Archive Aston Martin DB6 maintenance costs
01.04.2015
Anyone who a uto motor und sport , you may still remember it: At that time, the editors described their experience with a particularly noble used car they had bought - an Aston Martin DB6 Vantage. Although the ten-year-old car was in good condition, around 8,000 marks had to be invested in technical repairs over the course of 7,000 kilometers, which was almost the equivalent of a new VW Polo.
Aston Martin DB6 is available from around 350,000 euros
The Aston Martin DB6 was available for the equivalent of around 12,000 euros back then - today you have to pay 35 times as much pay for such a car. Fortunately, the cost of repairs has not increased by the same factor, but it is still high enough that any prospective Aston Martin DB6 purchaser should keep tens of thousands in reserve for potential damage repair. We are only talking about the technology here.
One of the repairs that are very expensive due to the large amount of work involved is the clutch change. 'The clutch has to be removed through the interior, for which, among other things, the seats and the transmission tunnel have to be dismantled,' explains Beat Roos, who founded Roos Engineering 40 years ago. The 3,100 euros listed in the service table on the following page can easily be exceeded, 'for example if the stuck and aging floor carpets of the Aston Martin DB6 tear when you remove it,' says Roos.
Valve clearance control costs around 1,000 euros
One of the most expensive service jobs is adjusting the valve clearance. 'The factory gave 105 minutes for pure control,' says Wilhelm Marlok, who incidentally back then was a mechanic at Merz & Pabst in Stuttgart who looked after the car from auto motor und sport and has been one at Leonberg for many years own workshop. 'To adjust the clearance with the help of bucket tappets with different bottom thicknesses, the two camshafts must be removed, which is why the work, including checking the timing, can take eight hours or more,' adds Marlok. The owner of the Aston Martin DB6 therefore has to be prepared for costs of around 1,000 euros.
'A mechanic is also busy with that for a long timeAdjusting and synchronizing the carburettors, 'reports René Gauch, managing director of Roos Engineering in Safenwil - especially if it is an Aston Martin DB6 Vantage with Weber carburettors. If defects or wear damage are discovered during the inspection of the mixture factory, it is very quick a four-digit amount on the invoice.
Special case Brico injection system
The few copies of the mark are special -II series, which were equipped with electronic Brico injection. Unfortunately, many of these Aston Martin DB6s have been converted to carburettors, but for reasons of originality and vehicle value this should be carefully considered. 'The system is manageable and works very well good, 'emphasizes Roos, who can fall back on the relevant know-how, the necessary literature and the test device. In the absence of spare parts, defective systems can often only be repaired with the help of more expensive ones Repairing manufactured parts.
At around 1,600 euros, changing the water pump is also not cheap, because the parts price is quite high. 'To optimize the cooling, we use more powerful pumps,' reveals Gauch. According to him, the costs for Aston spare parts are basically at a high level, but there are still qualitative differences.
Engine overhaul costs around 20,000 euros for the Aston Martin DB6
A particularly large investment is required when the six-cylinder engine of the Aston Martin DB6 needs to be overhauled. At least 20,000 euros have to be invested, 'but major damage, such as severe corrosion in the block with wet cylinder liners, significantly increases costs,' says Gauch, so that three times as much can be due.
You are unlucky if you have entrusted the engine to a non-specialist and have to dig into your pocket again after a while because mistakes have been made. The main problem with the Aston Martin DB6, according to Roos, is the sealing of the rear crankshaft. There is no Simmerring there, but a so-called labyrinth with two aluminum half-shells. 'A special tool is necessary to center the labyrinth precisely, otherwise there will soon be a loss of oil again,' says Roos.
He considers the displacement expansion, which is often practiced during overhauls, to be advisable because of the better torque, as long as it is it remains at 4.2 liters. In his opinion, a larger displacement limits the service life of the engine and its suitability for everyday use.
Aston Martin DB6 mostly with defective damper adjustment
We come to the landing gear. Replacements for worn bushings and rubbers on the front and rear axles are available as new parts in a set. Including assembly, you have to calculate several thousand per axis. Are a specialtyon the Aston Martin DB6, the electrically adjustable Armstrong lever shock absorbers on the rear axle. Its hardness can be regulated in four stages using a switch on the dashboard.
By turning the switch, the position of a contact disc is changed. However, it should only be turned in the direction of the arrow. Each time the switch clicks the damper becomes harder. Once the hardest position has been reached, another turn of the switch takes you back to the normal position of the Aston Martin DB6. 'However, if you turn it against the direction of the arrow, the contact plate belonging to this setting level breaks off,' explains Roos. Unfortunately, many do that, which is why the system called Selectaride does not work on many cars. Strictly speaking, you can do without it because the adjustment can hardly be felt while driving. But if you want it to be original, you have to reckon with costs of a few thousand euros in the event of a damper change including repair of the system.
Special tool required for a lot of work
How expensive the overhaul of the occasional leaky power steering turns out to be must be determined in each individual case. The power steering was standard in the DB6 from the Mark II model, before that as an option. There were examples with valve control in the interior under the steering wheel, which is why the oil drips onto the driver's pants and carpeting in the event of leaks, and those with the system in the engine compartment. The latter are more accessible, which reduces costs somewhat.
There are technically more complicated automobiles, but if you don't know about the intricacies of the Aston Martin DB6 or have the appropriate special tools, you can never do a one hundred percent exact job. Even replacing the rear wheel bearing can go wrong, which according to the factory specifications takes around 3.5 hours per side. 'The roller bearing used there has to be set exactly, which is often not done, which is why the bearings don't last long', says Roos.
One brake servo per axle
In the case of brakes, it is often overlooked that the vehicles have their own brake servo with different volumes for the front and rear axles. And if the DB6 suddenly over-brakes on the rear axle, something was probably done wrong in the workshop.
Incidentally, the prices mentioned here are only intended as a guide. Prospective buyers of the Aston Martin DB6 should keep René Gauch's words in mind: 'Vehicles of this age often hold certain surprises, even in good condition.'
Service tip Aston Martin DB6
Aston Martin DB6 owners who repair their cars themselves are rare. If you want to familiarize yourself with the technology a little deeper, you will find that there are hardly any freely available sketches from parts catalogs on the Internetgives. Literature to be paid for is available from retailers, on Ebay or from www.astonmartintechinfo.com Registration. However, around 90 euros are required there for the one-day provision of the parts catalog. Everything that has to do with Aston is expensive - which also applies to the bodywork that is not addressed here.
