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Watch $80M worth of Aston Martins tear around new factory

Earlier this month, Aston Martin took possession of the former Royal Air Force base in St. Athan in South Wales. The company will convert the space to new factory that will start producing new cars, including the future DBX crossover, in 2019. That date is quite a ways away, and in the meantime, Aston has a huge empty facility sitting around. So what better to do than take a bunch of Astons there and play with them? In the video above, two of Aston Martin's racing drivers and the company's chief engineer rollick around the massive hangars and open runways. And of course, only Aston's best are on hand for the trio to drive. You'll see vintage and modern racecars, and hypercar royalty such as the Vulcan and One-77, and Bond classics including the DB5 and DB10. The total value of the cars shown is over $80 million at current exchange rates. Although Aston's best is on display in this video, the company does also present arguably its worst product. The Toyota iQ-based Aston Martin Cygnet has a cameo. Clearly Aston has a sense of humor about the microcar to show it in this video. The scene involves the One-77 and Vulcan literally driving rings around it. Towards the end, we also get the briefest of teasers for the DBX crossover. The engineer and racecar drivers peak under the covers of three cars. The first two are the Valkyrie and DBX concepts. They just start to lift the cover on the third vehicle, only revealing some headlight details, when Aston's CEO arrives to inspect the facility. We don't see anything more of this car for the rest of the video. But seeing as the film ends with a teaser drawing of the DBX, and since it will be produced at St. Athan, it's safe to guess that third covered vehicle is the production, or near-production, DBX. Check it all out above. Related Video:

Aston Martin names new CFO

Aston Martin is on the verge of a resurgence, instituting (among a great many other things) new top leadership, and that includes a new chief financial officer. Mark Wilson comes to Gaydon with a wealth of experience at British sports car manufacturers, having previously worked for Lotus and McLaren. His most recent posting, however, was as CFO and COO at renewable energy insurer G-Cube Underwriting. He'll take up his new job as Chief Financial Officer (and his place on the executive board) at Aston Martin on June 8, reporting directly to Andy Palmer, who in turn took up his job as CEO just this past September. Considering Aston was recently injected with an influx of cash, hiring a new money man was probably prudent. But hiring new top personnel, of course, isn't the only change Aston is making. It's got a new platform in the works, a new engine under development with Mercedes-AMG and a raft of new projects in the pipeline. That includes the replacement of every one of its models by the end of the decade and the addition of as many as three new model lines – particularly the DBX crossover that could be the first new Aston built in America. ASTON MARTIN NAMES MARK WILSON AS NEW CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER 14 May 2015, Gaydon: Aston Martin today announces the appointment of Mark Wilson as Chief Financial Officer. Joining the business on Monday 8 June, Wilson, will report directly to Aston Martin CEO Dr Andy Palmer and take a place on the Executive Board at the company's global HQ in Gaydon, Warwickshire. With a strong track record of senior automotive experience already accrued with McLaren Automotive and Lotus Cars Ltd, Wilson joins the luxury British sports car maker from renewable energy insurer G-Cube Underwriting where he held the post of Chief Financial and Operating Officer. Welcoming Wilson to the team, Dr Palmer said: "Mark joins us at what is, undeniably, an extremely exciting time for Aston Martin. We are currently implementing the largest investment plan in our history which will see a total remake of our product portfolio. By the end of the decade, not only will our current line-up have been replaced entirely, we will have added up to three extra model lines and entered new market segments.

Aston Martin's CEO says that autonomous cars are only a matter of time

In addition to bringing the Aston Martin AM-RB 001 to its first auto show this week, the CEO of Aston Martin, Andy Palmer, revealed his thoughts on the future of cars. And it's a future full of autonomy and electricity. According to our friends at TechCrunch, Palmer said it's a question of when – not if – autonomous vehicles will reach the public. T echCrunch also reports that Aston plans on offering an autonomous Lagonda in the future. For those of us who love driving ourselves, though, there is some good news: Fully autonomous cars are likely well into the future. Palmer told the Toronto Star that he recognizes autonomous driving is a bit antithetical to a sports car company, saying "we're a driver's car, so we're not in a rush to go driverless." He also pointed out a number of issues that personally concern him about autonomous vehicles, and which have him hesitant to pursue autonomous tech on Astons. His primary concern, according to both TechCrunch and Toronto Star, is the issue of security, but he also wants to make sure the technology is truly ready. TechCrunch reports that he said companies need a full understanding of the tech "before we beta test our customers." This statement seems pointed at Tesla, which has often said that its semi-autonomous Autopilot feature is in beta. In addition to discussing autonomous vehicles, Palmer talked about the future of electric cars, which he finds to be bright. He told the Toronto Star that he believes the future of vehicle propulsion has been decided, and that it will be electricity. He pointed to a shift in focus from the German automakers, as well as the Volkswagen diesel scandal as indicators. Palmer suggested that 25 percent of cars will be powered by electricity sometime in the next eight years, but noted this leaves plenty of room for internal combustion vehicles for a while. Related Video: