Any experience with a 2009 Aston Martin DBS

[Coloviper]

Keeping my 96’ RT/10 of course (solid, extremely reliable car (even with the recent BS state emissions crap I went through) I feel I can live with long term) but seriously considering succumbing to the collector who wants my Mystic Edition Saleen S351R, selling the remainders in my garage and using the cash towards a 2009 Aston Martin DBS in Casino Royale exterior of course. Would be down to the two toys at that point. One vert and one coupe all above 8 cylinders, both manuals. One really for hard core and the other more refined.

I have never owned an Aston Martin before or even driven in one. Absolutely love the look of that particular. It is still over 500 hp and a manual trans. I realize the maintenance will be more but for some reason that particular car has been haunting my dreams lately. Just curious if anyone has experience?

I really wanted to add a Gen V in the future but that has just passed. The more I read about this code issue/sensor, that issue, blown this, failed that, my gut just tells me it is not the smart thing for me long term considering I don’t have much extra time to drive them with a new business, young kids and really just no patience for the BS problems I read about.

Anyone own one or have experience with that car?

[TA Two Oh]

First of all... stunning looking car, and with an incredible exhaust note. You'll never tire of the startup bark; the bypass flaps open the exhaust for a second or two. And I'd strongly recommend sticking with the manual transmission, as you're doing. The automatic boxes are not particularly smooth, they can be troublesome, and they're expensive to fix. Once while I was picking up my wife's Vantage, the guy next to me was arguing with the service writer over the $75,000.00 they were suggesting that he'd have to pay to fix the automatic transmission in his DB9. I believe that same unit is in the DBS. Service costs in Canada are much higher than they are in the US, and I later found out that the dealership ended up fixing his car for much less, but overhearing that conversation had a profound impact on my ownership experience.

The local dealership was charging about $2,000.00 to change the oil on both the Vantage and the DBS when we had them, which was 6-7 years ago. So I bought the oil and filters from them and changed the oil myself. I'm not particularly adept with tools but I have done at least 100 oil changes on a variety of different cars and I have a lift so I figured that it would be easy. But changing the oil on both cars was a real challenge. On the Vantage, there were several locations that needed to be drained; it wasn't just a matter of backing out a drain plug and grabbing the correct size of filter wrench. On the DBS, I recall having to remove a wheel and inner fender lining, plus there were parts in the engine bay that had to be removed using either tools or skills that I didn't possess. I also recall reading that when changing the oil, its helpful to have a gangly 13 year old girl handy to stick her arm down to remove the oil filter. I'm tall and thin and it was a major effort for me to squeeze my arm down there.

Some might have relished the challenge... I found it time consuming and frustrating. I only did each car once, so I'm sure it would go more smoothly on subsequent changes.

As for overall reliability, they're not the most trouble free car on the planet. Aston buys their instrument clusters and some of their electronics from Japan, and those items don't tend to give any trouble. I believe the engines are assembled in Cologne Germany and they're well built. The DBS V12 was derived from two Ford Duratec V6's Siamesed together, which is a plus in my book since it benefits from millions of miles of real world experience and volume manufacturing. It won't likely give you any trouble. The timing cover on my wife's car developed a leak over one winter. AM initially refused to warranty it because they didn't have a record of a recent oil change. But when I showed them my receipts for the parts and was able to explain how I did the oil change -which, since its unlike changing the oil on any other modern car, one would only be able to describe after having actually performed the change- they covered the repair.

Some of the electrics are fussy... switches, relays, sending units... nothing that would leave you stranded. But they're probably no worse than any other European car with a few years/ miles under its belt.

Despite the big difference in initial cost, it was interesting to see how much the Vantage and DBS had in common. All AMs use the same VH platform. As you know, they all look similar on the outside. They're all almost the same on the inside as well... the oddlocation for the power seat switches, the exact same transmission tunnel intrusion, pretty much the same instruments and steering wheels. Of course, the trim is fancier on the DBS and there are lots of exquisite carbon fiber exterior parts on the DBS.

Their initial depreciation curve is extremely steep, which is no doubt one of the attractions of buying a "previously loved and enjoyed" one like you're doing. And like most exotics, it flattens right out after a few years, so this one you're considering should hold its value well. AM is a tiny company, so they buy or contract out much of the parts/manufacturing, and assemble them at their factory. The cars are thus a mixture of readily available German, Japanese and British parts. Sure, all cars are kind of built that way, but to me, AM is almost like the worlds most elegant, most precise kit/component assembler. I don't view that as a negative; I'd rather drive an exotic car with parts that are relatively common and easy to find.

Some fun facts. The cars are assembled in the tiny, quaint village of Gayden, in the county of Warwickshire, in what might on the surface seem to be the most unlikely place to build cars. The company is over 100 years old and has lost money almost every single year. (Probably about 100 of those years!) But it's survived all this time by attracting investors that genuinely believed in the company and wanted to keep it going. Perhaps the most famous among them is David Brown, his initials (DB) adorning many of their models right up to today.

They're definitely a sporty car, as opposed to a sports car. They don't devour racetracks like a Viper does. We sold ours a few years ago but enjoyed our ownership experience.

To sum up: a magnificent looking car that's lovely to drive. Servicing costs are high, but you can mitigate the cost by doing some work yourself. Major components are robust, with the exception of the automatic transmission in the model that you are considering. I'm not aware of any issues with the manual tranny.

I hope that helps!

[Coloviper]

Hey thank you so much! This does help me a lot. I will have to drive one to cinch it for me but it sounds like it is pretty reliable and no more quirky than the next. They do sound awesome and that 07-09 DBS in Casino Royale exterior is just pure sex.

Keeping the 96’ Viper for track fun with my kids, a real learning tool and I just love that car, no roof and all. I am fairly handy with my tools and do all the work on my two Cayenne Turbos with the help of Durametrics on laptop, Pelican website, YouTube and Suncoast factory discount OEM warehouse parts.

Couple of quick questions:

1. What Computer interface software do people use for settings, maintenance and troubleshooting?
2. Is their a book, website or authority for step by step working on the car? Pelican is amazing for the Porsches and a real reason I have kept our 04’ and 06’ Cayenne Turbo as I do everything myself on these vehicles. 95k miles on our 04’ Turbo and 137k miles on my Turbo S.
3. Is there a particular dealer, website or company to by authentic OEM Aston Martin parts from for a discount?

I think this may work in the end. Sounds like your experience was positive which is great. I really did want to get a Gen V but the feeling has passed on that for me. Keeping the Gen 1.5 keeps me in the Viper Club which is great. I think I am just wanting something more like the DBS in the stable as well.

Thank you again for the incite!

[TA Two Oh]

You're welcome!
If you maintain those two vehicles yourself, the DBS should be a cinch for you. Unfortunately I can't assist with answers to your questions; way above my pay grade. I think that you'll really love the car.

[Vprbite]

They do offer an unlimited mileage warranty on their cars. It pays for itself with one repair. Doug Demuro did a video about it. Definitely worth looking into.

Good luck. Astons are ultra sexy

[Coloviper]

Thanks guys! I bought a few books from across the pond on AM definitive buyers guide, etc. seem to be very informative and honest. Sounding more and more like the car for me, at this time in my life and what I am looking for. It would be a 2009 DBS so I doubt you can get any extended factory warranty on a almost 9 year old car. Need to continue to do my homework.