Hey everyone, sorry the sump has been dry for the last few months. I've driven some cool cars in the last few months, but none that I would consider noteworthy of posting. I have, however, recently had one of my life dreams fulfilled last week. Those that know me can attest that they cannot make it through a conversation with me without hearing something about Aston Martins at least once. You can imagine my surprise when my friend Sam called me and said that he just met a guy with an Aston Martin Vanquish S. Now, I've been to an Aston dealership four times now, and I've seen 3 DBSs, but never a Vanquish. Sam was kind enough to introduce me to Trent Jones (a Jones with an Aston brings new meaning to the phrase 'keeping up with the Joneses'), a local Utah plastic surgery specialist who owns the car. He offered to take us on a ride in his new beauty, and we excitedly agreed.Trent drove a Porsche Cayman before the Aston. He went to trade it in, saw an Aston Martin Vantage, and instantly fell in love with Astons. He started looking into them, and saw that he couldn't settle for a Vantage when he saw a Vanquish, and had to have it.
He's a man that appreciates the car. At no time during our drive did he ever floor it or jerk it around. He cracked off quick, tight shifts as we headed for Provo Canyon, and I was elated. As I was soaking it in, slow cars seemed to populate the roads around us. I looked over at the speedometer and realized that cars weren't going slow... we were going 110 mph. :)
I always imagined, because the DBS replaced the Vanquish, and the DBS is a loud, growling, snarling beast, that the Vanquish would also be loud and ostentatious. I was wrong. The Vanquish is meant to pamper the driver. The minimalist interior with comfortable, body-hugging seats, was all about luxury and smooth sailing. Even at open throttle, the engine was never loud. The suspension wasn't overly stiff either! It was a comparatively smooth ride that took those canyon twists like a champ. 110 mph literally felt like 55. I imagine that once driving a car this refined, it would be hell to return to anything less than a 1/4 million dollars. I feel justified in this opinion because after the ride, I hopped back into Sam's Acura TL, and it felt like a Hyundai. My '09 Honda Accord from there felt like a tin can.
Although I didn't drive the Aston, I still felt incredibly privileged to ride in it. Thanks Trent, for making my dream come true!
