Ok so its only been 27 days, since I bought my beautiful 2008 Stratus White over Bitter Chocolate Aston Martin V8 Vantage. The car came with 9584 miles on it and now I am at about 10,490. Its been about 1000miles, and here are my thoughts and issues.

Thoughts:
-Its absolutely stunning, get soo many compliments its almost embarrasing.
-The currents mods/options on the car are very very satisfactory.
-I'm very happy I went w/ this route over the Porsche 911 Turbo.
-There aren't very many out there, its very different, do people take pictures as you all are driving, thumbs ups, honks, etc.?

Issues:
-Tire spin has been a major issue, I cannot get a good grip when getting on it a bit in first gear. The tires bounce, and its just not a favorable type of acelleration. I will need tires in about 2k. I will most likely look to buy the same stock spec tires (although I prefer Michelin PS2s).

-At low speeds in first gear, the transmission makes a clattering/rubbing like noise. Its very dim and very hard to see, I usually tell myself the car really hates low RPMs in first. Is this normal or should I be looking into a new clutch already.

-When going over harder bumps, the steering columns rattles. It feels like its a bit loose, and almost like a cheaper car. Is this normal? And/or what is the fix for this.

-The driver side door lock is screwed up!!! In auto-lock mode you have to pull the door handle once to unlock, then again to open. Well, it unlocks, but it doesnt open (had to use the exterior latch to get out)! If you take the auto lock off, then the door stays unlocked, and you can come in and out as you please. For now I have kept it off auto-lock mode.

-The sat radio is preset on the previous owners channels. I cannot get the presets unlocked, even after following the manual's instructions. Has anyone had this issue, should I just keep playing with it to get it work? I'd really like to set my sat radio settings to the channels I like.

Thanks All!

 

I'm surprised to hear about the wheel spin issue. Have you heard of anyone else with the power upgrade having that issue, or that just a product of worn tires? I don't think they like low rpms in first--one almost needs to short-shift into second. I believe the steering column issue is the airbag rattling. There is a dealer fix that involves a stiffer spring. I would think that with such a stiff chassis, some rattling over hard bumps is bound to occur.

 

My tires will spin and bounce depending on surface or condition, but I hate to do that and have to buy a new clutch too early.

 

Airbags??? Werid, I will talk to my service advisor about it.

I barely ever try, but when I do it happens a lot sooner then expected. I dont like buying clutches either .

 

Tire spin: You need better rubber, stock rubber is not good enough. To truly cure the problem you need wider wheels & significantly wider tires. (stock rear wheels are only 9.5" wide so you can't fit much more than a 275 on the rears, on a 19x11 you can go 305 or more).

Tires: The Potenza RE-11s are the #1 tire on the market, closely followed by the Direzza Z1 in #2 spot (as per tire rack survey & test results). Dunlap Z1s do not come in 19s, so basically the only real choice is RE-11.

Steering Column Rattle: Your stock airbag springs need to be replaced, there are newer stronger ones that prevent this issue.

Doors: that actually sounds 100% normal, first pull unlocks, second pull opens (for both passenger & drivers side)

Clutch: The clutch in theory could be bad but its odd for them to fail before 15-20k, but it does happen.

Hope that helps,
007
________
Marijuana Seeds

 

I'm running a 285 in the back, but will report when the temp allows the ground to heat up a bit. I will most likely stick with the same brand and size thats on there now, but will probably do a good search before buying.

And the door locks, yes pull #1 unlocks the door and pull#2 should open, but pull#2 doesnt work! It will not open.

Thanks!

 

I'm with 007. I have 20x11 on 305 Pirelli's in the rear and haven't experienced much tire spin when clamping down on the throttle. But not sure how much wider you can go on stock 19s ...

 

Clutch: The clutch in theory could be bad but its odd for them to fail before 15-20k, but it does happen.

My main dealer has seen "multiple cars" need a new clutch before 10k. Guess it depends on previous driver? Still on origional clutch at 26k.

 

I will have the airbag spring replaced when I go in for my original service. Does anyone know how much it would cost?

Any other suggestions with the doorlocks?