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Mercedes increases stake in Aston Martin

As part of an increasingly close partnership, Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler is reportedly preparing to increase its stake in Aston Martin by another one percent, bringing the German automaker's shares in the British company up to five percent.
The rapprochement between the two has been in the works for years now, and is finally beginning to take form. Mercedes-AMG is in the midst of developing a new engine with and for Aston Martin in an apparently similar arrangement to that which it has with Pagani. But that's not the extent of it.
Daimler will also furnish Aston Martin with electrical systems and other components, said to lead up to the eventual sharing of platforms: one to underpin future GTs and another to serve as the basis for a long-mooted Aston Martin crossover, now said to be back on the table and slated to launch in 2017. The prospect of using the partnership to reinvigorate both the Lagonda and Maybach luxury brands, however, has since been taken off the table, with both parties continuing those projects independently.

Catch these four Aston Martins in Bond 25, 'No Time to Die'

Unless Aston Martin is holding a trick up its sleeve, an Aston Martin Rapide E will not be appearing in the new James Bond movie "No Time to Die," as we'd previously thought. The film will, however, feature the Valhalla, the DBS Superlegerra, the V8 Vantage and the DB5, as confirmed by a recent tweet.  As the anniversary of when the first Bond film "Dr. No" was originally released in 1962, Oct. 5 has been deemed Global James Bond Day. To celebrate the occasion, two things were unveiled: the first movie poster for "No Time To Die" and Aston Martin's movie lineup. Playing to the 25th anniversary, Aston will include classic models, current cars, and future rides. Part of this news is not really news. We knew both the V8 Vantage and the DB5 would be in attendance, but the inclusion of both the DBS Superleggera and the Valhalla is a nice surprise. There's no word whether the DBS will be one of the "On Her Majesty’s Secret Service" special-edition examples, but we doubt it. The pairing of the Superleggera and the Valhalla sparks excellent memories of the epic Aston Martin DB10 vs. Jaguar C-X75 chase scene from "Spectre." We can only hope we're so lucky to see these cars in yet another romp. Few numbers about the Valhalla's powertrain have leaked, other than it will be mid-engined with a twin-turbocharged V6 with F1 tech, but it's doubtlessly capable of battling the DBS, which has a 715-horsepower twin-turbocharged 5.2-liter V-12.  We'll find out how involved each vehicle is on April 8, 2020, the day "No Time To Die" releases. Past, present and future. To mark the 25th Bond film, #NoTimeToDie, four of our cars will be featured in the film. From the classic DB5 and V8 Vantage, to the new DBS Superleggera and Aston Martin Valhalla, there is something for every Bond fan.#JamesBondDay@007 pic.twitter.com/cmKvswriHo — Aston Martin (@astonmartin) October 5, 2019 Celebrate #JamesBondDay with the first poster for #NoTimeToDie #Bond25 pic.twitter.com/EoU4PXhxwX — James Bond (@007) October 5, 2019

Aston Martin considers building DBX in Macedonia

To build the new DBX crossover, Aston Martin is preparing to expand production outside of its home in Warwickshire. It just hasn't decided where the new plant will be. But while it has narrowed its search to just a few locations, one site that was previously discounted is now reportedly back in the running: Macedonia. The former Yugoslavian republic to the north of Greece has been soliciting car companies for manufacturing projects for years. And though it doesn't currently have any final assembly plants, it does have numerous component suppliers located within its borders. According to Automotive News, the Balkan country boasts relatively low wages and an educated workforce – a hard mix to come by. Perhaps best known as the birthplace of Alexander the Great, Macedonia was initially short-listed among 18 other locations as a potential site for the new Aston plant. The British automaker initially ruled it out as it whittled its list down, but Reuters reports that the country has since come back with a more attractive proposal with greater incentives from the government, putting it back in the running. Other locations under consideration include two locations in the UK, one in the Middle East, and one here in America. The Alabama site would be conveniently located near the plant in Tuscaloosa where Mercedes builds many of its crossovers, which could be a huge advantage – especially if the DBX borrows some of its underpinnings from Daimler. The last Aston Martin built off-site was the Rapide, which was previously manufactured by Magna Steyr in Austria until 2012 when Aston moved production in-house to Gaydon. The Cygnet was also manufactured by Toyota in Japan alongside the Scion iQ on which it was closely based, but the finishing touches were put on by Aston in Gaydon until the model was discontinued. Other European automakers also operate plants in the region. The Volkswagen Group and Peugeot SA manufacture in Slovakia. Renault and Smart build their city cars in Slovenia. Mercedes and Audi run assembly plants in Hungary. And Fiat builds in Serbia and in nearby northeastern Turkey, where Hyundai, Honda, Toyota, and Renault also have plants. News Source: ReutersImage Credit: Aston Martin Plants/Manufacturing Aston Martin Crossover Luxury Performance aston martin dbx macedonia