Aston Martin V8 Vantage 4.3 power options

When the Aston Martin V8 Vantage was first launched a couple of years ago, we were all blown away by its looks. It was exactly what a small Aston Martin should be - the best looking car in its sector bar none. And we expected so much from it. After all, Aston Martin had spoken about their aim to build a 911 buster. And at a bargain price.

Well, one out of three wasn’t great. There is no doubt that the car is the best looking in its class. But it sort of stopped there. The power was…adequate. On paper it looked reasonable. In reality it never felt fast. Competently quick, yes. But never ‘make you grin’ fast. And it was no where near as cheap as Aston had led us to believe.

Price is subjective, and for such a beautiful car you could live with the premium. But the power needed help. That came with the 2009 model and its 4.7 litre engine. It could still do with more (or wait and have the V12 RS version when that arrives), but it was a big improvement. But where does that leave all those existing customers who had the 4.3? In the hands of Aston Martin, who have now decided to offer a power boost option to all existing 4.3 V8 customers.

The new upgardes are available immediately through the dealer network, and give the V8 Vantage a handy power boost of 20bhp, a lift on the torque, and a top speed of 177mph. In addition to the power increase, which is in essence achieved by improving the engine’s breathing, existing owners can have the recently available Sports Pack added.

The Sports Pack option on the V8 Vantage gives upgraded springs and Bilstein dampers, together with new, lightweight forged wheels, to give a much sharper edge to the handling. So popular is the option it is now specified on 50% of new V8 Vantages.

This is probably not such an odd move by AM in troubled times. Many people, even those who can afford it, are sticking with the car they have until they see how the economic waters lie. Offering these people a cut-price route to a better car not only keeps customer loyalty high, but gives empty dealership some much needed revenue and foot-fall.

Men & Motors goes Classic

Cars, that is. It seems unlikely we’ll get the BBC Philharmonic in Concert on the Men & Motors Channel. No, this is M&M announcing their first original commission for a programme for over three years.

As we all know, M&M is the low-rent ITV digital motoring offering. Plenty of re-hashed programming in the day, and a dose of post-pub titillation later on, keeps the boy-racers happy.

But the channel is obviously seeking a slightly more discerning audience with a Classic Cars commission, not that there’s anything wrong with what they do (it does serve its audience, and they do show a few gems from time to time), and it’s always good to see any Motoring Programme trying to offer more to its viewers.

Classic Gear (a tad derivative), as it’s to be called, aims to bring the M&M audience buying and running tips on a range of classic cars. They will be including the ubiquitous James Bond feature (a bit too easy and predictable, methinks), and tests of the likes of the Starsky & Hutch-mobile, the Ford Gran Torino.

Ingrid Stone, Channel Editor for M&M, said:

“Classic Gear is a great addition to the Men & Motors programme portfolio. In this time of financial worries, the team prove that a little bit of frugal thinking can still get you your dream classic automobile.”

The aim of this show is said to be to bring a fresh approach to the subject of Classic Cars, with the hope of finding a receptive audience amongst its viewers.

With things as they are in the car market at the moment, it’s not a bad idea to try and turn on younger people to modern classics, which can be a far more cost-effective way of motoring. But I’m not sure I’m ready to see a Hillman Imp with 22″ wheels and a massive body kit.

The show will start airing in December for UK Car watchers.

2009 Mini Convertible Springs In

It’s been a bit of a ‘Mini-Fest’ this week, what with the Mini E in Berlin and the news that the Mini is the least depreciating car in the UK. And now we have the first official images of the new Mini Convertible, due to hit showrooms in Spring 2009.

Based of course on the latest Mini, the convertible keeps the familiar face, but has a raised shoulder line to accommodate the soft-top. Available initially in Cooper guise only - both standard Cooper and the S - the Mini Convertible will be a big seller. Add to that the likely addition of a diesel model later on (the Mini diesel is the slowest depreciating car in the UK) and you have a very desirable car.

BMW has added its ‘Efficient Dynamics’ technology to the car, with stuff like brake energy regeneration and stop-start technology, which allows the Mini Convertible to drop two road tax bands over the old car. Good stuff. And even though the car is stiffer than before, it still comes in a smidge lighter.

The soft-top has got clever as well. Just 15 seconds to lower, it can also be partially opened to create a sun-roof effect. And a nice little toy even allows you to record the amount of time you’ve driven with the top down. At least you’ll know if you’re getting the use you expected out of the soft-top.

Prices start at a shade under £16k for the Cooper, rising to a shade under £19k for the Cooper S. Not exactly bargain basement, but you won’t lose your shirt on it either.

Ferrari California Configurator - a wonderful time-waster.

Many of the major manufacturers have had online configurators for some time. The dreamers can go and dream, and the real punters can go and see what they can live without. The likes of Porsche and Mercedes have being doing this for some time, but Ferrari hasn’t really felt the need to play - until now.

The California is Ferrari’s first foray in to this high-end but more mainstream target for some time. And, despite claiming that the California is sold out until 2011, they obviously feel the need to keep the car in the spotlight.

So what will the configurator do? Actually, it’s not as sophisticated as it first looks. You can specify interior and exterior colours, and you can change the wheels. And the graphics are nicely done. But there is no long list of options to add, and no price generator. So it’s just a toy really.

Still, it’s nice to see what ‘Your’ California could look like whilst you’re busy wondering how to pay for Christmas!

Porsche Cayenne Diesel - it’s official

We all wondered how long it would take for Porsche to bite the bullet and give in to the diesel bandwagon. Well, it’s happened. Porsche has officially announced today that the Porsche Cayenne diesel will go on sale in Europe in February 2009. And, surprise surprise, they’re dropping the 3.0 diesel from the Q7 in!

Although Porsche has made the announcement today, the diesel version of the Cayenne is a little less boastful about it. In fact, you’d have to lift the bonnet to have a look or hear it running to know it’s a diesel. There’s not a single giveaway on the body. No badge. No little TDI anywhere. To all intents and purposes it’s a standard V6 Cayenne.

The 3.0 diesel out of the Q7 puts out a very creditable 240bhp, so it’s no sluggard. In fact, it’s arguably a better engine than the petrol V6 Porsche already use in the base Cayenne. We’ve got a V8 Cayenne, but when we were buying that we did try out the V6. It wasn’t nice. Yet the 3.0 diesel Q7 is actually a pretty good drive. No V8 for sure, but perfectly liveable.

So, to clarify, Porsche’s press release said:

The new Cayenne with diesel drive will be available from dealers from February 2009 onwards. Equipped with the proven Tiptronic-S automatic gearbox as standard, the Euro base price will be EUR 47,250. In Germany, the Cayenne with diesel engine including 19 percent VAT and country-specific equipment costs EUR 56,436.

Now whether or not that gets any cheaper when it gets to the UK to take account of the currently miserable exchange rate, who knows. But by the time it gets to the UK in February we could well see the price in Deutschmarks instead of Euros, such is the precarious long term future of the Euro!