I purchased my first Aston (a 1973 V8) as a fresh-faced 22 year old in 1982. I kept it for nearly 20 years and primarily due to lack of use I sold it in 2002. In 2014 I was able to buy it back and started a comprehensive restoration which is now coming to an end. Having started to attend AMOC Area 15 events I decided that it would be a good idea to have a second more ‘modern’ Aston as a back-up to my V8 for the longer tours in case of problems and to give us a choice. With the very pretty early Gaydon V8 Vantages becoming more affordable I felt that one of those would fit the bill more than adequately, and having set a budget started the search. Almost immediately this car appeared, well above budget because of its low mileage and above average condition, but given the colour was almost identical to my 73 V8 it could not be ignored. So breaking all the rules, I bought the first one that I went to see, and didn’t have it checked out by a specialist! Having bought it just a few days into the New Year, opportunities to take it out were few and far between although I did attend the Area 15 February meeting in it – despite the sub-zero temperature. Needless to say since then, Covid-19 has significantly curtailed all driving activity, but I have driven about 500 miles in it and have thoroughly enjoyed every one of them. It is a 2006 car, with currently just under 7,000 miles on the clock, but with trips to North Wales, France and Scotland already booked for 2021, the mileage will not stay low for long.