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Aston Martin Lagonda supersaloon gets official with first delivery

Over the past 67 years since Aston Martin acquired the Lagonda marque, the name has come and gone, but now it's back again. After an aborted attempt at reviving the brand with a much-criticized SUV concept at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show, Aston is building a new high-end sedan exclusively for the Middle Eastern market, and this is our best look at it yet. We first caught glimpse of the upcoming new Lagonda a few months ago when it was spotted undergoing testing, and Aston released preliminary details and a couple of teaser images just last month. But now it's shipping the first example for testing to the Sultanate of Oman on the Persian Gulf coast, and it has evidently allowed Oman Air and the Aston Martin Oman dealership to release a handful of photos. What we can see is a pretty handsome sedan that borrows stylistically from the original Aston Martin Zagato sedan that shocked the world in the mid-'70s, not to mention cues from the Zagato Centennial concepts revealed last year. It's possible this is Aston's new design direction, a bid to finally take it away from the gorgeous but overfamiliar styling of its current crop. The fresh look is more squared off, with narrower head- and taillights. It's also possible, of course, that this new look will remain specific to future Zagato-branded vehicles. Look close enough and you'll notice that the handsome sedan is wearing the Lagonda badge, not those of Aston Martin. Oman Air Partners With Aston Martin For Exclusive New Lagonda Test Date: 25 August 2014 World class luxury airline Oman Air is today, [TBC], proud to announce a key partnership with globally renowned British car manufacturer Aston Martin which sees the Middle Eastern carrier bring the marque's yet-to-be-launched Lagonda to Muscat as part of its early testing programme. Reviving the iconic Lagonda name from Aston Martin's renowned heritage, the brand new car is a top-of-the-range, luxury four-door super-saloon which has been designed exclusively for the Middle East market – and Oman's awe-inspiring mountains, deserts and state-of-the-art road network are providing the perfect backdrop for essential summer heat testing.

Nissan could have bought a stake in Aston Martin as early as 2012

Aston Martin has a very interesting future ahead of it. While the British brand appeared to be struggling with aging tech for a while, fresh investment from Daimler may have shown a light toward the future with the brand getting engines and electronics from them. Also, former Renault-Nissan top exec Andy Palmer has jumped ship from the French/Japanese automaker to become CEO of the much smaller sports car company. Interestingly, though, new reports from unnamed Nissan sources have indicated that Palmer has been pushing to work with AM for years.
Three unnamed company insiders told Reuters that Palmer made attempts to convince Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn in 2012 and 2013 to invest in Aston Martin, but his proposals were shot down both times for unspecified reasons, according to Automotive News. "We looked carefully at the proposal but we passed on it," said one of the sources.
You can easily see why Palmer was eying Aston Martin even back in 2012. It's no secret that the British sports car mavens were in need of extra funding, well before the Daimler investment. Building vehicles these days is only getting more expensive with stronger safety and emissions requirements. Just look at the brand's desperate hope to get a side-impact crash exemption to keep selling its models in the US as an example.

Aston Martin waxes poetic about the good life with The Art of Vanquish

Aston Martin markets itself as offering the classy alternative to hardcore sports cars. Its vehicles are certainly capable, but they are also sold as offering an extra dose of luxury to go along with their power. The company is leaning hard into that image in a new short film called The Art of Vanquish. Over the grumble of the coupe's V12, the announcer reads a poem about the metaphor of life's journey, and it positions the Vanquish as a symbol of progress. The film is interspersed with shots of luxury goods like thickly upholstered leather chairs and products from sound system maker Bang & Olufsen, men's clothier Hackett London and Swiss watchmaker Jaeger Le Coultre. The production team True Motion Pictures created the short and has also done projects for Audi and Sony, among other companies. Of course, the idea that Aston Martins and other luxury goods are a symbol of life's adventure is a little contrived. It's still just a car after all – albeit an absolutely gorgeous one. Still, the film is an opportunity for a closer look at the Vanquish, and its wonderful growl is featured throughout. Scroll down to watch the video and be swathed in its poetic concept of luxury. Aston Martin, 'The Art of Vanquish' from True motion pictures on Vimeo.