Aston Martin auto news

REPORT: Aston Martin puts the Lagonda on hold

Aston Martin has grown accustomed to success. Since the DB7, its sports cars have only gotten better, while on the track the British automaker continues to rack up trophies. The Lagonda SUV concept which the company unveiled this past March in Geneva, however, was another story. The awkwardly-shaped crossover got a cold reception at its unveiling, and Aston pulled it off the show stand before the public even got there. Now reports indicate that the entire project has been put on hold.

Chief executive Ulrich Bez reportedly proclaims that the decision to axe the Lagonda venture was purely financial. And in this economic climate, that's a reasonable claim. But other sources suggest that the automotive media's reaction to the concept dictated its demise. Will Aston give it another shot? Aston Martin Lagonda chairman David Richards reportedly wants to get a new concept on the stands before the end of the year. We wouldn't be surprised if he gets his way.

Gallery: Geneva 2009: Aston Martin Lagonda Concept

Aston Martin joins the party, opens first merchandise store at the N?rburgring

With Ferrari raking in cash hand over fist from Prancing Horse-branded merchandise, it was only a matter of time before its rivals began to catch on. And catch on they have, with several exotic automakers simultaneously cashing in on their image and promoting it with their own lines of branded merchandise. Stuttgart knows the game with its longstanding Porsche Design division, Molsheim has launched its own Bugatti Collection, and now Aston Martin has joined the fold in opening its first dedicated merchandise store. And where did they open it? At the Nürburgring - where else?

Opening its doors around the same time and in the same Grand Ring Boulevard location as the new Ferrari Store (coincidence? we think not), the first Aston Martin Store stocks an assortment of items from the Aston Martin Collection, including clothing and accessories for men, women and children, gifts, models and more. The store's grand opening was highlighted by the first production example of the One-77 rolling down the street from Aston's 'Ring-side test center. If you're not planning on heading down to the Nürburgring anytime soon, well... you should. But you can always stop by Aston's online shop and pick out your wares there. Details in the press release after the jump.

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Best of Both Worlds: Rizk Auto recreation 1957 Aston Martin DBR2

Rizk Auto recreation 1957 Aston Martin DBR2 - Click above for high-res image gallery

They don't build 'em like they used to, they build 'em better. But, it could be argued, they don't style 'em like they used to. A handful of purists have taken the best from both worlds, recreating classic automotive shapes using modern technology. The results - like the Creative Sport Speciale, Gullwing-America 300SL Panamerica and Huet Brothers Special - have always fascinated us, and here's the latest: a recreation of the famous 1957 Aston Martin DBR2 racer, built with the latest methods by Rizk Auto of Phoenix, Arizona.

The RA DBR2 is built around a state-of-the-art carbon-fiber tub and aluminum honeycomb monocoque chassis that weighs a feather-like 100 kgs (220 lbs), overlaid with carbon-fiber body panels lined with Nomex. Sound space-age enough for a classic roadster? How about some Aerogel, a NASA-developed heat insulator being used in a roadgoing automobile for the first time. Each example is built to order, and customers can specify their choice of powertrain options between Jaguar-derived inline-six and V12 engines or a Corvette LS3 V8. The original Aston DBR2 chalked up a handful of victories in its day - if Rizk Auto had put it together, maybe it would have won even more. Details in the press release after the jump and high-res image gallery below.

Gallery: Rizk Auto recreation 1957 Aston Martin DBR2

Continue reading Best of Both Worlds: Rizk Auto recreation 1957 Aston Martin DBR2

Pics Aplenty: Aston Martin V12 Vantage, DBS Volante

Aston Martin V12 Vantage - Click above for high-res image gallery

Aston Martin makes some of the most visually appealing cars on the road today. Their latest offerings, the DBS Volante and the V12 Vantage, continue the company's tradition of elegant styling combined with V12 power. We generally can't get enough photos of either car, and fortunately for us, Aston has released a plethora of new pictures of both cars. Check out both high-res galleries below.

Gallery: Aston Martin V12 Vantage

Gallery: Aston Martin DBS Volante

REPORT: Aston Martin Cygnet adds a smart set of clothes to the Toyota iQ

With a nod to our current global economic and environmental issues, super GT maker Aston Martin has reportedly announced the world's first super luxury supermini. Having blown their development budget on the V12 Vantage RS, Rapide and One-77 hypercar, they turned to an unlikely partner for some help: Toyota. Aston Martin has taken the Toyota iQ 3+1 commuter and given it a tailored suit from Saville Row. The result is the new Aston Martin Cygnet you see above. In case you're wondering, a "cygnet" is a baby swan, not to be confused with an ugly duckling.

Although technically just a concept, word has it that the vehicle will be put into limited production and sold exclusively to existing Aston Martin owners, at least initially. There's a full press release after the jump, but the Cygnet should sell for around £20,000 (around $33k USD) when it goes on sale late next year. The car will retain the iQ's unique 3+1 seating but will be tailored to the individual customer's needs when it is assembled in Gaydon. Think of it as a move to "1-down" BMW's MINI brand. We only have the one photo for now, but from what we can see it doesn't look as unfortunate as we might have expected with Aston's distinctive grille, hood cutouts, side vents, and of course, the winged badge. Still, you have to wonder what this sort of thing might do to the Engish company's brand equity, no? Follow the jump for the presser. Thanks to everyone for the tips!

Continue reading REPORT: Aston Martin Cygnet adds a smart set of clothes to the Toyota iQ

Spy Shots: This is your Aston Martin Rapide

AB visits the 24th Annual Huntington Beach Concours

We returned from a secret mission in Alaska just in time to make it to one of our favorite smaller concours, the Huntington Beach Concours d'Elegance in Central Park this past weekend. Not quite as prestigious as the L.A. Concours we covered from the Rose Bowl, it's always an eclectic show, with everything from hot rods to supercars, pre-war classics to bikes. In fact, Big Dog and Nimbus Motorcycles were featured this year. Pontiac and Aston Martin were the featured automotive marques, but there were a healthy showing of Mini enthusiasts as well for the car's 50th anniversary. Not quite as many as the number at Silverstone last month, but there were about 50 of them in every color and configuration you could think of. Lots of Ferraris, muscle cars, Corvettes and motorcycles as well.

This concours always attracts mostly locals, but this year, that included seven Borgward Isabella owners! We're not sure we've ever seen more than one in any single show before so this was a bit of a treat. And there was at least one representative of each bodystyle: saloon, estate, cabriolet, and coupe. The Master of Ceremonies was local car presenter Dave Kunz and the Grand Marshall was Jim Wangers, "Godfather of the GTO," on hand to celebrate Pontiac. Although we couldn't make it on Saturday, the previous day's Grand Marshall was our MINI-mad friend, Fireball Tim Lawrence, who was at the show on Sunday as well, just not marshaling as grandly.

Highlights included the Judson-supercharged MG TD Mille Miglia, Ferrari 400 SuperAmerica, Lusso and Europa, Barbie-pink Mini, International Karate Champion Harley, BMW 501 V8, Pegaso 102, Jaguar XK120R, '31 Cadillac Convertible Coupe, Marco Rigassi's '32 Highboy, a tangerine AMX, and the Schwinn Stingray Super Deluxe and Apple Krate. Other sentimental favorites included the '81 Lancia Zagato, two Subaru SVX sports coupes, two early Mazda RX-7s, and a trio of '80s GM ragtops. It was another fun, family-oriented show that had us smiling about being car people.

All photos copyright (C)2009 Frank Filipponio / Weblogs, Inc.

Gallery: 24th Annual Huntington Beach Concours d'Elegance

Kerfuffle? What kerfuffle? All Formula 1 teams reportedly sign on for 2010

At least for now, disaster seems to have been averted as all ten teams currently taking part in the 2009 Formula 1 championship have signed conditional agreements to take part in the series in 2010. These reportedly hinge on the Formula One Teams Association's ability to reach a mutually-agreeable compromise to the contentious budget cap negotiations currently taking place between the FIA and the teams themselves.

At various points over the last few weeks, powerhouse teams such as Ferrari, Renault, Red Bull, Toyota and Toro Rosso had all threatened to withdraw from the 2010 F1 season due to the FIA's insistence on a $60 million voluntary budget cap, which the competitors say would have resulted in a two-tiered rulebook. Prior to this announcement, Williams had been the only current F1 team to commit to racing next season.

In addition to the ten teams taking part in this year's festivities, Campos Racing from Spain and USF1 from the United States have both signed on for 2010 with Prodrive/Aston Martin and Lola from Britain also waiting in the wings. Now, if we could just keep overly attractive girls from messing with the driver's heads, we'd be all set. Thanks for the tip, Pat!

Aston Martin to join F1 circus in 2012?

It looks like GT and Le Mans prototype racing may be just the beginning for Aston Martin. Following an agreement this week with F1 promotions boss, Bernie Ecclestone, Aston Martin could be jumping into the Formula One ranks in 2012. Like Aston's other race programs, it's F1 campaign will be operated by Prodrive, although the team will actually launch in 2010 as the Prodrive team then switch to the automaker's branding two years later.

The new team will apparently cooperate with McLaren-Mercedes, but Prodrive will build the cars at its Banbury factory. The new cars will use customer engines from another manufacturer, but they will wear Aston Martin badging. The team already has two primary sponsors including Aston Martin majority owner Investment Dar. Prodrive boss Dave Richards acknowledged that the deal to enter F1 was only possible because of the budget caps that are being imposed beginning in 2010.

Aston to field half-dozen V12 Vantage racers at N?rburgring 24

It started with one lone V8 Vantage, dubbed the N24, that ran the Nürburgring 24-hour race in 2006. Last year, that first racer, a yellow car dubbed "Rose," won class honors in the race. This year, it will be joined by five more Vantages, one of them being the 510 horsepower V12 Vantage introduced in Geneva earlier this year.

Only three of the six cars will be factory efforts. The slightly modified V12 Vantage will be piloted by Aston CEO Dr. Ulrich Bez and three co-drivers, and "Rose" will be driven by another team of three. Privateer entrants will be headed by Richard Kramer, an Austrian Aston dealer whose Vantage N24 is being supported by the factory.

You can read the full press release after the jump, and check out live action from the weekend's qualifying and race at the ADAC site.

Gallery: Aston Martin V12 Vantage at the Ring

Continue reading Aston to field half-dozen V12 Vantage racers at N?rburgring 24