A History of ‘Creating Beautiful’
Ever since the debut Aston Martin saw first light more than a century ago, the company has had a talent for creating beautiful and highly sought after automobiles. Founded by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford in 1913 in a small London workshop, Aston Martin has since grown to become an internationally admired luxury brand. Guided by the love of “creating beautiful”, the Aston Martin brand has expressed beauty through many timeless designs, brought about by the founders’ passion and talent for machines, propulsion, engines and racing. Martin and Bamford shared a love for the automobile because it provided them with the most exhilarating and memorable experiences – moments that they craved to create, repeat, and celebrate. Their passion drove them to hand-build cars that were ever faster, more powerful, thrilling, comfortable, and ultimately more beautiful than their previous. It is little wonder, then, that they would eventually name their company after one particularly successful motoring event in Buckinghamshire, England. It was a moment of pure driving emotion when Lionel Martin took on the Aston Clinton Hill Climb race in their creation – and won.
Racing Pedigree
Since the early days, Aston Martin has always believed that racing made their cars ever better, from the historic debut in the 1922 French Grand Prix, to winning the 1959 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the DBR1, and tasting success at Monza in the DB4GT. Some of the most memorable Astons have performed at the highest levels of competitive racing. This is true as much today in the company’s second century as in their first. From stunning victory in 2017 for the V8 Vantage GTE in that year’s Le Mans GTE Pro Class, to the technically advanced Valkyrie hypercar (see the August edition of SLOW for a review of the Valkyrie), Aston Martin has continued to craft innovative cars with the beauty of competitive racing at their heart.
Worldwide Acclaim
Although the company suffered a few setbacks in later years, Aston Martin’s golden era played out during the tenure of David Brown, the English industrialist at the helm from 1947 to 1972. Brown’s contributions turned these years into one of the most notable periods for the brand, as Aston Martin flourished under his watch. With a burst of dynamism, Brown set about revolutionising the company, expanding its operations, purchasing the Lagonda marque, and introducing a succession of now iconic cars that continue to set pulses racing to this day. The first Aston Martin to carry the now famous “DB” nameplate was the DB2, launched in 1947. Despite the postworld War II gloom, the DB2 enthralled the crowds as it took second and third place in its class at Le Mans in 1951.In a reflection of the evolution of Aston Martin’s talents for blending performance on the track with luxury comfort, elegant design, and dedicated craftsmanship, each new car edged the company further into the limelight. The race-bred DB3 and DB3S were followed by the exquisite DB4 and its highperformance sibling, the DB4GT, before the now historic collaboration with Zagato produced the DB4GT Zagato. However, nothing could have prepared the company for the massive global success of the DB5 that burst onto the international sports car scene in 1963. An instant classic, it reaped critical acclaim from far and wide, and propelled the company – now called Aston Martin Lagonda – onto the global stage like never before. Often billed as the “most famous car in the world”, the DB5 even became a movie star when Ian Flemming’s secret agent and international provocateur, James Bond,
chose a gadget-laden Silver Birch DB5 in the movie Goldfinger. The DB5 became many a schoolboy’s dream, and still is regarded as the most beautiful Aston Martin ever produced. Several versions of the DB5 were produced, including a high-performance DB5 Vantage, and a convertible that was also made available with an optional steel hard top. A small number of DB5S were built with a shooting brake design – a sportsman’s interpretation of a modern estate car by coachbuilder Harold Radford. Several audacious Astons were brought to life after the massive success of the DB5, although in later years the company experienced some hardship, like being sold on between various companies, until Ford Motor Company purchased a share in 1987. Ford placed Aston Martin in the Premier Automotive Group, invested in new manufacturing, and ramped up production. In 1994, Ford opened a new factory, which ultimately led to the company achieving record production of 700 vehicles in 1995. Until the Ford era, cars had been produced by hand using coachbuilding craft methods, such as the English wheel. By the end of the 20th Century, Aston Martin had been firmly reestablished as a producer of bespoke luxury sports cars, shattering sales records and introducing many new and successor models to its line-up. During ensuing years, Aston Martin came under new leadership twice, with the current CEO, Andy Palmer, ultimately taking the helm in 2014. Palmer, who was appointed to oversee an entirely new era for the Aston Martin brand, presides over the company’s new relationship with Daimler AG. A deal signed with the German firm to supply next-generation Aston Martin cars with new Mercedes-amg engines also brought Daimler AG into an ownership role, with the purchase of 5 % of Aston Martin. The partnership has already paid dividends in the form of new infotainment technology for the DB11 launched in 2016, and a Mercedes-amg-produced V8 engine for the sensational new Vantage that was unveiled in late 2017 and recently released in South Africa. From humble origins to today, on the road and the track, the irresistible draw of an Aston Martin endures. People all over the world want their beautifully designed cars – cars that have always been synonymous with high performance, bespoke craftsmanship, technological innovation, and timeless style.