The Plus 8 which wasn't available for test drives doesn't seem to have suffered the same problem.
My understanding is that Aero +8 also suffered a larger number of write-offs than is the case with trads, but perhaps they were not quite so public?
Again it is outside my area of expertise but i was informed this was due to the very short rear overhang (compared to the other Aero 8 variants) which made the tail end VERY tricky to catch when on the limit. All I know was that when I drove a demo car (the white one with a Union flag on the bonnet) I was really surprised when the VANOS system suddenly "dumped" a whole load of extra torque to the rear wheels at about 4.000 rpm. Luckily I was going up hill on a straight road at the time, otherwise it would have been a very different story to tell.
