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Aston may build fewer than 100 Lagonda super saloons

Aston Martin has owned the Lagonda nameplate since the late '40s, but in the roughly 70 years since that acquisition, the use of the name has been kept largely exclusive for four-door models. The two most famous modern Lagondas are the angular, futuristic sedan built in the '70s and '80s and the infamously ugly SUV concept from the 2009 Geneva Motor Show. UK magazine Car claims that the classic name could make its return on a svelte four-door as soon as this summer, which makes sense considering our spy shooters recently caught what looked like a modernized incarnation of the 70s super saloon last month. Interestingly, while Aston Martins are rare birds as-is, Car says that the neo-Lagonda could be even more scarce – its sources suggest that the model could be limited to under 100 units. That's because Aston Martin's Q customization service is reportedly taking up construction duties for the project, and with its small team, that means production is going to be slow, limited and very expensive. Even covered in camo as spied above, there's something special about the new car. The squinting headlights and thin A-pillar echo the '80s model in a modern way and make this four-door look a lot sportier than the Bentley, Maserati and Rolls-Royce models that it will likely compete against. It's rumored to be using composite body panels to keep weight down. The powertrain is said to be an evolution of the Rapide, Aston's sole existing four-door model. The Lagonda would use Aston Martin's 5.9-liter V12 with power tuned to around 600 horsepower, backed by an eight-speed automatic replacing the Rapide's elderly six-speed unit. That would put power just short of an Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG, but the composite panels could lend it a weight advantage. The latest rumor only indicates the Lagonda's unveiling sometime later this summer, with no exact date or location. Still given the relative completeness of the test car, it doesn't look like it could be too far away. We can't wait to see it when the camo comes off.

Aston plans Tesla-fighting 800-hp electric Rapide

Aston Martin is taking direct aim at the top versions of the Tesla Model S with a plan to launch a battery electric Rapide sedan boasting 800 horsepower, all-wheel drive, and a 200-mile range within the next two years. Company CEO Andy Palmer confirmed the vehicle's development to Automotive News during the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. A test mule to engineer the powertrain was already on the road, Palmer asserted. The electric Rapide would join the internal combustion version, rather than replace it, and the BEV would likely remain a niche product with just a few hundred per year carrying a price between $200,000 and $250,000. Palmer indicates the model would prioritize performance. "I think that the fact that you could drive a few laps of a decent race course or race it around the Nordschleife is much more interesting than doing 500 meters in Ludicrous mode," he said to Automotive News, taking a swipe at Tesla's latest upgrade. Palmer has referenced the electric Rapide before. Earlier this year, he said that power would be a major priority for it. Aston Martin has also received help on the project from an undisclosed Silicon Valley partner, but Palmer said the collaborator wasn't Tesla. "If you want to keep making V12 engines, then you've got to do something at the opposite end of the spectrum," Palmer said about the company's strategy to Automotive News. The Rapide is just the first step in the brand's electrification, and the DBX is also under development for the next decade in EV, plug-in hybrid, and internal combustion versions. The crossover concept debuted at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show as an EV.

Channeling Bond in a 2005 Aston Martin Vanquish S

Spectre is nearly upon us, the next episode in the James Bond series bringing with it a conceptual peek at the future of Aston Martin courtesy of the DB10. As for how much Bond's new ride predicts the DB11 that will be offered to civilians, "elements" is the most concrete word we've heard to describe the bridge from one to the other, and that doesn't tell us much. Still in the dark about where Aston Martin is going, we recently got the opportunity to remember where it's been. Some friends of Autoblog at Regency Car Rental in LA told us we could borrow their 2005 Aston Martin Vanquish S, so we spent the day hunting nefarious types on twisty Malibu roads, then cruising the Valley looking for a tuner shop that could install a minigun. The Vanquish played a role in the 2002 film Die Another Day, back when Pierce Brosnan made a living as the roguish, rakish MI6 asset. The film rekindled the union between the agent and Aston Martin after a three-movie interlude in which Bond drove BMWs, including, oh-so-briefly, a Z3. Returning with a bang – make that thousands of large- and small-caliber bangs – Q Branch fitted the hero car with rockets, guns that could shoot incoming projectiles, machine guns, an ejector seat, and invisibility camouflage. On the chicest streets in the sleekest LA neighborhoods the Vanquish S still passes the look-at-me test. The Vanquish S we picked up from Regency didn't have any of that, but as indicated by that S at the end it did have more power and performance than the standard Vanquish in the movie. Horsepower from the 5.9-liter V12 went from 460 to 520 in the S, and this model also got stiffer springs, new suspension geometry, quicker steering, and 19-inch lightweight wheels. Exterior modifications were a wider, more curved grille, a front splitter (not present on this car), and a larger rear spoiler. On the most chic streets in the sleekest LA neighborhoods the Vanquish S still passes the look-at-me test – everywhere we went, men and women paid attention to our arrival. As for us, we're split on its looks right down the middle of the car. We've been fans of the front since the day of the reveal, especially the front fascia and headlights, but we're still not sold on the rear, starting from where the vertical line in the door where the sheetmetal expands into those trademark haunches. We didn't encounter anyone else with such reservations.