Aston Martin presents the Cygnet in its final form

ASton Martin released today the first images of its future minicar, the Cygnet, ready to roll. According to the company, it is almost ready, in fact, once its development will proceed until the end of 2010, when the small car will be offered to customers in the UK, but we doubt it will be much different than this. Have a look.



The Cygnet is not familiar with no reason. In fact, it is a rebadged Toyota iQ with Aston Martin looks and trim. We also expect some engine changes (the 1.3-litre, at least), but that will be all. Will customers take it as a real Aston Martin? Have a word on this.




Source: Aston Martin

Aston Martin and Toyota join forces to offer luxury city car, the Cygnet

Sign of the times... Who would ever imagine to see a small car with the badge of Aston Martin? Well, that day is about to come, if we mean a functional car. If we don't, it is already possible to see how that functional car will look like with the picture below. Call it Cygnet.



The day we have referred to will be in September, when the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show opens its doors. Aston Martin plans to present the car as a "new luxury commuter concept".

If this car looks familiar, you have your reasons. Aston Martin admits it has asked for Toyota's help developing this car, since it is based on the new iQ. We would bet it to be based on the new iQ 1.33, which features a 1.33-litre engine able to produce 98 bhp and 125 Nm, if not something even stronger, in order to honour its new badge.

The aim of this daring proposal is clear: besides improving its product range, Aston Martin needs to lower its carbon dioxide emission levels. Nothing would be better to do so than a partnership with a company that is already concerned about that. The only thing that will remais high will be the price of the car, well above 20,000 euros. For a vehicle that is only 3 m long, affordability will still be out of Aston Martin's vocabulary. On purpose, of course.

Source: Aston Martin

Aston Martin One-77 beats Bertone Mantide in Villa d'Este

Aston Martin announced it would present the first functional One-77 in Villa d'Este, at the Concorso d'Eleganza, which happens there every April since 1929. In the 80th anniversary of the event, the British company got to be the one which got out with a present: the "Concorso d’Eleganza Design Award for Concept Cars and Prototypes", won by its fantastic machine.



In order to do so, One-77 had to beat Bertone Mantide, what was not that hard, as well as Morgan Aero SuperSports, Morgan Aero SuperSports, and Zagato Perana Z-One, among other interesting cars.

We have already given you the technical specs of this car exhaustively, but it is never too much to repeat them. One-77 will only be produced in limited numbers, or else, the 77 its own name mentions. It will be powered by a tweaked V12 engine, the same one used by DBS, but increased to 7.3 litres instead of 6 litres. Cosworth has given Aston Martin a help and the V12 is 25% lighter than the original engine. It can also produce over 700 bhp, what will allow the car to surpass 360 km/h and to go from 0 to 100 km/h in about 3.5 s. All this in a vehicle that weights 1,500 kg and is sophisticated as any other Aston. Even more!






Source: Aston Martin

Functional Aston Martin One-77 will appear for the first time in Villa d'Este

Aston Martin has chosen to present its future classic and collectible car in a place destined to the ones that have already achieved that status. The Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, in the lake Como, in Italy, will be the stage to the first presentation of the first functional One-77. Aston calls it a concept, but we would rather call it a pre-production unit.



One-77 will only be produced in limited numbers, or else, the 77 its own name mentions. It will be powered by a tweaked V12 engine, the same one used by DBS, but increased to 7.3 litres instead of 6 litres. Cosworth has given Aston Martin a help and the V12 is 25% lighter than the original engine. It can also produce over 700 bhp, what will allow the car to surpass 360 km/h and to go from 0 to 100 km/h in about 3.5 s. All this in a vehicle that weights 1,500 kg and is sophisticated as any other Aston. We couldn't wait to see it reach the streets. Now it has, we can't wait to see one live, but that will probably be a very rare opportunity.




Source: Aston Martin

OFFICIAL? - Aston Martin Rapide images may have leaked. Or not

Pay attention to these images. They seem to be pictures of the forthcoming Aston Martin Rapide, right? Well, take a closer look. They may also be a very well done piece of Photoshop art. One way or the other, the fact is these images picture in a nice way what we can expect from the next four-door coupé of the market.



Besides the characteristic elegance of lines (that will hopefully spread to that ugly Lagonda concept before it reaches production), the car will also use the V12 that powers the DB9. In fact, it will have a lot to do with DB9, including its platform. On Rapide, as the name suggests, the engine will be tweaked to produce 480 bhp instead of the 450 bhp DB9 counts on. Porsche Panamera and the future Audi A7 will have to offer something more to attract customers.





Source: CarScoop

Aston Martin plans to revive the Lagonda brand with an ugly SUV, the Lagonda Concept

When Aston Martin announced it would bring the name Lagonda back to the market, many expected it would offer a luxurious and gorgeous sedan to its customers. As gorgeous or even better than the One-77. This is the problem with high expectations. When they are frustrated, the frustration tends to be as high or higher. Aston has presented its idea for a Lagonda revival. It will be an SUV, represented by the Lagonda Concept. And it will be ugly, as you can see below.



Some say that the car is personally much better looking, but we doubt it. According to Aston Martin, this vehicle is intended to be sold in more countries than the sportscars the British company produces. It will be aimed at emerging countries.

The prototype uses a V12, possibly the same used by DBS, and is an all-wheel drive vehicle. Aston intends to offer it in diesel and hybrid versions, including one that can be powered by renewable fuels, such as ethanol. Let's just hope it gets better looking before it is released, something that should not happen before 2012. At least they have time to work on it.




Source: Aston Martin