In 2007, the Kuwaiti firm Investment Dar Co. bought 64% of the shares of the Aston Martin company. But about a month ago, rumors started to appear that Dar is looking to sell their Aston Martin shares. Reportedly, Dar wants to get US $800 million for its part in the Gaydon company, about the same they paid for it five years ago.
It already arrived at my dealer a week earlier, but last Tuesday was the big day: We could finally pick up our new V12 Vantage Roadster, the Cobalt Blue Agent #002! Here it is in the showroom, all serviced, cleaned and polished, ready to go home:
Okay, I think I have found my next watch. Jaeger-LeCoultre has announced their latest Aston Martin watch, the AMVOX7:
It has arrived, my Cobalt Blue V12 Vantage Roadster! That is, it has arrived at Kroymans, the local Aston Marton dealer. May I present to you, the most beautiful Aston Martin ever, Agent #002: (parked next to the 2nd most beautiful Aston in the world, my Fire Red V12 Vantage)
Yesterday, I reported about the colors of the first thirteen V12 Vantage Roadsters, which included one in the very nice Aston Color “Volcano Red”. Now the owner of this Volcano Red roadster, user “silverspeed” from the PistonHeads forum, also visited the factory, to see his car being created. And he kindly sent me his photos of the day, showing his car at the end of the production line. Wow, I think the V12 Roadster looks great in this color. Congrats, mr silverspeed!
Just some quick stats about the the V12 Vantage Roadster: Up until today, thirteen V12 Vantage Roadster customer cars have been produced. (not including the white, red and grey demo cars) These are the colors chosen by the first 13 lucky customers: 3 x Onyx Black 1 x Storm Black 1 x Jet Black 1 x Nero Black 1 x Hammerhead Silver 1 x Tungsten Silver 2 x Morning Frost White 1 x Volcano Red 1 x Elwood Blue 1 x Cobalt Blue (mine!) 88 to go 🙂
Aston Martin just released their latest video, featuring he ‘Power, Beauty, Soul Tour 2012‘ which took place in September and October this year. A series of exclusive events across Europe saw the presentation of the New Aston Martin Vanquish, V12 Vantage Roadster and the iconic V12 Zagato – the first time these three new models have been presented together…. Personally I had the chance to see the tour twice, once in Spa and the second time at Aston Martin Hilversum. Enjoy!
Have you already seen the new commercial for Sony’s Xperia T, the one they call “The Bond phone”? It features a black V12 Vantage (and its’s beautiful V12 sound).
Remember the unlikely story of the V8 Cygnet? Well, it gets even better, and even more unlikely. Autocar.co.uk reports that a V12 powered Cygnet could be possible. Their sources (who?) suggest that “a feasibility study has already been completed” and that it should be possible to fit the huge V12 engine in the tiny car. Very unlikely story if you ask me. Have you ever seen the engine bay of a Cygnet? No way a V12 engine is going to fit there. I mean, putting the 6 litre block into a Vantage was already a tight fit… Anyway, let’s hope some of it is true and that Aston Martin is indeed planning to put a more powerful engine into the Cygnet. And upgraded suspension. And improved brakes. And a better gearbox… Nah … I’ll just stick with the V12 Vantage…
Last week, my wife and I had the chance to witness the production of our new V12 Vantage Roadster, at the Aston Martin factory in Gaydon. But we missed the big moment, “The Marriage”, the joining of the engine and drive train with the body. However, the nice people in Gaydon kept an eye on the progress of my car and were able to make photos during The Marriage. Here’s the pics they created for me.