GENEVA 2009: Aston Martin Lagonda
I struggled to come to terms with the Aston Martin Lagonda Concept. It looks like a truck. I didn't see how it is possible for Aston Martin, a company known for the graceful form of its cars, to conceive such a horrendous looking car for the revival of an iconic brand name. I obviously didn't understand what the brand "Lagonda" actually meant.
Aston Martin has owned Lagonda for over 60 years, and in that time, Lagonda cars have sort of dissipated, in the same way that Aston Martin had dissipated up until the recent arrivals of the DB7 and DB9. So occasionally, every now and then, Aston Martin produced a Lagonda, and then didn't, sometimes for decades at a time. Now is the time, then, during a period of Aston Martin's resurgence, that they have decided to revive Lagonda. Shame they're doing it at a time when everyone's broke.
But back to the point about why it is necessary for the new Lagonda to look like a truck. Aston Martin and Lagonda stand for two very different things. Aston Martins are athletic - the ultimate sports tourer. Lagonda is, put simply, the ultimate statement of what a car can be. Superlative, you could say. However, Lagondas simply don't have a sporty bone in their body. As Aston Martin CEO Ulrich Bez puts it:
"Lagonda is a car that can be used in Moscow in December with half a metre of snow, and used in countries with less well-developed infrastructure, and is a luxury product."
This car, which you see in the gallery at the bottom of this article, is like a new Range Rover, which isn't meant to have the same shoddy quality as Land Rover. And way more luxurious. In other words, this truck of a Lagonda is for people who want a massive 4x4, but think a Range Rover is a bit cheap and proletarian.
As you might have guessed, these cars are exactly like Rolls-Royces, but without the grace of design, and a "stuff youse all" attitude instead. These were the biggest, baddest cars of their respective eras. But at that time, there were no 4x4s - now, the biggest baddest cars on the road are big 4x4s (cough, BMW X6, cough). So if Aston Martin were going to create a modern Lagonda that embodied the spirit of the cars you've seen above, it would be a massive, fugly 4x4. So, if you look at it that way, it's mission accomplished for Aston Martin and their new Lagonda concept. It's bloody ugly, but it's just right.
NEWS: New V12 Vantage Will Become the Fastest Aston... Momentarily
The long and short of this article is that Aston Martin have dropped the DBS' 6.0 Litre 380kW V12 into their smallest car, the otherwise 298kW V8 Vantage. But because the Vantage is a smaller car than the DBS, and is therefore lighter, it also ends up being the faster of the two - both from 0-100kmh (4.2 seconds) and in top speed (305kmh). So, I give Aston Martin's fastest car... until the One-77.
The V12 Vantage is meant to be a little more than Aston's new headline act, however. Aston Martin's CEO Dr. Ulrich Bez is telling us all that the new V12 Vantage caters for a different type of driving taste, something we're not used to from Aston Martin. He's billing the V12 Vantage as the "ultimate driving package" from Aston Martin, rather than the fast grand touring available in the DB9. It has a near perfect weight distribution of 51:49, and the interior certainly looks like it means business - if it had any more alcantara (that suede-like stuff), it would be a race car.
Although having said all that, I still don't see the point of a V12 Vantage - why not just get a DBS? They seem to be aimed at the same kind of buyer - a buyer who wants ultimate outright performance in a performance machine as elegant as an Aston Martin, but without all the luxurious woodgrain of a grand tourer. I just re-read that last sentence, and I nearly didn't understand it, so I hope you get it. Anyway, there can't be any point to buying a V12 Vantage over a DBS - they look similar, except the DBS looks better. It's only a fraction faster than the DBS anway, so no-one will ever know the difference. And it's not going to be any cheaper than a DBS, so why spend all that money on an Aston Martin to get the wrong one?
Ah, but of course, exclusivity. Only 1,000 cars will be made - which means you're less likely to see someone with the same car as you (god forbid!). Which seems to be the only thing going for the V12 Vantage, sadly - because it's probably a fine car, but I won't really care.
FEATURE STORY: The Really Cool (and not) Cars of 2008
Yes, it's been a long time since I've last posted - I took a break while I got my wisdom teeth yanked out, and living on tomato soup isn't exactly the ideal diet for the development of creative and witty automotive prose. Nevertheless, I will post the cars that will keep you at the height of your game should you indulge in buying a car in the sales rush before the year is out. Here are the dos and don'ts - kind of like my annual awards story. It's the Really Cool and Really Not Cool awards. Italian car-makers are well represented, as is Citroen, and Mazda walks away with the crucially important Real-World Family Car award. BMW has fared poorly, with no less than five "Really Not Cool" nominations, and other German makers (with the exception of Audi) are dusted around the other "Really Not Cool" awards and nominations. Oddly enough, this seems to be a reflection of the human populations in these two countries - in Italy, the ladies are like beautiful supermodels, whereas in Germany, you cannot tell the women apart from the men. Could the fact that German women are cosmetically challenged be the cause of a lack of inspiration amongst German designers?
"REALLY COOL SPORTS COUPE" Award 2008
Probably the only car that truly gobsmacked me not only when I first saw it, but the hundreds of times I've booted up my computer just to look at pictures of it. These few sentences are taking an age to write, just because it incapacitates my faculties and leaves my mouth gaping open. And yes, it must be in this "Infa Red" colour - the bodykit of the DBS was never my cup of tea, until I saw the car in this loud colour. I don't think I like the bazillion-dollar One-77 as much as I like this curvaceous beauty - I'm a straight guy, so I like curves. What else can I say?Also Nominated:
Maserati GranTurismo S
"REALLY NOT COOL SPORTS COUPE" Award 2008
First of all, it's a Porsche. Second, how can anyone really believe that this isn't just a try-hard cut-price 911? It looks exactly like a 911, which is hardly at the cutting edge of design, but isn't as good. If you're going to be a wanker, you should at least have a car that is fast enough to smoke your aggressor's HSV GTS at the traffic lights. Can the Cayman even do that? Nope, the Holden will outpower the Porsche. Sad.Also Nominated:
BMW Z4 Coupe
"REALLY COOL EXECUTIVE SEDAN" Award 2008
It sure isn't perfect, and I've always thought that the nose is ill-proportioned, but every time I see a 159 on the road, I'm convinced it deserves this award. What other executive sedan has the sheer road presence that this car has? Certainly nothing German does, although the Audi A4 comes close. This is a car that flatters the owner, because it insinuates that the driver has good fashion sense, is an automotive enthusiast, and probably has a spicy sex-life. But it's a sedan! Surely it doesn't get any better than that.Also Nominated:
Audi A4
Citroen C5
"REALLY NOT COOL EXECUTIVE SEDAN" Award 2008
Is this car at all classy? Nope. It is as classy as tucking your business shirt into your (visible and above trouser-line) underpants. It screams "I wanna be an old-school socialite", if anything, and while the 159 is modern and probably timeless, this bubbly oddity loses it's sheen very quickly. Really, it doesn't deserve to have a leaping cat on the bonnet, but there you go - it sure does, unfortunately.Also Nominated:
BMW 3-Series
Renault Laguna
"REALLY COOL LUXURY LIMOUSINE SEDAN" Award 2008
Really, is this any surprise? The new Phantom is the last word in rich stylish transport. It's big, and square, and a face like a Mack truck, but it sure is cool. It infers that you are of as noble blood as all of the royal families in Europe, or you own all the royal families in Europe. It is truly brilliant in every single way, and I don't see why anyone with the need for a million-dollar luxury car buys anything else.Also Nominated:
Maserati Quattroporte
Bentley Continental GT Flying Spur Speed (who needs a car with a 6 word name, though?)
"REALLY NOT COOL LUXURY LIMOUSINE SEDAN" Award 2008
Really, this involves all the Maybachs, because they all look cheap and anonymous and tacky, with paintjobs that are worse that your Ford Falcon. But this is just gross stupidity and snobbishness. Why on earth should you, a bazillionaire, get to ride in an open-topped limousine, while you're driver is in what is basically a black tinted box up the front? Are they not cool enough to soak up the sun's rays?Also Nominated:
BMW 7-Series
It's just nice. That's how I would sum up the XC60. It is executed without flaw, yet it doesn't look bland or boring either. To be honest, it's one of the most classy luxury SUV out there - many other are vary garish and some are just rude. I wouldn't say this SUV is offensive in any way - on the contrary, it's rather likeable. It only seats five, but hey, for those who appreciate the high driving position and practicality of an SUV, this one is just perfect.Also Nominated:
Mazda CX-9
"REALLY NOT COOL SUV" Award 2008
There will be somewhere in the world where the Hummer H3 is cool. Somewhere in America. For the rest of the world, it is gross stupidity and ignorance of a growing environmental problem, and a statement of American excess. And that is not cool at all. I really was thinking about putting the Porsche Cayenne up here, because it is hideously ugly also, but it does serve another purpose - it is (somewhat) a performance car. The H3 is a statement of idiocy.Also Nominated: (here we go...!)
Porsche Cayenne (Close 2nd)
BMW X6
BMW X3
Mercedes-Benz GLK-Class
Ssangyong Actyon
Ssangyong Kyron
Subaru Tribeca
"REALLY COOL FASHION ACCESSORY" Award 2008
I've raved about this little car here before, and I won't go into too much of that now, but the 500 manages to balance retro good looks, with a kind of European class that is missing from other fashion accessory cars. And then it's cute, too. Great! And you can make this car to be exactly as you'd like, so it will suit your fashion personality - not my thing, but I can tell that some others will be grateful for this. Bizarrely. I still really like this car. If I was an old pensioner, with little long-distance driving to do (mostly city stuff), I have no doubt in my mind that I would buy this car. Because it would put a smile on my wrinkled and aged face.Also Nominated:
Mini Cooper
"REALLY UNCOOL FASHION ACCESSORY" Award 2008
I'm sorry, but I don't get this car. You would have to be living in a bubble to think that other people thought you looked funky or cool driving it. But then again, being inside a Beetle is living inside a bubble. The main irk I have with this car is that it doesn't have any substance to back up those superficial looks. I don't have any reason to love it - some women who must be taking hallucinogenic drugs will disagree, but that doesn't stop them looking uncool to the rest of the world living outside her pink bubble.Also Nominated:
Smart ForTwo
"REALLY COOL REAL-WORLD FAMILY CAR" Award 2008
I think this car seems to have a positive outlook on life - I mean, look at it, you can't help but feel optimistic when it looks at you like that. But the design is so smooth, yet so characterful, that it puts all but the highest of Italian supermodels (the 159 of course) to shame. And it is available in what is probably the most intoxicatingly loveable light blue (which sadly isn't pictured) I have ever seen on a car. I sound decidedly female saying that, but there you go. It also happens to be the perfect family car - not too big, but roomy enough for a family of five. I don't understand why people buy Falcons and Commodores actually - why don't they buy one of these?Also Nominated:
Citroen C4
Fiat Ritmo
"REALLY NOT COOL REAL-WORLD FAMILY CAR" Award 2008
Oh god, why would anyone feel the need to buy this? It looks awful! And it's American, very American. Shoddy quality, plastics that feel like a child's lunchbox, and an inability to function properly as a car. Not to mention that it actually looks worse in real life than it does in the pictures. I don't want to talk more about the Sebring - it makes me feel ill thinking about it.Also Nominated:
Kia Magentis
Toyota Camry
NEWS: Bond is about to get jealous
For rich British Lotharios, what choice can there be but to buy an Aston Martin? Yet it was a marque that a mere 15 years ago looked like it was going to dissolve entirely, and yet in the meantime has produced stunning examples like the Vanquish, DB9 and Vantage. They are undoubtedly stylish and exclusive, while finally, after all these years of struggle, are irresistibly desirable. But are they starting to get cocky?
It's called the One-77 for now (only 77 will be built), but that may be changed later so it can sound cooler. Aston Martin are treating it like a "piece of art", it will hypercar fast, and will cost approximately 2.6 million dollars. Just the thing to taunt the former fat cats that suffered from the financial collapse. This car is, in fact, probably far too exclusive to ever be used in a Bond film. We will probably only see some fakes with One-77 bodyshells.And of course, it is my job to discuss everything from it's image to the way it looks, so here goes. First of all, do we want one?
There is no question. $2.6 million is an absolute steal for what is unreservedly the most gorgeous car yet in automotive history. It's not perfect (I'm talking about the gills that dissect the front headlights), but I dare anyone to name a better looking car. It is simply the Vanquish, pumped up on every steroid and performance enhancing drug known to man. And yet, it is more menacing and masculine than any Aston yet, but somehow still looks like it's holding back - a wonderful trait of "British restraint", which gives you the notion that the One-77 is even more of a beast than it lets on. 
It makes it all the more menacing and brutal in effect.Everyone was saddened by the Bugatti Veyron, not because it was an underwhelming car in any way, but because we didn't think, in the current global climate, that anything similar to it would ever come after. Thank heavens above there are absolute nutcases like the CEO of Aston Martin Dr. Ulrich Bez, who see cars like the One-77 as simply "brand building".
A piece of corporate jargon has never seemed quite so attractive to the car enthusiast.
