Apologies to renmure whose already read this on Pistonheads!

Collected the Aston Vantage today. Drove it from Macclesfield to Buxton over the 'Cat and Fiddle' and then down the A515 to Ashbourne and then back home. So about 55 miles. Initial thoughts:

Ride quality is brilliant. Looking through the paperwork I've found out it actually has the 'sport pack' fitted which was an AM aftermarket upgrade. I knew it has the lightweight forged N400 wheels on but didn't realise it also had uprated Bilstein shocks and springs. OK on really bad surfaces it's a little bit harsh but otherwise it's great. Apparently the new(ish) Pilot Sport 4S tyres it has on also help a lot.

Steering is pretty direct. It's no Lotus but it goes where you point it and doesn't feel as heavy as it actually is - 1600kg!! Bit heavy at parking speeds but fine once you are rolling along.

Very quiet inside the cabin and comfortable too. I have the earlier seats as it's a 2006 MY car. The later ones were supposed to be an improvement but I like mine. I think they are slimmer which for someone skinny like me actually means they grip you better. Good driving position and very good visibility all round I reckon.

How you get it to do 0-60 in 4.9 secs I have no idea. It feels dead slow when you are starting off and the long accelerator and heavy flywheel mean it seems to take an age to wind up. It's actually very docile and easy to drive slowly. To get it to feel fast you need to get it over 3.5-4k revs and it then comes alive and starts feeling fast(ish).

Gearbox is pretty nice. A tiny bit notchy but overall it's good. Feels like it will get a bit smoother with technique as you get used to it. Clutch is heavy and hill starts are difficult - the smell of burning clutch was testament to this! The fact mine is biting quite high didn't help. I know it will wear eventually, just a matter of time.

Reverse gear is a nightmare! Far too high, why they set it up like this I have no idea! Apparently the technique it so not use the accelerator at all and let the idle control deal with the small amount of throttle needed.

I think the interior might have been worked on by someone from Lotus . A few creaks (moving leather) and a few rattles. On the way back the TPMS box fell out from behind the glove box and is now hanging down in the passenger footwell.

Oh and it is very thirsty. Speed limits were all 50mph on the way back, lots of cameras (some average speed), lots of other traffic, artics and the like. So it was really an economy run and it did an average of 23mpg

Overall it's a great GT car that looks and sounds awesome and feels pretty well screwed together. A lighter flywheel and a smidge more power would make it feel a lot quicker........