HouTxCLS55

I love the looks of aston martin line up but will the preformance be a let down? That is compaired to the CLS55 AMG.

Any feedback from current or past owners would be great!

Improviz

Well, in terms of absolute acceleration the only one that I'm aware of that's a threat to the CLS55 is the DBS. Road & Track tested one recently and ran 4.2 0-60, and a 12.4 @ 117.7 1/4 mile, right there with the CLS55 but with a bit better trap speed, indicating better pull up in triple digit range.

But in looks, oh man, that thing is just pure sex on wheels. Always been one of my absolute favorites. And with that in mind, even though the DB9 and Vantage V8 models aren't as quick, they sure are beautiful to look at!

bfnnrgn

If you're a power junkie you'll be disappointed. It's an image car, nothing else.

HouTxCLS55

Thanks for the great feedback. I had a feeling that would be the answer. It's hard to pay that much and not get the preformance to go with the car.

Improviz

Well, no, that's not all you get; you get the Aston Martin quality...um, err, ah, reliability...no, um, ah, resale value...umm, well, OK, you get the looks!!

I jest (well, in part...), though...it's just simply one of the most gorgeous cars out on the road, full stop...but for the price, the V8 Vantage should be a bit faster imo. They prolly don't want it to serve as a "viable" alternative to the DB series, and so neuter its performance. A pity...

Exotic-metal55

AM`s are not that powerfull. The interior is horrible IMO. Body design is nice but I would take a CLS55 anyday over a AM.

blackcls63

wow good to know, i was always a sucker for the DB9's, but I didn't know they were looks only! ..

MercedesFTW

I would hardly call it looks only...

isellpower

You gotta laugh at any AMG owner poking fun at the resale value of the AM's.

Improviz

You've gotta laugh at ignorant trolls who don't know a thing they're talking about and cite Ebay as "THE" yardstick by which one should measure automobile prices.

For those who are unfamiliar with this troll: basically all he's done (11 or so out of 14 total posts) since joining here is troll the E and CLS forums telling any prospective purchasers/sellers that the prices they're asking/thinking of paying are too high, and that one could find a nice example on Ebay for far less...uh, yeah, if one wants to get a below-average example, they can pay a below-average price. Thank you for the revelation, "isellpower", really. Because honestly, nobody here knew that...we all thought that all CLS55s were priced right at the average, regardless of any of the factors which go into pricing a vehicle. This is because we are all stupid.

This blather is basically nothing but nonsense, either ignorant of or deliberately ignoring the facts that condition, options, mileage, number of owners, modifications, and accident history affect a vehicle's value, that auction prices do NOT equal retail prices and are NOT a good yardstick for value determination without knowing the condition of a vehicle being auctioned, and that all vehicles from a particular year will NOT be a single datapoint, but rather a scatter plot (look it up), from which one can determine useful data like a mean, standard deviation (look them up), etc., as I did this weekend on each and every CLS55 AMG on both Autotrader and Cars.com.

And if you want to argue about it, please: repost in the other thread and we'll continue when I get home tonight, because I've got data that shows just how totally ignorant and full of it you are.

Now then, wrt Aston Martin pricing: a quick search on your beloved Autotrader shows that you can find 2005 V12 Vanquish models right now between $139 and $178K. But it's more meaningful statistically to look at the average, which is $162K. That's a hit of pert near $100K in three years, and these cars have 15K miles or less. And most of them are 10K or less.

That's a hit of 38% in three years. Now, how do you think that stacks up to the average asking price of all 2005 CLS55 AMGs with under 15K miles, percentage wise?

Here's a hint: it's worse, and I've got the data to prove it.

Compare their prices to a 2005 Ferrari F430, an example of an exotic that holds its value like an exotic. And that's the thing: a Vanquish is an exotic, not a luxury sedan. But it doesn't hold its value like one.

Which you would know if you actually spent time researching depreciation and price points in places other than Fleabay. And again: if you want to debate this further, by all means, re-engage in the other thread, and I'll be happy to share actual data to refute the bluster of your blather.

bigben320e

I think his balloon has been popped.

blackcls63

he's going to go cry to mommy now

HouTxCLS55

Thanks for all the feedback and then some.... AM are beautiful but I think just like any high priced ride. Buy it after someone else drives it off the lot.

bigben320e

Exactly, let someone else foot the bill for a year.

W211 BEAST

I actually think they are very nice cars, especially the interior.

But they are nothing more than status cars. Nothing more than a look. There are many nice/comfortable cars that you can get for the same price that will blow the pretty doors right off an AM. If you're looking for speed/performance, this isnt your car.

finiteyoda

Performance-wise, I didn't think the Aston's are that much slower than a CLS55. I've not driven a DB9 but its weight, HP are on par with the AMG. The top gear power lap for CLS55 was 1:26.9, and 1:27.1 for the DB9 and old Vanquish, that doesn't seem a huge difference to me. The new DBS is at 1:23.9, that seems a lot faster than the CLS (I've no doubt the CLS could keep up in a drag race though).

Granted, Aston's (which are based on a pretty old platform by this point) are not the tweaked performance beasts that modern day Porsches, Lamborghini's, or Ferrari's are. And even some of those cars are being handed their lunch by relatively cheap Nissan's and Corvette's, which fill the super-bargain-performance segment. But I thought that's the whole point, they don't try to be those things, they're more of a long-distance driving GT car. It'd be better to compare them to a Ferrari 612, or a Bentley Continental GT. I think then the looks, pricing, performance as a whole make a bit more sense.

traumadoc

I was never happier to get back in my AMG.

Looks 10

Build quality, performance and interior were just OK. It seemed to make a lot of noise (nice noise albeit) but not a lot of thrust.

I really did not enjoy driving it. I was sort of having to wrestle with it. Not nimble.

Although the Bentley did not compare on the looks scale nor the exaust note, the build, performance, interior and drivability won out.

DucatiNut

Quote;

"isellpower You gotta laugh at any AMG owner poking fun at the resale value of the AM's."

What the F !
Unfortunately most current performance cars from the UK don't really hold their value very well and AM's are one of them. IMHO they are beautifully styled and nicely finished but the market just doesn't want them as much and thus the large depreciation rates. I am sure a good used vehicle is great value but I wouldn't buy a new one unless money was just as big a toy. It would be interesting to study the depreciation as a % of sale value but there are too many variables to be accurate.
Improviz ....... couldn't have said it better, especially with the statistics tidbits thrown in. Clearly he is using an inferential statistical model with a data set of 1. He probably thinks he is at the center of his own normal distribution .... but in reality has severely deviated from the mean.

Zytek_Fan

The V8 Vantage is pretty brilliant, and the price isn't bad.

And you have to consider the NOISE

moparrbust

I like the looks of the new Vantage(but not the power) and REALLY like the looks of the new DBS. We had a DBS and a Vanquish S in the shop last week and my hands down new favorite Aston is the DBS. It looks and sounds incredible and has the trademark 12* rising doors which is a cool feature most don't know about.

Now as far as owning an Aston I don't think I would ever buy one because of their price, lack of reliability, maintenance costs($750 oil change for the DB9) and many other things. I personally know of two people that bought DB9's and sold them very quickly.........one with 197miles on the odod and the other with about 2400 miles. They are different cars for different people.

Improviz

Lol! Nicely punned!!

bigben320e

Damn, that seems pretty awful stats.