We work with Aston Martins day in day out, and we have done for four decades. Over that time we haven't just fallen in love with them ourselves, we've also come to understand just how much the people who buy them love them.
When you buy an Aston Martin you're not just buying a car you're making a statement about taste, style and engineering and mechanical excellence – as well as, yes, buying a really great car.
Until now the Aston Martin has had something of a reputation as being a bit of a rich man's – or woman's – plaything, but that reputation is starting to seem a little unfair. Don't get us wrong, we're not saying you'll pick up an Aston Martin for pennies, but we are saying that, unlike some other 'supercars' or prestigious classic vehicles, a chic and stylish Aston Martin could be yours for between £30k and £40k.
We're talking about a car that you could use for everyday use or (because let's be honest you'd want to show it off) for touring around the highways and byways of Europe. If you're tempted by the thought of tapping into our 'drive more worry less' ethos, then read on….
You Don't Have To Be A Rich Man, But It Might Help
If you can just about scrape together the £30k needed to buy an Aston Martin, then you might have to step back and save a few more pounds. Because the first time anything goes wrong with your pride and joy – and something will eventually go wrong – you'll be panicking about how to pay for it.
A special car like this tends to come with spare parts that have a bit of a special price tag, so if you need to replace the brake pads and discs on your V8 Vantage or DB9, for example, you'll be looking at a bill for a thousand pounds.
Similarly, if you slip the clutch on your V8 Vantage, you might have to pay as much as three thousand pounds to get it replaced. All of this means there are two things which come in extremely handy when you invest in an Aston Martin.
The first of these is a few pounds set aside to pay for repairs, but the second is probably even more useful. It's a knowledge of how your car works and how to look after it.
Knowing Your Car Helps
We've got two or three cars in our workshop at the moment, all of which need fixing because the owners didn't act quickly enough when things started to go wrong.
Although you can get a prestigious vehicle like an Aston Martin for less than you might think, you have to learn to recognise the signs that it's not running as smoothly as possible and come to experts like us to get the problems sorted.
We specialise in not just doing the work that needs to be done but also spotting problems coming further down the line and nipping them in the bud, and that can make your less-expensive-than-expected Aston Martin less-expensive-than-it-could-be to keep on the road.
Perhaps the best way of safeguarding your investment, however, is making sure you buy the best car you can possibly afford in the first place.
Buy The Best You Can
We may be talking about bargain Aston Martins, but we still recommend buying the best you can, rather than a high mileage, poorly maintained car and then trying to bring it up to scratch. This might be cheaper in the first instance but will end up costing much more in the months and years to come.
So buy at the top of your price range for a car that you'll be able to enjoy day in and day out, and keep some money to one side to make sure it stays in the very best condition.
Importantly, consider getting your prospective purchase inspected by an Aston Martin expert before buying it, so you know what you're getting into.
What Can I Get For My Money?
The honest answer is that prices vary, but we know, for example, that you can pick up a V8 Vantage for £22k if you're willing to put up with the fact that it's got 80,000 miles on the clock and will be a little bit dog-eared here and there.
Knock that mileage down to 30,000 miles, and you're looking at something closer to the £30k mark, so it's clear that the same model can fetch wildly different prices dependent on mileage and condition.
An Investment
One key point to understand if you're thinking of your Aston Martin as an investment is that the kind of cars we're talking about in this price range are pretty much currently at the bottom of their value.
In other words, there's not much point waiting for the price to drop further and, once you've bought your car, the only way for the value to go is up. To be a little bit more specific – DB7s, being older, have definitely bottomed out in terms of price, as has the V8 Vantage, while with DB9s you're probably looking for the older models, the early DB9s which are heavier on the mileage and are priced in the mid- to low- twenty thousands.
Photo Courtesy of Petrolicious
Speaking personally – and buying an Aston Martin is a very personal choice – if we had £30k to £40k to spend we'd probably be looking for a nice DB9 Volante, or maybe a Vantage, which while perhaps looking a bit tired and needing some cosmetic improvements still has an absolutely lovely engine.
So if you're looking for an Aston Martin for that European road trip that's stylish and comfortable and you're not worried about being able to corner faster than a Porsche, then that's the kind of car you're looking for.
The Next Generation
When it comes to thinking about how much your Aston Martin could be worth in the next 10 years one factor which has to be considered is the next generation.
More precisely, we see many people who are getting a little older, have some disposable income to play with, and think back to the DB7 they saw somewhere when they were younger, or maybe that a relative used to drive. And if they're the kind of person who loves cars, then they'll remember how much they loved that Aston Martin and they'll decide to treat themselves to one of their own – and that kind of trend could help to drive up the value of your own Aston Martin.
