If Your Are Looking To Buy This Britsh Sports Car Used, You Need To Know About This Issue

Aston Martin, like most British brands, isn't synonymous with reliability. That said, there is an allure to the brand's sports cars that attract certain breed of car enthusiasts. As someone who is constantly on the lookout for the next bargain sports cars, I stumbled upon a thread on 6SpeedOnline, addressing a well-known issue on Aston Martin's entry model, the V-8 Vantage. Sadly, it concerns the more driver-focused version of the car, which comes with a six-speed manual transmission. Here is what one owner of a 2015 Aston Martin Vantage says:  

“I have a 2015 Vantage that has a grind going into 3rd gear. The rest of the gears are fine, and the clutch pedal feels fine. Any ideas would be appreciated.” 

A used Aston Martin can be a seductive offering if you are looking for an affordable-ish sports car that is handmade and not mass-produced. Between 2005 and 2017, Aston Martin built 15,417 V8 coupes and 6,231 V8 roadsters. The V-12 Vantage is even more exclusive (2,551 coupes and 465 roadsters).  

This owner has a 2015 Vantage V-8, which means he has the larger 4.7-liter V-8, loosely based on the AJ6 Jaguar V-8 (2005-2008 models feature the smaller, 4.3-liter V-8). An important update in 2012, SS2 (seven-speed SportShift) transmission, which was much smoother unit than the SS1 (six-speed SportShift) on earlier V-8 Vantage models.  

Aston Martin, traditionally, has a long-standing reputation for bad transmissions and clutches. This owner has the manual transmission, which is the more desired one, and while nine out of ten times, manual transmissions are more reliable, this may not be the case. I recently reported on a well-documented issue on the ND Mazda Miata manual transmission, and it seems, older Astons with the manual may have a similar issue. 

Forum members and fellow owners chime in with potential solutions and valuable experience 

The Aston Martin V-8 Vantage features a transaxle, meaning the transmission is mounted in the rear. This contributes to a 49:51 weight distribution between the front and rear axles. The six-speed manual is a Graziano unit, and Wilhit10 (the thread starter and owner) is experiencing what appears to be a common issue. 

While going through the thread, I saw many comments, some more valid than others. Ultimately, there were a few forum members that saw improvement after performing certain interventions.  

William Robert says:  

“Yep, a lot written on this subject. 
I bought a 2007 Vantage V8 about a year ago (<16k miles at that time). 
Transaxle oil was allegedly fresh; 
I had the typical hard shifting from 1st to 2nd, semi-challenging into 3rd that so much 
has been written about. 
After much research, I changed the transaxle oil (using Royal Purple) and all filters, washers/nuts (kit from Redpants). 
It helped a little, but not enough. 
I bit the bullet and bought the Castrol BOT270’A’ formulated for these cars… 
From the dealer: 
Retail was $109. liter, 
Wholesale was $69. liter; 
I paid $89. plus delivery. 
VAST improvement… not good, but much better & gets warmed-up more quickly. 
consensus seemed to be absent racing car or a lot of v. aggressive driving, this was the transaxle oils to use (for three pedal V8 Vantage)… 
-I regret not using the BOT 270’A’ the 1st time! 
your car’s 3rd gear problem may be totally unrelated.” 

Embdenb says: 

“Years ago, after reading Service Bulletin 0236, I bought BOA 270A from a dealer online for about $50 dollars per liter. Took the car to the dealer for the bulletin, and they used my oil for the oil change. Along with changing the oil to BOT 270A, the bulletin also included removing a specific amount of the plastic at the gear shift base, along with fitting a new longer bell crank with a slightly different actuator pin location. 
This made a difference, but like William, the car still fights me getting into second when cold. My routine now is to shift from first to third for the first mile or so. Realizing what the dealers were charging then for BOT 270A, I bought 12 liters (still in my garage) smile. 

You can find a link to the service bulletin here. 

J doubleU says:  

“Drain the fluid across a white towel in over a drain pan or container. Large enough for 5 quarts. The bigger the metal, the more of an issue. HCF Autosport in Austin, TX has good support for the transaxle internals, so you don't have at the AM cost. All the gears have dual synchronizers including reverse, if memory serves me correct. Call or email HCF they probably could give you a general idea of what may be wrong and parts replacement cost.” 

A comment by Wilhit10 paints a grim picture about buying and maintaining an Aston Martin V-8 Vantage:

“I drained the gear box fluid, and it had a nice sparkly glow to it when I shined the flash light on it. Since I had recently changed the gearbox fluid, I decided it was better to order a used trans to replace this one. I got this car with a bad motor, so I guess it had a bad transmission, too. Anyways, I'll hopefully get the new transmission this week. 
FYI, it happened when it was hot and cold. You could do a delay and shift, so I am pretty sure it ate a synchro.” 

What people don't talk about 

It seems the consensus among Aston Martin V-8 Vantage owners is that using a BOT 270A transmission fluid is the way to go. However, this does not solve the problem entirely. Not engaging gears properly or grinding gears may be due to a worn-out clutch.

The British carmaker has a reputation for sub-par clutches, and from my experience in restoring and maintaining a sports car, a sub-par or worn-out clutch may result in difficult gear shifts. On the other hand, Aston Martin is one of very few high-end carmakers that offer a manual transmission. Sadly, the new Aston Martin Vantage is automatic-only.

I would also listen for any noises during shifting, which may be indicative of a bad throw-out bearing. Another issue with the V-8 Vantage is the synchromesh, which is the most logical culprit here since the grinding occurs on a specific gear. There is a great Reddit thread on Aston Martin Vantage transmissions if you are interested.

Sports cars from the 2000s like the Aston Martin V-8 Vantage feature plenty of quirks. If you have a similar experience with the same car or another exclusive performance vehicle, I would love to read about it in the comment section below.  

Dimitar Angelov's automotive interests made him an expert in a wide variety of vehicles. Japanese brands like Toyota are closest to his heart, although performance cars in general are his favorite segment, which is why he is constantly on the lookout for the best deals on the market. Dimitar Angelov's car passion and knack for the written word led him to complete a Master of Arts in Media and Communications, and classic car restoration. Dim is happy to get behind the wheel of any car and share his impressions. You can follow Dimitar on X, Linked-in, Instagram, and Facebook.

Image sources: Aston Martin V-8 Vantage roadster, Aston Martin V-8 coupe