Ever sine it appeared over three years ago, there have been rumors of Aston Martin’s Rapide receiving V8 and hybrid versions, but as the sedan nears production, Aston is getting wise. The Rapide has always looked like a four-door DB9/DBS, and even Aston is pitching it for its DB9 customers who want a little more room; so now it’s not even going to bother giving the Rapide any other engine than the one from its coupe look-alikes.
Marcel Beci, General Manager for Aston’s European operationstold Autotelegraaf, "There are no plans for the Rapide with a V8 engine. We build the Rapide with an engine, the V12 from the DB9."
Beci would not confirm the power of the V12, but the 6.0-liter unit makes 470 hp in the DB9. We should expect at least that much power (the same engine makes 510 hp in the DBS) when the production car makes its first appearance in August at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.
"Absolutely no SUV." That’s what Marcel Beci, the manager of Aston Martin’s European operations told Autotelegraaf when speaking about the revival of the Lagonda brand. This is in steep contrast to what we witnessed back at the Geneva Auto Show where Aston Martin CEO Dr. Ulrich Bez said the Lagonda brand would be intended for places without traditional urban areas, and "the revival of the Lagonda brand would allow us to develop cars which can have a different character than a sportscar." No one directly mentioned that the first car from Lagonda’s revival would be an all-out SUV, but the Lagonda concept uses a Mercedes GL platform, which is currently only used for SUVs.
Beci still mirrored Bez’s statements from Geneva about how the Lagonda brand will help Aston Martin go into new markets where the road systems are not refined enough support sports car sales. This leaves us with a big question of what Aston is going to produce under the Lagonda brand... Is Lagonda going to define a class of its own? Is Aston just going to just redefine an ‘SUV’ just to be different (just like how BMW calls the X5 an ‘SAV’ - Sport Activity Vehicle)? Is Aston just trying to keep us confused for another surprise?
We don’t have all the answer yet, but definite plans should materialize soon if Aston Martin wants to get a Lagonda on the road by 2012.
The German tuners of high-end vehicles, Cargraphic, have just released a new tuning program for the Aston Martin V8 Vantage. The Aston features a wind tunnel tested aero kit with a carbon fiber front lip, it rides on either 19 or 20 inch classic or racing style wheels and the new 4.7 liter V8 has been tweaked to produce 466 HP.
After showing off the One-77 mockups, V12 Vantage, DBS Volante and Lagonda concept all in Geneva, Aston Martin had us forgetting about the Rapide. Maybe Aston hoped everyone was distracted long enough that it could take the sedan out to its Nurburgring test facilities for a little undisguised fun. Unfortunately from Aston, and fortunate for us, a spy photographer was there to catch the run around the ring.
Although its not great surprise, the Rapide carries more than a passing resemblance to the DB9 and DBS, which will also share a chassis with the sedan. The Rapide will also likely share the 6.0-liter V12 with its coupe siblings. It should have at least 450 hp when the car hits the streets in 2010.
There are certain car companies that absolutely understand what it means to be a driver. Aston Martin is one of them. When Aston decided that it needed to branch out into SUVs for customers who live where the roads are not paved, it reintroduced the Lagonda brand rather than pollute the Aston name.
Aston Martin only builds sports cars, and it builds them by hand.
The V8 Vantage Roadster that arrived on our doorstep came with a $154,035 price tag (base for a is $134K). For that price we instantly become a member of an exclusive club that mixes rich racing history with modern graceful styling.
Like any good group of enthusiasts, we all had trouble containing our excitement for this car. But one we got the fleet rotation down, it was time to figure out how the smallest Aston stacked up against the competition.
Aston Martin seems to want to reveal the One-77 piece by piece. We were more than happy when the company showed off a full-size styling model as well as chassis and powertrain skeleton at Geneva. The only thing that was missing was the interior. Now it seems we may have the final piece of the puzzle with a leaked document from Aston.
Although we already knew elements like the inboard suspension, near 50/50 weight distribution and full carbon fiber structure, the whole leaked document is worth going through. It not only reveals the interior sketches, but also fills in the gaps on just about every other detail of the car. Everything from the Bang and Olufsen 1000 Watt stereo system to 3300 lbs curb weight (550 of which will be the Cosworth-tuned 700 hp 7.3-liter V12.)
As much as we like to see the One-77 on paper, we’re still hoping that our friends at Aston will let us take one of the 77 planed cars out for a spin. Priced at £1,000,000 each (about $1.4 million at today’s rates), we can’t see any reason why a few wouldn’t end up in the press fleet.
Follow the source link to access the entire PDF document.
Regardless of the varied opinions on the new look of the Lagonda line, the Aston Martin spinoff may just be the brand to watch this year. In a time when car companies are scaling back on concepts and cutting budgets, Lagonda will be unveiling a second concept car before the summer.
In an interview with Le Blog Auto, Aston Martin board member and partial owner, David Richards said the concept shown in Geneva was just to test public reaction. There will be another car revealed in May that will be "completely opposite to the one you saw in Geneva."
There is no indication yet if Aston Martin is planning a two-vehicle line of is just sending out concept car until one really resonates with the public. What we do know is that at least one car will stick to the points announced by Aston Martin CEO Dr. Ulrich Bez. That menas Lagonda will cover territory not covered by traditional Aston Martins (i.e. crossover or SUV), and it shoulc be based on the Mercedes GL platform.
The gentleman from the British magazine i Motor Mag had the chance to get face to face with the Aston Martin V12 Vantage. What did they think about the new car? Click above to find out.
Aston Martin revealed today its concept that will bring back the Lagonda brand. The concept’s styling seems to blends elements of a traditional sedan, SUV and others cars from Lagonda’s history.
Aston Martin CEO Dr. Ulrich Bez sees the Lagonda brand as a way for Aston Martin to branch out into other markets. “Aston Martins are pure sports cars… they are limited in their usability mainly because of the low ground clearance.” Bez says the rebirth of Lagonda must be suitable for or countries that do not necessarily include traditional urban areas. That also means the Lagonda will be geared less for all-out performance, and more about multiple terrains. “We do not intend to claim a lap record around the Nurburgring because there is no point in doing so.”
We shouldn’t be too shocked by the direction Aston Martin is taking on the Lagonda. Back in September when the car was first announced, Bez said, “The revival of the Lagonda brand would allow us to develop cars which can have a different character than a sportscar.” This may be most evident in the chassis considering that it is based on the Mercedes GL. The Lagonda will also be a place for Aston Martin to use powertrains it has not explored before such as flexfuel, diesel and hybrid systems.
There are currently plenty of emerging and established countries with well-heeled individuals who do not have access to proper roads. By making the Lagonda into an SUV/crossover vehicle, this enables Aston Martin to compete in more markets around the globe (there are 100 countries where Aston doesn’t currently operate) without having to tarnish its pure sports car image.
Aston Martin brought two mockups of the One-77 to Geneva. Between the full size styling model, and chassis and powertrain skeleton, we know have a pretty good idea of how the £1 million (about $1.4 at current rates) supercar will shape up.
The One-77 is powered by a 6.0-liter V12 engine (same from the DBS, DB9 and new V12 Vantage) that delivers 700 hp. With a projected weight of 1,500kg the One-77 should be very quick (Aston predicts a 0-60 time of 3.5 seconds.) Aston also says the engine will be able to pull the car to a top speed beyond 200 mph.
The skeletal model showed off the full carbon fiber monocoque chassis, which is extremely lightweight and rigid. Like all Aston Martins, the One-77 will feature a front mid-mounted engine and the transmission mounted toward the rear of the car. What will be unique to the One-77 will be that the suspension will be mounted inboard to furter increase the weight to the ideal center of the car.
Although the supercar is limited to a production run of only 77 cars, there should still be a few available.
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Photography by Thomas Carter
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