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Aston Martin sold its old Vanquish tooling, but to whom?

Where do car models go when they become old? In some cases, they go to developing markets to be reborn again: Nissan built the Sentra in Mexico for ages, and old Peugeot saloons have been made in Iran for decades. Sometimes a separate company buys the tooling, which has been the case for Saab, for instance: the 9-3 and 9-5 sedans found a new life in China, albeit with new sheetmetal. These scenarios usually play out with passenger cars and trucks, and more rarely with sports cars. But for the Aston Martin Vanquish, there might be plans afoot. Aston Martin was revealed to have sold the second-generation Vanquish tooling and design drawings in June, for around $26 million. Aston didn't disclose the name of the buyer, so speculation quickly rose. Who wants to start building the V12 range-topper originally launched in 2012? Automotive News suggests the buyer could be a boutique European tuner such as Mansory, who would expand from converting cars into having bespoke products of its own. Jalopnik mentions Zagato, who has already partnered with Aston Martin and helped create the exclusive Zagato Vanquish. Whoever the buyer turns out to be, they will get 18 months of assistance from Aston Martin Consulting, as dictated in the deal. An interesting development would be if the Vanquish would be recreated as an electric supercar, if the anonymous buyer chooses not to fit their creations with Aston's V12 engines. Still, Aston won't be the first British sportscar maker to sell its tooling to another company: surely everybody remembers the time the front-wheel-drive Lotus Elan reappeared in Korea, as the Kia Elan/Vigato? Related Video:

Weekly Recap: Electric Rapide concept showcases Aston's future

Aston Martin showed off an all-electric Rapide S prototype this week and announced an agreement with investment firm ChinaEquity to explore development of a production version of the sports sedan. The car could arrive in about two years if the project advances, and it would be built in Gaydon, England. The concept car, called the "RapidE" was developed with Williams Advanced Engineering. The electric Rapide is meant to highlight British innovation, and it was revealed during a state visit by Chinese president Xi Jinping to the United Kingdom. Spec were not available for the concept on display. "The car we showed in London is a fully running concept but not yet defining [of] our choice of battery, motor, inverter, etc," spokesman Simon Sproule said. "Now that we have a clearer path for producing the car, we will be defining all the parameters." Aston Martin has been vocal about its electric ambitions this year, and Sproule told us at the New York Auto Show that an all-electric Rapide could cost $200,000 to $250,000 or more. "It's a study, but we're serious about it," he said. Some reports have indicated the electric Rapide could pack as much as 1,000 horsepower. Aston considers electric technology the strongest play for modernizing its powertrains and meeting emissions standards around the world. Hybrids and all-electric models can offer high outputs and strong torque delivery, which is in keeping with the Aston's image as a sportscar maker. Company brass prefer this option over dropping down to four-cylinder engines. And yes, V8s and V12s remain part of the plan. The electric push is part of Aston's future strategy to remake its lineup, which includes refreshing its sportscars, building a production version of the electric all-wheel-drive DBX concept shown at the Geneva Motor Show, and adding a four-door Lagonda. OTHER NEWS & NOTES Domino's serves up purpose-built delivery car Domino's revealed a purpose-built pizza delivery car based on the Chevy Spark. It's called the DXP, for Delivery Expert, and it can handle up to 80 pizzas. The pies stay warm thanks to an oven located behind the driver's seat, and the DXP is sauced up with a puddle-lighting feature that projects the Domino's logo outside of the car. Power comes from the Spark's stock 1.2-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 84 hp that gets up to 39 mpg on the highway. Chevy dealers will be trained to service the DXP.

Aston Martin has another mid-engine supercar in mind

It seems Aston Martin is really gaining some valuable knowhow from Chief Technical Officer Max Szwaj, who has moved in from Ferrari. Having worked on mid-engine Ferraris for years, Szwaj is now focusing on mid-engine Aston Martins, such as the upcoming Valkyrie. The limited-edition car, its name revealed at Geneva, is co-developed with Red Bull. But it likely won't be the only mid-engine future Aston. Talking to Autocar in Geneva, Aston's CEO Andy Palmer said the Valkyrie is "important in establishing Aston as a credible maker of mid-engined models." The Valkyrie is the first since the one-off Bulldog prototype built in 1979. It could spawn a mid-engine companion in 2021, a rival to the Ferrari 488 GTB and McLaren 720S, and would possibly receive valuable engineering input from Red Bull's Adrian Newey, a famed F1 engineering legend. The Valkyrie would remain a limited-production halo car, as only 175 will be built and each will cost $3 million – but it seems lessons learned from it would be used to craft a significant mid-engine supercar. What is especially remarkable about the Valkyrie is that its development has been completely virtual up until now, and the first prototype cars will commence road testing later in the year.Related video: