V8 Leather Navi 6 Manual Coupe 4.7l Bluetooth Memory Seats 4-wheel Abs Brakes on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Bond, junk bond? Aston Martin financial ratings go south as it awaits DBX

Ratings agencies Standard & Poor's and Moody's have taken a dim view of Aston Martin Lagonda. S&P cut its credit rating on the storied carmaker deeper into junk territory this week, and Moody's revised its credit outlook to "negative" after the company raised $150 million in debt from a bond issue at 12% interest, with the option to raise another $100 million at 15%. The Standard & Poor's rating was trimmed by one notch to 'CCC+', which reflects substantial risks and takes it close to default territory after a faster-than-expected cash burn this year. The outlook is negative.  The negative outlook reflects ongoing pressure on profits, a high cash burn, and very high leverage in the face of heightened risks linked to a potential no-deal Brexit and new tariffs on car imports threatened by the United States. The potential salvation for the company is its new DBX luxury SUV, the success of which is critical to its ambitious growth strategy and ongoing creditworthiness, S&P said. But Moody's noted that it's burning cash at a high rate as it nears the launch of the DBX. The British carmaker, known as James Bond's favorite marque, has been hit by falling demand in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. It slumped to a first-half loss in July. Chief Executive Andy Palmer said concerns around Brexit and U.S.-China trade relations were skewing the outlook to the downside, so it was prudent to address investor concerns about its balance sheet. "Taking this debt on — short-term debt — is we think the correct tool to completely remove that thesis that we don't have sufficient liquidity," he told Reuters. "In every substantial and material way, this ensures that we can get through to DBX in spite of what all of those global uncertainties might throw at us." The main tranche comprises notes with an interest rate of 12% due in 2022, while the additional notes could be issued under the same terms if permitted, or could be issued as unsecured notes with an interest rate of 15%, Aston Martin said. Shares of stock in the company, which have had a precipitous fall since they listed in London in October 2018 at 19 pounds, were trading down 5% at 545 pence in early deals. Broker AJ Bell said Aston Martin was known for its high end prices and that situation now also applied to its debt. "These rates are very high and are a major red flag that investors consider the car company to be a high risk entity," it said.

Aston Martin blacks out new Vanquish Carbon Edition [w/video]

Aston Martin and tuxedos go together like gin and vermouth, but those looking for that extra degree of formality need look no further than the British automaker's Carbon editions. Aston has bestowed the blacked-out treatment on the Vantage, DB9 and DBS, and has now turned its attention to the flagship Vanquish. The new Vanquish Carbon Edition is being offered in coupe or convertible form, in either black or white. Based on the recently upgraded model with its new eight-speed paddle-shift automatic transmission, the Vanquish Carbon Black offers the same 6.0-liter V12 with 568 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque, good for a 3.6-second sprint to 60 and a top speed of 201 miles per hour. What sets it apart from other Vanquish models is its special trim, including black window surrounds, blacked-out headlight trim, 10-spoke gloss-black alloys and an interior decked out with herringbone carbon-fiber trim, anodized black speaker grilles for the Bang & Olufsen audio system and available quilted leather upholstery. We're waiting for the full details to be released, so watch this space. In the meantime, you can scope out the microsite and the dramatic video clip for a closer look at Aston's latest flagship in either Darth Vader or Storm Trooper treatment.

Aston Martin is building eight Valkyrie prototypes, here's the first trio

Aston Martin and Red Bull Racing are still developing the high-performance Valkyrie supercar, and recently, Formula One drivers Max Verstappen and Alex Albon were given the opportunity to test out the prototypes. Verstappen and Albon were given the reins to verification prototype 1 (VP-1), while never-before-seen VP-2 and VP-3 lapped Silverstone at the hands of Aston Martin test driver Chris Goodwin and Aston Martin Racing World Endurance Championship drivers Darren Turner and Alex Lynn.  After publicly unveiling VP-1 at the 2019 British Grand Prix, Aston Martin recently brought two new verification prototypes into the fold. Aston Martin has been using the Silverstone circuit near Northampton, England, for its testing process, and it seems that will continue for the rest of the verification prototypes. In total, Aston Martin will build eight.   Aston Martin collects data and observations not only from its own test drivers and engineers but from its professional drivers too. For Albon, it was his first time seeing the car in person. In a press release, Albon offered some details about how the car will position itself to its customers.  "Obviously there’s still some development to do, but already it feels very good, especially the balance between the corners," he said. "ItÂ’s light; it feels sharp. Sure, compared to an F1 car, youÂ’re missing the outright downforce, but you still feel the Gs in the corners and it definitely reacts closer to an F1 car than a normal road car."  Aston Martin plans to have the Valkyrie tuned and ready for customers in the coming months, but don't expect deliveries to begin until the second half of the year. In related news, Road & Track cites a Racer report that says Aston Martin will pull back from its intentions to race the Valkyrie in the 2020–2021 World Endurance Championship and Le Mans. The report, which says a formal announcement is coming February 19, comes shortly after news that Aston Martin received an investment from Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll.