sounds like the aston is what you want. manual, v8, exotic looks and curb appeal. nice ride quality. the only downside to them is the cost of maintenance. you'd want to have a good indy shop to work on it. the dealer is going to rip you off. they overcharge for the same ford part.
I believe the DB9 of that era was also available in a manual. But they are hard to find. You do get a NA v12 with a stick though and with an exhaust they sound very very good.
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/20...martin-db9-29/
The R8 would be the safer bet though in terms of maintenance, parts, forums to help you figure things out. probably much better built too.