Aston Martin Revives Historic Lagonda Marque
Posted by admin in Aston Martin on July 2, 2011
British sportscar manufacturer Aston Martin has confirmed the company’s intention to revive the historic Lagonda marque.
In a statement announcing the news, Aston Martin CEO Dr Ulrich Bez referred to the company’s forthcoming four-door Rapide model, further raising speculation that the car may be badged as a Lagonda rather than Aston Martin.
Dr Bez said: “We will take elements of DNA from the past but will be very future orientated as we are with Aston Martin.” Rapide is model name previously used by Lagonda.
By offering cars of a “different character” from Aston Martin and with “a unique design language”, the move is a bid to expand the company’s market presence from 32 to 100 countries worldwide.
Lagonda history
The last production outing for the famous marque, which was purchased by David Brown in 1947 together with Aston Martin and merged into one company, was the futuristic 1970s Aston Martin Lagonda.
While the car itself was beset by problems with its advanced electronics and did not earn a good reputation, the technical ambition it demonstrated as well as income generated from advance orders was credited with saving Aston Martin from bankruptcy.
Only a few bespoke four-door 1990s Aston Martin Virage models produced for export have since worn the Lagonda badge. Read the rest of this entry »
The Aston Martin DB9 – The Stylish Grand Tourer
Posted by admin in Aston Martin on July 2, 2011
After Ian Callum designed the beautifully styled Aston Martin DB7 back in 1993, few believed that it could ever be bettered. However with the release of the new Aston Martin DB9 in 2004 it seemed that Callum had achieved the impossible, and improved on perfection. This was to be the car that took Aston into the 21st Century bringing them head to head with rivals from Ferrari and Porsche.
The DB9 is powered by 6 litre 450bhp V12 engine that was original used in the DB9′s much bigger brother, the Aston Martin Vanquish S. If they had followed normal procedure this new Aston should have been called the DB8, however Aston wanted to show that this car was a significant step forward and not just and evolution from the ageing DB7. In addition, it was feared that the DB8 moniker would cause some potential buyers to believe the new model was powered by a just a humble V8, so instead the DB9 title was used.
The design and construction of the DB9 was much more advanced than previous Astons, with the chassis and bodywork produced from a combination of aluminium and lightweight composite materials. This gave the DB9 tremendous structural rigidity whilst still keeping the overall weight low, which allowed the DB9 to accelerate to 60 in just 4.7 seconds and then on to a maximum speed of 186 mph.
When compared to the flagship Vanquish S model, the DB9 had much crisper exterior lines with the overall shape looking considerably less bulky than its older brother. Neat touches like the single lever recessed door handles and the slim 501 LED bulbs in the rear lights all added to the stylish and modern design. Inside the DB9 continued the modern feel with brushed aluminium, light coloured woods and even a crystal glass starter button. Read the rest of this entry »