Classic Cars
From the U.K.
ASTON MARTIN LAGONDA LIMITED
As at 2009 there are not
many surviving British car manufacturers which is sad in view of the number of
genuine all time classics which remain highly sort-after collectables.
Aston Martin is certainly one of them, mainly we suppose because it is a
brand which has been synonymous with luxury, high end, sports cars for nearly
100 years. Roll on 2013; our anticipation is high for the company to produce
something really spectacular for its centenary.
Created in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford, those early days were,
as the Chinese might say, "inauspicious". Bankruptcy, closures, takeovers
abounded until around 1947 when David Brown Limited (the source of the famous DB
series) bought the company and rejected its racing car background in favour of
road car production. Even today, not long since the last consortium buy out, the
company's financial security must remain in doubt. It's a pity. Such beautiful
classics.
It may not be right to list this model because we have to accept that so few
cars were produced up to 1936 (less than 700) that the chances
of seeing or collecting any of these earlier models, is remote.
This 1937 2L Sports model gives us a glimpse of the classics to come.
The DB2 Series began in 1950 and continued through to 1953 but the total
production of 411 units were mainly in this 1952 model which came with a 2.6L Lagonda V6 engine in Coupe style.
Le Mans successes in 1950 and 1951 set the stage for a return to racing cars but
also provided the much needed publicity.
The DB3 Series were mainly built for racing between 1953 and 1956, but this DB3S
was more successful and with its new design, continued to bring out the best in
the marque despite the lack of profitability in production. Auto racing was
still the priority and some successes occurred at Goodwood and Silverstone.
The DB4 series included the Zagota, the Rapide, and the Vantage models, but
production numbers were so small that, despite their beauty and engineering
mastery, I ignore them in preference to the standard DB4 produced between 1958
and 1963 and of which over 1,100 units were produced. This is the Series II.
If it was good enough for Jay Leno, Prince Charles and 007, it deserves
recognition as a classic. The first of several DBs to be featured in the James
Bond films, the DB5 and it's successor are possibly the best known of the older
models. 1,021 were produced between 1963 and 1965 in 2 door, 3995cc straight 6.
Small numbers of variants were also produced but this standard DB5 is iconic.
A serious contender for the 'best of the marque' is the DB6 of which 1,967 were
produced between 1965 and 1970, the highest production model to date. A small
number of higher powered Vantage and Volante (convertible) were
also produced. The same 5 speed manual, 4L, straight 6 was copied from the DB5
with serious refinements in other areas of comfort and technology. The 1960s
instrument panel was beginning to resemble an aeroplane cockpit. This is a
1967 Vantage.
The first 8 cylinder model was the unimaginatively named 'Aston Martin V8' of
which 4,021 were produced between 1969 and 1989. While awaiting production of
the 5.3L engine, several unsuccessful models were introduced in the hope of
satisfying customers' demands. This 1974 Series III was the most successful of the
11 V8 models produced.
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The first venture into 4 door sedans and a complete departure from prior
external designs prompted the introduction of the Lagonda series of which only
645 were produced during its long life span from 1976 to 1991. The 'Series 1'
was a numerical disaster but subsequent models provided more reliable
electronics and were commercially viable. I include this Series 1 to remind us
of post 1980 classics yet to come.
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References
*1 -
Wikipedia
*2 -
Classic and Performance Car
*3 -
NetCarShow.com
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