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2020 Aston Martin Vantage Road Test | Old-school road trip in a new-school Aston

Our roads may be virtually empty, with Americans all cooped up and nowhere to go. But with jet planes and TSA lines looking iffy and icky for the foreseeable future, the great American road trip is poised to reclaim its preeminence in travel. To test that post-pandemic theory, in a purely theoretical way, I requisition a 2020 Aston Martin Vantage for a daytrip from New York to the Catskills. It’s the kind of high-character “import” sports car that once defined the breed, before corporate imperatives watered the character down. AstonÂ’s two-seater is nakedly beautiful, flawed-yet-fabulous, and expensive as hell. But if you drive the Vantage and donÂ’t fall head-over-loafers, IÂ’d accuse you of not caring for sports cars at all. ItÂ’s as alive and engaging as any sports car out there, a 509-horsepower firecracker that rewards skilled drivers – or dings them for mistakes – in defiance of the trend toward all-wheel-drive automatons. As for the Catskills, itÂ’s in the midst of its own explosive comeback. This rough-hewn mountain region, a convenient two hours north of Manhattan, was once the prime vacation destination of the Northeast, so popular in the late 19th century that a 1,200-room luxury hotel was required just to gaze at some waterfalls, with guests including U.S. presidents and Oscar Wilde. Through the 1950s and 60s, it continued to be the pipeline to nature for Jewish families and other northeast tourists. Their summer camps and sprawling “Borscht Belt” resorts and nightclubs mythologized in films like Dirty Dancing and now televisionÂ’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, which has fetishized Catskills nostalgia to a truly marvelous degree. Then came airline travel, and affordable tickets to Miami Beach and other exotic warm-weather locales. Like a Palm Springs of the east, the Catskills fell into steep decline. The region became a punch line of corny kitsch. As with Palm Springs, fashion has come full circle: The Catskills and adjacent Hudson Valley are red-hot again, rediscovered by Brooklynites especially as a magical spot for affordable second homes, or permanent moves to open farm-to-table restaurants, curated antique shops and other bastions of rustic hip. The Vantage lures me from coronavirus lockdown like a movie idol waving outside my Brooklyn window, for a cannon-shot recon run to Woodstock.

UK electric motor maker YASA expands production 50-fold for EVs

LONDON — British electric motor manufacturer YASA said on Thursday it was increasing its production capacity from 2,000 to 100,000 units with a new factory to tap into growing demand from carmakers for greener technologies. Automakers are racing to build greener vehicles and improve charge times in a bid to meet rising customer demand and air quality targets but Britain lacks sufficient manufacturing capacity, an area the government is building up. Last year, the government picked a site in central England to house a new automotive battery development facility, which will develop the processes required to manufacture the latest battery advancements. On Thursday, YASA, based near the English city of Oxford, said it had raised another 15 million pounds ($21 million) as part of its expansion. "Our customers are looking to adopt innovative new technologies such as YASA's axial-flux electric motors and controllers in order to meet the needs of the rapidly expanding hybrid and pure electric automotive market," said Chief Executive Chris Harris. The firm exports 80 percent of production and has worked with companies including Britain's two biggest carmakers Jaguar Land Rover and Nissan as well as Aston Martin. JLR will decide this year whether to build electric cars in its home market, previously citing factors such as pilot testing and support from science and government as pre-requisites. Reporting by Costas PitasRelated Video:

This Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato Shooting Brake is a masterpiece in pink

Customizing the exterior colors and styling of a car can be boiled down to a general choice: Go with a low-key classic look or take an outlandish approach that makes the car more exclusive. At least one Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato owner went down the latter route and chose a bright pink paint job for their shooting brake. Brought to our attention by Jalopnik, the car popped up on President and Group CEO Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd Andy Palmer's Instagram. " My Friday factory walk (Gemba) and I came across this beautiful Zagato Shooting Brake about to be shipped," he said on the post. "It's certainly going to stand out for a lucky customer." Stand out, it will. The pink paint, with black wheels and gold accents, adds a new element of uniqueness to the car. As an Aston Martin, it was already a premium sports car. The Zagato treatment makes it even more rare, as does the gorgeous shooting brake bodywork. For some people, that's enough. For others, that the car alone doesn't fully display their character and personality. This is the second time the Vanquish Zagatos have come up in the news in the past week. A different owner chose the classic Villa d'Este paint scheme, but went all out and bought one of each of the Zagato styles. Regardless of which style you prefer, this pink Aston proves one thing: this Zagato looks good in any color. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Andy Palmer (@andyataston) on Dec 8, 2018 at 3:50am PST Related Video: