Wouldn’t you be surprised if you found out you’re using a Volvo key to start the engine of your $120,000 V8 Vantage? While under the ownership of Ford, Aston Martin was able to use the Blue Oval’s parts bin to cut costs. Save for some switchgear and nav systems, only a few items were visible to the customer. Until now…

Edward Legge, general manager of Rio Prestige hire, was perhaps the first to find out when he received the damaged key-fob back from a client.  The person borrowing the luxury GT somehow damaged the rich leather covering the fob, revealing a Volvo logo underneath. ‘Our reaction was amusement and slight horror. We all know they share parts, but you would have thought someone would have invested a tenner to rub the name off,’ he says.

Aston Martin is now owned by a consortium headed by Prodrive boss Dave Richards, but Ford still have a £40m stake in the company. The firm points out it is moving from old-tech keys to new ‘Emotion Control Units’, the glass-block keys you’ll find in a DBS.

[Source: Car Magazine]