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Vanquishing Depreciation
Winston Goodfellow
04/01/2004
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The plush
interior was a combination of hand-stitched luxurious Connelly leather and
Alcantara suede, though many of the minor dashboard controls, such as turn
signals and switches, were lifted almost unchanged from other Ford models.
However, the company did offer Vanquish owners a range of customization options,
from paint to leather to the material on the dashboard.
Performance Investment
The combination of form and function has been a
financial boon for buyers. “There is no question that the Vanquish is very
strong in holding its value,” says Stuart Carpenter of Copley Motorcars, a firm
that specializes in buying and selling high-end autos. The price of a used
Vanquish hovers around $200,000 on the retail market. “That’s the price for a
2002 Vanquish with around 5,000 miles on it,” says Carpenter. However, such a
beast is a rare find. “You just don’t see them on the secondary market, since
most of the owners are keeping them.” Indeed, Aston plans to keep production of
the Vanquish to a minimum in order to support valuations. The volume shipped
will be even lower in the 2004 model year; only 98 will arrive on U.S.
shores.
The Vanquish also holds its value better than other high-performance
autos. Even the Lamborghini Murcielago, a $280,000 mid-engine supercar that
debuted at the same time as the Vanquish, has depreciated more steeply. “The
Murcielago never saw the pop in price the Vanquish experienced,” says Al
Burtoni, a California-based dealer who has been selling Lamborghinis since 1968.
“Even when it first came out, prices hovered around the sticker. Today, a good
2002 Murcielago sells for around $225,000 to $230,000.”
Ferrari’s 550
Maranello and its new 575M model offer a telling comparison. Like the Vanquish,
the Ferrari’s engine is mounted up front, it is driver friendly, and it tops out
around 200 mph. A Ferrari dealer, who preferred not to be named, says a 2000 550
Maranello sells for around $150,000, and a 2001 for approximately $155,000 to
$160,000.
Shifting Downmarket
The Vanquish will continue to be built in
Aston’s factory about an hour outside London, in the sleepy village of Newport
Pagnell, until 2008. At that point, the company will move Vanquish production to
its state-of-the-art facility in Gaydon, where it is building its new $160,000
DB9 coupe. Gaydon will produce 5,000 Astons annually when the company begins
producing its new $100,000 AMV8 Vantage there next year.
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