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As a refined and luxurious coupe, the Audi 100s launched at the Geneva Motor Show in 1969, had few peers in the 2 liter class in the early 1970s. With a top speed of 112 mph (179 km/h) and doing 0-60 mph (96 km/h) in 10 seconds, the Mercedes designed , in line, 113 bhp, four cylinder engine canted over to give a lower bonnet line, packed a punch that was much heavier than its size would suggest. What’s more, the front drive handling was solidly predictable, and the brakes vented inboard disc at the front – superb. A svelte fast back with space for four (this was no cramped two plus two) and a big boot, critics at the time loved the car’s build quality and pace, praised its 30 mpg (9.5 liters/100 km) economy and compared the styling with that of the Aston Martin DBS. In fact, the body was identical to the sober Audi 100 saloon up to the widescreen, which was larger and more steeply ranked. The wheelbase was shortened by 5in. (12.5cm), but the 100S featured the same suspension and running gear, with wishbones at the front and a beam axle on trailing arms and torsion bars at the rear. The four speed manual gearbox, with closer ratios than the 100 saloon came as standard, with the option of three speed VW automatic transmission for those that wanted it.

There were few changes made to the model during its six year production run. September 1973 brought a narrower front grille and bigger rear lights, head restraints and some computer diagnostic connections. More significantly, the rear suspension was modified to the Audi 80 type with coil springs, eliminating the torsion bars. Late Mk2 cars, post September 1975 had Federal bumper for the North American market and new negative offset front suspension geometry, plus different wheels.

Posted December 31, 2009 Comments(0)

Ford took the complete control of Aston Martin in 1994, having helped see the Jaguar based DB& into production. However, Aston’s hand built flagship vehicle at the time was the Virage/ V8 series, which had been in production since 1989. So, in the mid 90s and with the global economy to pick up Ford decided it needed to plan a new flagship Aston Martin model. Up until then, the company’s cars had been powerful but very traditional. Ford and Aston decided that it would go down a much more high tech route and build a new car dubbed Project Vantage around an aluminum chassis. Aston Martin received a great deal of engineering help form Lotus, which had just launched the Elise roadster, whose chassis was made of aluninium extrusions and stamped sheets variously glued, welded and riveted together. The new Aston Martin followed the same recipe, though the widescreen pillars were made of carbon fiber. Ian Callum, who styled the DB7, was also responsible for the Vanquish. But unlike feline sister car, the Vanquish was dramatic and not a little brutal, though some argued this was more in keeping with the brand. The Vanquish was first shown as a concept in 1998, before being launched in 2001.

A big, heavy beast, it was powered by a huge V12 engine, driving a new automated six speed manual gearbox. This transmission was often criticized for a lack of smoothness, so Aston eventually offered a factory conversion to a conventional manual gearbox. A modified and more powerful Vanquish S was launched in 2005 and the Vanquish Ultimate Edition marked the end of the car’s life in 2007.

Posted December 30, 2009 Comments(0)

The launch of the 6.0n liter V12 DB9 can be regarded as marking the ground up rebuilding of Aston Martin. In 2000 Aston martin got new chief executive in the shape of Dr Ulrich Bez, who had previously been research and development of Porsche. Bez halted work a new compact, mid engine Aston Martin and on a front engined replacement for the ageing DB7. Instead, Bez instigated a new strategy, which would see all future Aston based on the same aluminum platform. This new chassis was called the VH (vertical/ Horizontal) and was a cheaper version of the Vanquish chassis that could produced in three different lengths. The first fruit of the plan was the DB9, which was unveiled in September 2003 after a gestation of just 36 months. As part of the wider Ford ‘Premier Automotive Group’, Aston was able to tap into engineering expertise form the Ford companies. For example, Volvo was responsible for the DB9’s airbag and safety systems and the car was also crash tested at Volvo’s engineering centre. Ford also invested in a brand new brand new factory (the first in the company’s history) and HQ for the company to the land Rover engineering centre.

The DB9 was initially styled by lan Callum, though Aston’s new chief designer Henrik Fisker influenced the final product. At the launched, Fisker said that Aston’s are not edgy cars…we wanted to the DB9 to look as if was milled form a solid piece of aluminum’. Huge strides were made inside, where the elegant dashboard, aluminum switchgear and the crystal glass starting button were a league ahead of anything Aston had done before.

Posted December 29, 2009 Comments(0)

After standing back and watching the troubled development of the Virage/Vantage and with a recession starting to bite as the 1980s gave way to the 1990s, Ford decided to take Aston Martin under its experience wing. Aston’s new owner felt it needed a ‘cheap’ accessible car that would compete with top range Mercedes models. Despite worries by Aston die hards that Ford would ‘dilute’ the essence of Aston Martin, the owner raided the parts bin of its recently acquired luxury car maker, Jaguar. It started the DB7 project with the remnants of Project XX, a replacement for the ageing XJS, Ford decided that Aston would take over work on redeveloping the XJS running gear, and that Jaguar would start working on a completely new coupe. The result was a remarkable beautiful, flowing car which captured everybody’s ideal of what an Aston Martin should look like. The interior was similarly flowing stylish, extensively wooded but, like the whole car, not oversized and intimidating like the Virage. Aston buyers clearly didn’t care that the DB7 was ridded with borrowed components form the Ford switches to the Mazda 323F rear lights.

The DB7 was hard assembled at the Jaguar XJ220 facility, which was attached to an old farm in Oxfordshire, England. The car was a tremendous success for the company, and even continued to do very well after the arrival of Jaguar’s XK8, a direct competitor that was more modern form stem to stern, as well as considerably.

Posted December 28, 2009 Comments(0)

Aston Martin finally surrendered its independence in 1987 when the giant multi national Ford bought a controlling share of the company. Despite what some loyal followers of the form thought would happen, this takeover actually had little noticeable impact on the often extremely chaotic nature of Aston’s new car development. Sadly, part of this was due to an under funded and ill coordinated development programme. Like the Lagonda, Aston’s new V8 coupe went form being ‘signed off’ to appearing at the 1988 Earl’s Court Motor Show in just two years. The styling was completed by Royal College of Art tutors Ken Greenley and John Heffernan. However, the shaping of the Virage was controversial, as the car’s tail had to be raised to reduce aerodynamic lift at speed, and Aston bosses insisted on retaining the familiar shape of the Aston radiator grille in the new model. Although the first cars were launched with a new 32 valve V8 engine, Aston released the long awaited Vantage development of the car in 1994, bolting an engine good for 550 bhp. To match the pace, the Vantage wore a huge front bumper, six small, square headlights and sported massive wheels, giving it a very aggressive and highly macho overall appearance.

The Vantage was one of the most powerful road cars were sold, with as much horsepower as some sight seater aircraft. It was not a fundamentally great car, but this kind of sheer speed, distinctive engine noise and unmistakable British character is unlikely to be seen again.

Posted December 27, 2009 Comments(0)

An extensive, 50 off, one chance only supercar, the Aston Martin V8 Zagato had its place in the sun in the mid to late 1980s. it made headlines as the fastest Aston ever at 186 mph (298 km/h), and the company’s first two seater since the DB4 GT. Even at $70,000 each, the whole production run was sold before a single laid Zagato down like fine wine, putting them up for sale at anything up to half a million pounds each on the open market. Flat bottomed and flush glazed, it had a sleeker appearance than the standard Aston Martin Vantage, recording an impression 0.29Cd figure. It also weighed in 10 percent lighter, and had a more powerful 432 bhp version of the quad camshaft, 5.3 liter Vantage engine. Even today it is still in the slingshot league; a French motoring journal timed one at 186 mph (298 km/h), with a 0-60 mph (96 km/h) time of 4.8 seconds. Not everybody liked the Zagato’s shape. The double bubble roof seemed superfluous and the grille unresolved, flanked by mean headlights behind light diffusing glass. In profile, the awkward C-pillar dropped away to a truncated tail, where most of the length 16in. (40.6 cm) less than the standard V8 had been cut. The boot was tiny, but space lost to the sliced off rump was reclaimed behind the seats.

Just two month were built between 1986 and 1988, if you don’t count the prototype and a run of 25 convertibles. Orders worth $7 million were placed on the strength of just a stylish sketch, and once values started to rocket, Aston wasn’t above increasing the retail price to whatever the cars were realizing on the markets. When the investors’ market slumped in the late 1980s, many speculators lost thousands as the value of these cars halved almost overnight. Even so, the V8 Zagato remains one of the most collectable pot-war Aston Martins.

Posted December 26, 2009 Comments(0)

The lagonda saloon, which completely dominated the 1976 Earl’s Court Motor Show, could have been beamed down form another planet. Low and razor edged, it was a show stopper and just the publicity grabber that troubled Aston Martin needed. The 170 deposits that were taken at the show pulled the company back from the brink of oblivion. Buyers weren’t to know that their cars wouldn’t be ready until 1979 because of problems with the high tech electronics. Mechanically the Lagonda was well proven essentially a stretched Aston Martin V8 with a meaty four camshaft, 5.3 liter V8 engine. The suspension came from the same source too, but with self leveling for the de Dion rear end. Weighing in at almost two tons (2000 kg), this was the biggest and most opulent Lagonda since the war. Extras like air conditioning and electric seats were all included in the price. Pundits had nothing but praise for its ride and handling, superb for a large saloon, but some dared to suggest that it could have been quicker. Others raised eyebrows at the lack of rear seat legroom in such a huge car. Aston tried to answer these criticisms with a still born twin turbo version, whilst specialist firm Trickford built a trio of stretched Lagondas with twin color TVs.

By the mid 1980s, interest in the car had waned and the design seemed to age rapidly. Stylist William Towns tried to redeem his rapidly ageing super saloon with more rounded offering in 1987, but it was too late. The dream car that had raised so many pulses back in 1976 died quietly in 1990, with a total of 645 cars having been said.

Posted December 25, 2009 Comments(0)

By 1965 the lithe and elegant Aston Martin DB4, via the more refined and faster DB5, had become the bigger heavier and more brutal DB6. It was a car that almost forced you to admire it instead of charming you with its refined elegance as its predecessor had been renowned for doing, but it was a distinctive vehicle and not one to be forgotten quickly. Its head lights were flared in, its chassis lengthened, and its tail chopped for better aerodynamics at high speed. Little survived of tourings’ original and much loved 1958 shape. Beneath the alloy skin the Superleggera method of construction was abandoned. From this point on, all Aston Martin would have aluminium outer panels on steel inner panels. Power came from a 4 liter twin cam straight six, and was much the same as before. It came as standard with triple Sus but the Vantage version had triple Webers and this gave it significantly better acceleration something not lost on those who were luckily enough to enjoy the visceral pleasure provided by driving the Vantage. Opinions were similar to those of the DB5 but with the addition of a slip differential and, after, 1967, power steering.

You could even order automatic transmission on your Aston Martin and an increasing number of buying did. The Mk II version of 1967 had flared wheelarches and DBS style wire wheels. Some even had Lucas fuel injection systems. There were 140 ‘Volante’ convertibles. Some six of these were converted into shooting brakes by skilled London coachbuilder Harold Radford, making them the ultimate in high speed estate cars.

Posted December 23, 2009 Comments(0)

Tractor tycoon David Brown bought the ailing sports car maker Aston Martin in 1947, but had something of false start with under powered four cylinders Aston Martin DB1 of 1948. He more than redeemed himself, however, with the DB2 of 1950, a car that set the pace for all subsequent Astons. Here was a luxurious upper crust coupe with modern performance and old world charm. It used a smooth, powerful, six cylinder, twin cam 116 bhp engine courtesy of its sister the Lagando 2.6 saloon, Brown had bought Lagando as well in 1947. Clothed in handsome alloy bodywork, these cars could reach more than 120 mph (192 km/h) in high compression Vantage form. Underneath, the cruciform chassis blessed the cars with thoroughbred handling of the highest order. Coil sprung, the live rear axle was located by trailing links, with a Panhard rod for the high side loads the car capable of generating and damped by Armstrong lever arms. The front suspension was unusual: a trailing link design with the main lower locating member running across the front of the car. For the DB2/4, the fast back shape was made more potential but not so pretty, by the addition of rear seats and a side hinged rear hatchback door. By the time evolved into a mouth, and small fins had sprouted on the rear wings.

David Brown supplied the gearbox on all models. This had the option of overdrive on the top gear on the 178 bhp MKIII, giving 28.4 mph (45.4 km/h) per 1000 rpm. Grilling front disc brakes were another innovation on the MKIII. The DB MKIII was replaced by the touring styled DB4 in 1958.

Posted December 22, 2009 Comments(0)

The Star Sapphire was easily the best car that Armstrong Siddeley of Coventry ever made, although it was only in production of one year, it is a car that has gone down in automotive history and passed into legend among car enthusiasts. It is one of those vehicles that truly deserve the lable ‘classic’. Derived from the established Sapphire 346 saloons, its dignified ‘six light’ styling concealed an impression new 165bhp version of Armstrong’s hemi head straight six powerplant. Smooth and flexible, this engine gave the Star Sapphire sufficient straight line muscle to challenge the big Jaguars that had taken over its market since the end of the Second World War. It also featured the testing labored saving luxuries, such as power steering and three speed automatic transmission, which, while taken as standard in today’s market, were the cutting edge of technology as the fifties gave away to the sixties. Although the engineering of the star Sapphire was highly conventional, it had a sturdy separate chassis and a beam rear axle, the car really scored with its equipment.

It possessed a beautifully crafted walnut and leather interior. Generously, this featured heating units for both front and rear passengers, and it boasted sumptuous seating for five. Tragically, the Star Sapphire proved to be simply too expensive to have much appeal in the face of cheaper opposition, and the model died along with the Armstrong marque in 1960, with fewer than 1000 cars having been built.

Posted December 21, 2009 Comments(0)