you're not the fastest, nor the quickest out there but, you can certainly argue that you have one of the most beautiful cars....Frankly, that's what it comes to...Pampered luxury inside, while you drive a V12 sculpted beauty.

Thanks for posting...Until next time, thanks for following along!

 

 

A few weeks extra, waiting on the new steering wheel but, what's new in the car upgrade world, right? Lol

Just received an email very early this morning about it being shipped.... Looking forward to this nice enhancement....

 

In celebration of the Aston Martin brand throughout the decades of being intertwined with the 007 franchise...Found a video that some you might enjoy watching....I figured a lot of you that enjoy Aston Martin, cut their teeth by seeing the brand first on the silver screen, because that's how I was introduced to it....About an hour long but, the time goes quick watching it....

 

Thanks for posting the video. The BMW days of Bond just didn't have the same feel.

 

You are absolutely right....When Pierce Brosnan took over the role, after a 6 year hiatus...Having BMW as the forerunner, was a WTF moment....Aston Martin didn't raise their hand fast enough, or BMW paid a huge royalty and outbid them...Not surprising since Aston Martin has been plagued with a plethora of financial difficulties and bankruptcies...Which leads me to my next offering, courtesy of YouTube...An in depth history of Aston Martin from the Genesis until the present....I try to mix things up, to keep all you entertained or interested, because there's only so much I can do with my car, so I have to branch out a bit, lol...

 

Upgrade day! Steering wheel arrived on the 1st.... I'm dropping off the car as I type this....
Agenda.... Steering wheel, struts, and AC system diagnostics...

I included a picture of the shop area, just to give you an idea of the extensive type of repairs they do here at LPS Motorwerks... Just to give you an idea....This Bentley has the engine pulled for turbo replacement and a tune, around 32K..





Syd was actually thankful my car showed up because, every car in the shop right now has major type of work going on...Needless to say, I don't envy the owners of those cars...

Until next time.... Thanks for following along!

 

 

Greetings faithful thread followers and enthusiasts....My DB9 is currently getting the before mentioned work done but, in the meantime, I've had really nice correspondence with Kevin from Bagnall in England...He specializes in selling the Gaydon era cars but, he certainly buys and sells all types of Aston Martin.... Kevin has another couple videos out, that has been released within the past week, if not days....

One is a video dedicated to a buyer's tutorial walk through, and the other is actually a first time Aston Martin ownership from someone that purchased a DB9 from Kevin.



Eager to hear your thoughts on it, if you so choose... Enjoy!

 

The videos were good. The second one was entertaining. I've had similar reactions with my Jaguars. The first video would have been more comprehensive if he had the car at a shop with a lift so he could cover some of the things to look for underneath. The one thing I didn't expect was corrosion with an aluminum body. That blue car had some serious blisters in the body. You have to wonder where else that may be happening. My 98 XJR spent its life between NY and FL and had no signs of body corrosion (I won't call it rust as I don't think aluminum can actually rust) even though it sat outside for long periods of time (my garage space is limited). I do know the paint can deteriorate if not taken care of. My friend's 2017 DB11 is black and was not cared for like it should have been. He's had a lot of paint correction done and it looks a lot better than it did when he bought it. I'm going to take a look at a 2014 Vanquish Volante next weekend, white with black interior. Not really in the market but I've been known to impulse buy.

Keep sharing your thoughts and experiences. It takes a special mindset to own a British car. I'm on my third Jag and looking to move up to Aston or McLaren in the not too distant future.

 

Wow! Without a doubt, one of the best responses in this thread, that I could hope for!!

Honestly, I personally have not seen corrosion on English cars but, then again, I don't live near salt water, the climate in Missouri, I would argue is far better than England overall, which is where I've seen examples of Aston Martin and other cars from there on videos that have suffered corrosion effect....The leather shrinkage is definitely a real thing, and I've replaced a few of the dash pieces with like new replacements....I'm so **** now with the dash and getting that squared away, that I use a sunshade religiously, along with keeping the windows cracked open on really hot days, when it's parked....

Kevin was very complimentary about my car, except the wheels, saying "I don't know about the wheels though" lol....I take that as him not liking them but, then again I've never expected 100% approval....He said, Aston Martin owners are very traditional, and I said I understand that truly but, the black wheels didn't compliment the car at all, I didn't donk the car out, it's got an alternative enhancement that could arguably be called factory, as well as the exhaust and the new steering wheel that don't radically alter the spirit of OEM....I said the wheels and the steering wheel is all I planned to enhance or personalize....

I know Bamford Rose has videos of undercarriage inspections of DB9's, so I could always post that as well..
I will say that cosmetically on the exterior, my car was taken care of with the plethora of owners in California, so I'm thankful that's something I've not had to worry about.

I think it's great that you are entertaining the thought of purchasing a Vanquish because that is something I definitely would love to have....Nothing wrong with an impulse buy, you only live once right? Nice color combination for sure!!
Again, on the paint not being taken care of, I cringe at seeing examples like that not being taken care of, especially in climates that have good weather most of the time....Aston Martin and others are just boutique/delicate cars and you just have to be that more vigilant in keeping them looking good....As far I'm concerned, I welcomed the challenge, and it's been a great experience learning about a new make of car....I feel bad for your friend's DB11 but, everyone knows, you really need to be on your game caring for a black car....My C5 is the last black car I will own unless I get a killer deal for a 2018 Vanquish S. ....It's one of those things, that it looks so beautiful sitting in storage, that I drive a few miles and I'm already thinking, I have to wipe down the damn thing when I'm finished....

In conclusion....I'll mention to Kevin if he can make an undercarriage video but, in the meantime, I'll go ahead and post one from Bamford Rose....

Thanks again for the great post! Until next time...Thanks for following along!!

 

Interesting piece on the exhaust cats. Ferrari has a similar issue with the 4.3L in the F430. The vibration of the flat plane design has been known to cause the pre-cats to come apart and get ingested into the engine causing catastrophic damage. I swapped out the stock exhaust manifolds for Fabspeed headers to prevent any issues with the one I had. It appears that is the solution for the DB9's V12 as well.

 

Folks...I don't think I can be more satisfied or praiseworthy, after getting my car back today.... Steering wheel looks great, the hood struts...Wow! What a big difference! The hood wants to stay up, and I get good assistance when I open it.... That was worth the money....I was told my AC system is just fine, although it was very low, they suggested I use it more often, lol...I said, well you know when temperatures get above 90 degrees, I roll the windows down and let the car interior breathe.... Personally I don't like being in a 60 degree cocoon, and then stepping out into hair dryer type temperatures... Just my preference...

Anyhoo.... Today can be officially called reaching the summit... 7 years later and I'm scratching my brain, thinking about what else can be done that needs attention, and besides a dash trim piece that is missing the plastic tabs, I jerry rigged duct tape into conical shapes that would secure it until I find the correct color replacement, which has been difficult... Black is a popular interior color.... This car is literally 99%... Quick burst of speed into numbers we won't say, lol... Confidence in the steering precision and feedback after the alignment, that again was well worth the money for that....

What can I say, other than it's a great view from the summit....Tags aren't due until next year as well as the next service....I have no upgrades I want to do other than OEM replacement... Couple different vendors that have made improvements, with the headlight lenses and the actual headlight canons but, my lenses are extremely good right now and the headlights are great....So, hypothetically we're talking a few years, unless of course either one of those fails rapidly.... Just a side note, had to use the old steering wheel controls because the new ones had water damage in them...

Very hot day today, and after wiping it down, plugging in the battery tender and covering it... I'm taking a much needed break.... Nice to have her home again, for sure..."Elaine" has been a great car to own.







Second picture is the one with the dash piece that I'm trying to find a replacement for, however, in the meantime, my jerry rigged job is doing just fine...The Aston Martin tucked away in the back, and thankful to be in a cooler setting....

Until next time.... Thanks for following along!

 

Folks... Hold the phone...Yes, everything is literally perfect but, after going through my notebook, we're not quite there altogether at the summit... Why? How the heck did I miss changing out the brake caliper color....

Personally, I don't have anything against the color red but, not for this Aston Martin....... I'll be making a phone call to see what the down time is... Acid green, electric blue, or a gloss black is my choices, with the latter two being the front runners....

 

I vote for the blue!

 

That's actually the frontrunner...Thanks for the input!

Folks, I think part of the Aston Martin world I've neglected on is the convertible realm, and I shouldn't....Actually 99% of my closest car friends are convertible preferred, I just happen to be one of the oddballs, lol....I like my coupes....Anyhoo....Over the years, Tedward has done a plethora of drives with Aston Martin, and this one happens to be a 2007 model Volante...Ironically, the wheels are exactly like my old black ones...I believe with his experience, he pretty much nails the essence of what you should expect driving an Aston Martin DB9...Enjoy!

https://youtu.be/ch9OlLIRxSc?si=6XdY-gpRqUuWGkMj

https://youtu.be/IvhOcJoXkF0?si=tyBpToJ2Lw8_pD7k

 

I vote blue as well. It will look good against the silver. Black is second choice. I'm a convertible lover so any Aston I would buy would need to be a convertible. The same applies to a Bentley. Nice POV video. Still takes some getting used to the anti-clockwise movement of the rev counter. I understand he's making a video but he broke the rule of driving a convertible with the top down and windows up.

 

 

Another vote for the blue.