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Sunday, September 17, 2006

Aston Martin for sale by Ford

Ford Motor Company puts Aston Martin up for sale. Some potential buyers have already come forward. The luxury goods firms LVMH and rival Swiss Richemont could be interested (source: CAR) although LVMH already denied suggestions and Richemont said "No Comment". The value of the company is estimated to be around $1 billion. The deal would include the Aston Martin name, the company’s facilities at Gaydon and Newport Pagnell, the full R&D department and the management including CEO Ulrich Bez.

FORD TO EXPLORE STRATEGIC OPTIONS FOR ASTON MARTIN

Source: Ford

DEARBORN, Mich., August 31, 2006 – Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) announced today it has begun the process of exploring strategic options for Aston Martin, with particular emphasis on a potential sale of all or a portion of the unit.

"As part of our ongoing strategic review, we have determined that Aston Martin may be an attractive opportunity to raise capital and generate value," said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bill Ford. "Aston Martin Lagonda has flourished under Ford ownership, which is why we believe it is prudent to consider a sale of all or part of this prized brand. Since Aston Martin's dealer network, product architecture and size are distinctly different from other Ford brands, it is the most logical and capital-smart divestiture choice. The objective of any sale would be to position Aston Martin within a structure and resource base sufficient to allow it to reach its full potential, while enabling Ford to efficiently raise capital for its other brands.

"Mr. Ford added, "Regarding our other Premier Automotive Group brands, we've made no decisions, as our review of strategic alternatives continues. However, we continue to be encouraged by Jaguar's progress and by the strength and consumer appeal of the Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo product lineups."

The company said there can be no assurance that the decision to explore strategic options for Aston Martin will result in any transaction, which would be subject to Board approval. Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures and distributes automobiles in 200 markets across six continents. With about 300,000 employees and more than 100 plants worldwide, the company's core and affiliated automotive brands include Aston Martin, Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln, Mazda, Mercury and Volvo. Its automotive-related services include Ford Motor Credit Company.

Saturday, September 16, 2006

Aston Martin DBRS 9 spied

Source: leftlanenews.com - DBRS9

The "RS" variant will have a wider track, lower ground clearance, and bold scoops and air intakes up front. According to rumours, the V12 engine's performance was boosted from 450 hp to more than 500 hp for the DBRS 9.

Pictures by Hans G. Lehmann here

Bond's AM Vanquish auctioned off - Aug06

James Bond's Aston Martin Vanquish from the 2002 film Die Another Day was auctioned away at Bonham's begining August. The winning bid was £144,500

Looking at the engine, this is no real Vanquish - The Vanquish bodyshells were fitted with 300 bhp Ford Boss 302 V8's mounted as far back in the chassis as possible. This allowed sufficient room for the fitting of a front differential and drive shafts from the Ford Explorer, plus space for weaponry behind the grille. The 120 mph Aston/Ford performance 4WD hybrids were also fitted with roll cages for safety reasons.


Nürburgring Vantage to go on sale

On July 18th, Aston Martin announced BIM London Show that it would made it's Nürburgring Vantage available to customers in limited numbers. See article below for car description.

This car should be priced around £82,800.

The Full Official press release is also to be found on the Official Aston Martin site -
here.

Aston Martin celebrates its 30,000th production car & launches Project 30,000

To commemorate the milestone of 30,000 cars produced, Aston Martin staffers were invited to spend a day in Germany, where day and night, the car would be driven on the Autobahn and local roads with the goal of accumulating 30,000 miles in 30 days. Providing support to the effort was Aston's new German dealership, Moll Sportwagen.


Aston Martin production V8 Vantage fourth in class at 24-hour Nürburgring

The Official press release is also to be found on the Official Aston Martin site - here.

June 18, 2006: A factory prepared Aston Martin V8 Vantage has taken its place in the company’s history books after finishing a credible fourth in class and 24th overall at the Nürburgring 24-hour endurance race, among a field of largely motorsport-homologated cars.

Negotiating a field of 220 cars, the four drivers: Dr Ulrich Bez, Aston Martin’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; Chris Porritt, Aston Martin’s Vehicle Engineering Manager; Horst von Saurma, editor-in-chief of Sport Auto magazine, and development driver Wolfgang Schuhbauer, all raced flawlessly through more than 130 laps on one of the most demanding circuits in the world.Built at Aston Martin’s Gaydon headquarters the V8 Vantage was almost entirely production standard, including the engine and transmission. The only modifications made were for safety and pit-lane efficiency, with the full mandatory safety cage, special fuel tank and fire system, racing seat, and built-in air jacks. Conditions tested the drivers to the extreme with track temperatures reaching 43°C and from the initial 220 cars on the starting grid, only 141 finished. Despite these conditions, the V8 Vantage kept a steady pace avoiding traffic, resulting in a smooth race from start to finish.

Dr. Bez, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Aston Martin said: “We delivered exactly what we set out to do by finishing the 24 hours without any technical problems or team issues. It is a real achievement to complete the race in the top 25 with a standard production V8 Vantage and shows the true capabilities of both the car and the team.”

Chris Porritt added: “This has been a real test of endurance for the car and the whole team. It’s been a thrilling 24 hours and a real challenge for us all.”

Dave King, Aston Martin’s Team manager concluded: “We are all delighted with the team’s progress throughout the event, it is a testament to all the members to finish with this result considering it is our first 24 hour race.”

Aston Martin reveals James Bond’s DBS for “CASINO ROYALE”


The Full Official press release is also to be found on the Official Aston Martin site - here.

Aston Martin has unveiled the new DBS which will be driven by James Bond, the legendary British secret agent, in the next 007 film, “CASINO ROYALE”, to be produced by Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli for EON Productions.

It looks incredibly gorgeous!!

Aston Martin’s Design Director, Marek Reichman, has said that the DBS hints at the brand’s future design direction. He describes the styling as “encapsulating a link between our elegant DB9 road car and the powerful DBR9 race car.