Aston Martin Vantage for under $65,000?!

Whoa, seriously?  My SO did mention that the '70s porn star interior may have brought down the demand (and therefore the price) of that specific car.  Then again, for the price, I may be willing to put up with it.

I was surfing Craigslist as usual "window shopping" for exotics when I ran across this ad. Back in the days when the Vantage was first developed, Aston Martin was owned by Ford.  Because of this, Ford took various "off the shelf" parts from the various companies they owned to put together this budget 911 competitor.  This included a very highly likely V-8 engine design from Jaguar, and a heck of a lot of interior trim and electronics from Volvo.

I know 20,000 miles on the odometer is a bit steep for exotics, but considering the Aston Martin has a V-8 engine transplanted from some Ford. I believe this translates to an exotic car that looks amazing yet has the ability to be relatively reliable and cheaper to maintain.  Of course, that being said, nothing has ever stopped a dealer from imposing an "exotic" car tax just because they can.  I mean, even Porsche does it.  I understood that my old 911 took over 10-quarts of synthetic oil, but along with a handful of visual inspections, does my final maintenance tally really add up to $600?  Probably not, but the dealer can get away with it because people who generally own these cars can afford it.

Contrary to most other people's opinions, I actually prefer the older Vantage.  I like the red rear tail lights (and I strong believe the way all rear tail lights should be) over the clear rear tail lights that's all the rage nowadays.  I also enjoy the fun and the skill required to drive a real manual transmission, not one of those "electro-automated flappy paddle" jokes they call a transmission.  Yes, those dual-clutch wonders can shift consistently smoother and faster than I can, but they (1) will require more maintenance, and (2) remove an element of the driver's interaction with the car.

The link directs you to an eBay ad.  Oddly enough, you cannot navigate directly to the ad via eBay.  This is because said ad has already expired.  But the ad wasn't an auction, it was a "for sale" now price.

Since I'm pretty "broke" right now working for a start up and spending all of my excess money on random "investment" watches, fancy food, boutique beer, and my dog's budding agility career.  I should probably pass on this opportunity and allow some other lucky sap to buy this.  Then again, I should probably give then a ring next week and maybe just drive up to Mill Valley to take a peek.

Doesn't hurt to look, does it? Hahaha, with me, probably will hurt.  I have no impulse control.