2009 Aston Martin Vantage Convertible $154k Msrp on 2040-cars

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Billionaire Lawrence Stroll reportedly seeks major stake in Aston Martin

LONDON — Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll, owner of Formula One team Racing Point, is preparing a bid for a major stake in Aston Martin, Autocar magazine reported, sending the carmaker's battered share price up nearly 15% on Thursday. The British sports car maker's share price has slumped since its initial public offering in October last year. The shares launched at 19 pounds ($24.50) before dropping for months and languishing at around 5 pounds for weeks as sales have failed to meet expectations. Its major shareholder is Strategic European Investment Group from Italy, which holds about a third of the company. Stroll is the father of Formula One driver Lance Stroll, and is also famed for his car collection, regarded as one of the best collections of Ferraris in the world. Stroll is heading up a consortium looking to take a "major shareholding" in Aston Martin, Autocar said on Thursday. Two weeks ago, Aston unveiled the DBX, its first SUV, and is pinning its hopes on the model's success. Aston Martin declined to comment. Racing Point did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. The carmaker's shares were up nearly 15% at 5.79 pounds Thursday.  

Is your new-car warranty good at the race track?

We've all heard the horror stories. Your buddy knows a girl that was dating a guy whose best friend's brother once broke his brand-new, recently purchased performance car while making runs at a drag strip or laps at a track day, and the manufacturer wouldn't cover the repair under warranty. True story? Urban legend? Complete crap? Yes, no, maybe. One thing's for sure: Automotive warranties have always come with caveats. In 1908, an ad in the Trenton Evening Times clearly stated: "All Ford Cars Guaranteed for One Year." Although it changed over time, by 1925 the Ford New Car Guarantee only covered 90 days on material and 30 days on labor, and it clearly stated that that there was "No guarantee whatever on Fan Belts, Glass, Bulbs, Wiring, Transmission, Bands, Hose Connections, Commutator Shells, Rollers, Spark Plugs or Gaskets." Whether or not Ol' Henry would pay to fix your Model T if you broke it shaving a tenth off your lap time at the local board track seems to be lost to history. We're guessing no. But what about today? Do new-car warranties in 2017 cover cars when they are driven on race tracks? We researched the warranties of 14 auto brands to find out, and the answer is yes, no, maybe, depending on the brand, in some cases the model, and whether or not your car is modified from stock. Acura has been out of the high-performance car game for a number of years, but jumps back into the party in 2017 with its hybrid-powered $173,000 NSX supercar. And Acura's warranty, as well as Honda's, clearly states that it does not cover "the use of the vehicle in competition or racing events." View 33 Photos So we asked Sage Marie, Senior Manager of Public Relations for Honda and Acura. "If the car is stock, the warranty covers it on a track just as it does on the street. No question," he told us. "However, if the car is modified, say with slick tires or other components that would put higher stresses on the vehicle's parts and systems, then we would have to investigate the circumstances further." Marie went on to say the same would be true for any Acura model or Honda vehicle, including the new 2017 Honda Civic Si. This became a common theme. Chevrolet actually started this practice with the fifth-generation Camaro on the high-performance ZL1 and Z/28 models.

Aston Martin recalling 6,076 for locking doors

The Basics: Aston Martin is recalling 6,076 cars because of an issue with the vehicles' door locks. The vehicles include: the 2010-2015 Aston Martin DB9, 2010-2012 DBS, 2010-2016 Rapide, 2010-2016 V8 Vantage, 2012 Virage, 2014-2016 Vanquish, 2011-2016 V12 Vantage, and 2012-2013 V12 Zagato. The Problem: The affected cars, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), come with interior door unlocking components that may not function properly when the car is locked from the outside. This may result in an occupant being trapped inside the vehicle. Injuries/Deaths: None reported. The Fix: Aston Martin dealers will disable the vehicles' double locking feature by reprogramming the mechanism's software at no charge. If you own one: Aston Martin will notify owners with the recall expected to begin in August. Related Video: Description of the Noncompliance: The subject vehicles contain a full locking system software, which according to an interpretation letter issued by NHTSA, does not meet certain door lock requirements of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 206, Door locks and door retention components (49 C.F.R §571.206). In the subject vehicles, each door is equipped with a locking mechanism with an operating means from the interior of the vehicle. However, when the full locking system is mobilised (by double locking the vehicle), this disengages the interior operating means for unlocking the door locking mechanism. As such, the full locking system is an effective anti-theft measure. FMVSS 1 : 206 - Door locks and door retention components FMVSS 2 : NR Description of the Safety Risk: In an affected vehicle, where the full locking system has been activated from the exterior, there is a risk that occupants are unable to unlock the doors from the inside of the vehicle. In relation to our 4-door sports cars (Rapide and Rapide S), this risk is the same as if a person were in a vehicle in which the child locks were engaged. However, all our vehicles have an acoustic warning device (i.e. horn), which can still be activated from the interior of the vehicle when the ignition is switched off and the full locking system is activated. Furthermore, some vehicles are fitted with an alarm system with interior detection, which is able to detect an occupant's movement and will activate the vehicle's alarm if the full locking mechanism is activated and occupants are detected inside the vehicle.