Even though a used Aston Martin V8 Vantage is expensive to purchase and maintain, doesn’t mean that it’s a bad car to own. On the contrary, a V8 Vantage is actually a great car to own.
Why is that?
Price Is Still Expensive; Even When Hit With Depreciation
Depreciation is when a vehicle loses its value. It happens instantly, and when the vehicle leaves the lot you lose value. After the first year, you’ll lose around 20% — give or take — of the vehicle’s value deepening on certain factors. Typically, this is great if you’re going to buy a used car. Since the loss in value doesn’t ever slow down, then you can expect to find a car for cheap. Why do you think used Toyota Corollas are a dime a dozen?
With high-end luxury and sports models though, the first five or six-years gets hit even harder when it comes to value loss. As in, you will experience a greater rate of depreciation in the first five or six years compared to that of your cookie-cutter sedan.
Which would be great for high-end models. But, problem is they are so freaking expensive in the first place, that even at a depreciated, used price they are still cost more than your fully-loaded average vehicle. Take a 2012 AM V8 Vantage for example, that’s up on Autotrader. It still costs $67,999. Want to go to an earlier model and save some money? Okay, a 2008 will run you around $50,000.
Parts Are Expensive
On top of that, the parts are horrendously expensive to own. Take it from me, I know firsthand. Had a 1983 Mercedes sedan back in high-school. Got it off my uncle for cheap, and my back window wouldn’t go up and down. Found out the plastic piece the window sits on that rides on the railing (which is what pushed the window up and down when you hit the button) had cracked and fallen out. Know what the part cost? $40. Know what I did? Jammed a stick in the top of the window and called it a day.
1983 Mercedes window piece, vs a 2012 Aston Martin V8 Vantage head gasket. Or oil pan, or filter, or anything else that might need changing/break. Yeah, high-end models are expensive.
But, It’s Totally Worth it
Even though it wasn’t a Aston Martin, it was still a Mercedes. I was the cool kid in high-school thanks to that car, and it was a work of art for its time.
So, imagine what driving around in an Aston Martin would feel like? Amazing. You could start order martinis that are shaken, not stirred, and pretend you’re James Bond going on his next mission.
Totally worth it for that reason alone.
