Condensation in headlights or tail lights

The headlights and tail lights have a design flaw that often leads to condensation building up within them. The condensation can ruin the LED control boards, at which point the entire headlight or tail light will need to be replaced. Check out my Lighting Information Page for more about this.

It might be possible to repair or mitigate the condensation issue. Check out my Tail Light Repair DIY Guide for more information.

The LEDs aren't working in a headlight or tail light

The control board for the LEDs in the faulty headlight or tail light was probably ruined by condensation. The entire unit will likely need to be replaced. Check out my Lighting Information Page for more about this.

Doors, hood, or trunk won't stay open on their own

The doors, hood, and trunk have gas struts that keep them propped open, but they wear out over time. When the struts can no longer support the weight they're holding, they'll need to be replaced. Changing the hood and trunk struts are very easy to do. Changing the door struts aren't very difficult but require a bit of extra work.

Door window doesn't dip when opening the door

The window is supposed to dip slightly when opening the door to allow clearance for the window so it doesn't hit the trim above it. If it doesn't do this, the windows may need to be reset or the door module may need to be replaced.

Door mirrors don't fold in when locking the doors

First off, the door mirrors won't fold in unless the car is equipped with auto-fold mirrors. So long as the car does actually have auto-fold mirrors:

1) Early cars with the original console will require an AMDS to reset the auto-fold functionality. This cannot be done without an AMDS.

2) Cars with the updated radio console (~MY08+) have the option in a menu of the radio settings. It can be turned on or off by finding it in the menu.

Windshield washer reservoir won't hold fluid

It's probably cracked. It's a common issue and you'll need to replace the reservoir.

Water falls into V8 Vantage coupe's trunk/boot when opening the trunk lid

This is a common issue with earlier V8 Vantage coupe, and at some point Aston Martin helped prevent the issue by adding trunk lid rain seals to cars at the factory. These can also be added to earlier cars that didn't come with them originally.

Front grille has a loose or missing piece

The slatted grilles used on many of the cars are press-fitted together. If a piece of it gets knocked loose, it can go missing. Aston Martin does not offer the pieces individually so a whole new grille would need to be purchased. This applies to both the slats and the brackets. However, Redpants does offer a replacement for the vertical brackets.

Brake squeal

This can be due to a number of things, but it's very common with the OEM pads due to their design. Check out my Brake System Information Page for more about it.

Brake chirp at low speeds

The intermittent chirp-chirp-chirp sound is caused by the handbrake pads. Briefly engage the handbrake while driving in reverse to clear the pad edges and it should go away for a while. For more information, check out the Handbrakes section of my Brake System Information Page.

Horrible metallic squeal from brakes even without using them

There's probably a small rock stuck between the rotor and pad or caliper. Reverse briefly and then drive forward to dislodge the rock. If it doesn't work, try it again another time or two. Usually doesn't take much to clear it out.

Brake pad warning on gauge cluster

The brake system uses sensors to determine if the brake pads are getting worn too thin, at which point the driver is alerted with a message warning the driver. These sensors work by being sheared by the rotors so, once that happens, the sensor(s) that triggered the low pad warning must be replaced. Check out my Brake System Information Page for more details.

Suspension shocks are leaking

This is often caused by lack of use, which allows the seals inside the shocks to dry out, at which point they can't fully contain the oil within the shock body. It isn't uncommon and means the shocks need to be replaced because they aren't designed to be rebuildable.

The speakers on one side of the cabin cut out

The most common cause of this is the Bluetooth Switcher. Replacing it with an updated version is easy and will fix the issue.

The outside temperature in the radio panel display is way off

This is due to the ambient air temperature sensor going bad. It's inexpensive and easy to replace so don't worry about it too much. If the temperature being displayed is extremely off, it can trigger failsafes that can lead to other issues, like your battery not charging.

Car battery isn't charging but the alternator is okay

Take a look at the outside temperature and see if that's accurate or way off. If it's way off, it may have triggered a failsafe that disconnects the battery to prevent it from being damaged in extremely temperatures.

Also check the age of the battery. Many car batteries are only designed to last 5 years or so. A battery well past its service life will not be able to hold enough power no matter how long it's kept on a charger.

Sometimes the car won't start, as if the battery wasn't connected

It very well may be the case that your battery isn't connected. Even though the cables are attached to the battery, it doesn't mean that the other ends of the cables are attached. This happened to me at one point when the chassis stud for the battery ground cable had somehow broken off and was no longer providing a ground for the battery.

Emissions Warning

To figure out what is causing this, you need to pull the codes and do some diagnostics, otherwise you're just guessing. Period.

The emissions warning is used for a variety of things. It might be something simple like a loose gas cap. It might be something like a faulty o2 sensor. You might get lucky and fix it on accident. It might go away on its own due to the conditions and parameters that triggered it changing. Regardless, it's a very common warning message to get in a Gaydon-era Aston Martin. You need to pull the P-codes from the engine OBDII and do diagnostics on the car, otherwise you're just guessing.

MAF Correlation Error

This warning message means the MAF sensors are sending back different readings that dont' fall within parameters. It's possible one of the MAF sensors is damaged and needs to be replaced, or it's possible there's extra air flow going into one of the MAF sensors. The extra air can be caused by a loose/missing air box cover, a crack in an air box, or something else.

Car stalls when coasting to a stop

There are a couple issues that can cause this. One is that a misfire correction needs to be done. This is a pain to do because it involves coasting for a long distance without touching the gas or brake pedals. It's even more of a pain because you can't verify it actually worked if you don't have an AMDS. You can also have a dealership do it as they'll have an AMDS.

The other cause is a broken fuel vapor recirculation hose. Take a look at my DIY Guide showing how to check and fix it.

Fuel gauge not working

If your fuel gauge stops working through part or all of the gauge range, your fuel sender unit needs to be repaired or replaced. This happened to me a while back and repairing the fuel sender unit took less than an hour.

FEAD belt squeaking at engine startup

This is caused by either an outdated FEAD belt or outdated idler assembly, or both. You'll need the updated versions of both the belt and pulley to fix the noise.

Buzzing sound from the engine bay

Press down on the PCV valve and see if the buzzing changes or goes away. If so, you know the PCV valve is causing the noise and needs to be replaced. It's a really easy job and the part isn't too expensive.

Oil on the bottomside of the engine

This is usually caused by either a leak from the factory air-oil separator or from the front timing cover gasket. The former is an easy fix. The latter is a huge and costly pain. Check my Engine Information Page for more details.

Coolant temperature gauge doesn't get to or won't stay at the halfway point

The most likely cause of this is that the gasket on your thermostat has gone bad and the thermostat needs to be replaced. Less likely but also possible is that your coolant temperature sensor or its wiring has gone bad or was otherwise damaged and needs to be fixed or replaced.

Engine takes a lot of cranking before it starts

This can be caused by a failing starter motor, a weak/old battery, and/or lack of fuel pressure.

Difficulty shifting between 1st and 2nd gear when the transmission is cold

This was a common complaint with the early manual transmissions. Aston Martin fixed the issue by switching to a different gear oil and changing the bell crank lever on the transmission. Check out my Transmissions Information Page for more details.

Burning clutch smell when reversing uphill

The reverse gear in the 6-speed manual and Sportshift 1 is incredibly tall and reversing uphill puts a massive amount of strain on it. Avoid reversing uphill if at all possible. It's one of the easiest ways to burn up a clutch.

Can't shift, gear lever is limp (manual)

You probably popped a shifter cable loose. Reconnecting the shifter cable will fix the problem, but if the cable connector cracked or broke, it may happen again very easily. This happened to me a while back during a rally.

Can't shift, gear selection not possible (Sportshift)

It's possible the ASM hoses for your transmission are leaking. If so, they'll lose pressure and the system will be unable to function properly. You'll need to have the hoses replaced.