When your back is up on the wall and you have no cash..but a "customer" comes out with a bucket of cash and says, here's cash but next time build things this way...what do you do?..listen and do as they ask and hope for more cash...or go and do things like Fisker...doomed ..Aston listened and built things there "customer ways"..this I agree on..but it wasn't because Aston willingly wanted to..it was survival

Aston's approach has been working to keep them a float for a century..but evenually everyone gets sick of the same song being played, by the same musician on the same corner, then peasents stop throwing cash in ur cup and you go broke..sure this is easy to understand..

At this point, there is no "customer" that will come to the table and fund a new engine throughout the line-up(even if possible it will be REJECTED)..the next runner up is a AG..look at Ducati, Investindustrial Holdings is the new "customer" they have no choice to listen and shout HUA!! ..the old way of staying alive for a Century is done/ended/finished, Investindustrial Holdings did this with Ducati and will do the same with A.M, find the concern, delete it, then work on building the correct foundation to flow in the cash..then sell off the Phoenix they made rise..

-Ford contract is ending
-Investindustrial Holdings comes in
-Aston screams HUA!!
-Step 1: Bez is out
-Step 2: ...
...don't see a pattern, rumors are rarely wrong when they are wide spread
-*insert AG here*, pick either Daimler AG or VW AG

 

So much for your AMG engine rumours....

According to the NY Times:

"As Aston seeks a steady source of capital and technology, or an outright owner — a proposed deal to secure engines from Mercedes’s AMG division fell through — Aston may discover that beauty and a good family name only take you so far.

Yet it’s easy to see why a wealthy buyer would prefer the Vanquish’s classic, artful approach, and chuckle at childish notions of horsepower bragging rights. Every drive in the Vanquish feels like a once-in-a-lifetime occasion, and I suspect that’s true even for people who can afford one.

Plenty of pseudo-supercars and not-quite-exotics prowl the streets. The Vanquish is the real deal. Should you forget, everyone from New York cabbies to giddy schoolchildren will underscore the point."

 

From what I've heard, there not seeking engines from benz, there looking into there chassis to bring back Lagonda on that platform..the concept was nothing more than that, but the SUV market is still alive, they are focused on the China market right now...bigger is better right now

 

Unfortunately there is always one ostrich that sticks it's head in the sand an ignores the inevitable...........Aston needs an engine partner, and if the Benz deal falls through they had better poked up the phone to some others pretty quick.....

 

Maybe they might go 3.8L twin turbo V8...I mean it's not like u can find an engine like this in England so I guess chances are low..Hehe ;-)

Not saying this will happen, cause I know this would start a topic on a lot of haters..always heard Benz chassis for Lagonda and whispers of Mc for engines..but as we all know Aston is always 007 about everything even if it's true right till the last moment, they will deny everything...aka the N24 concept or Vanquish Volonte

 

Whatever happens, please may it NOT be VW Group -- that would undoubtedly mean VW Group platforms and engines underpinning cars they call Aston Martins.

 

It will be sooner than that
JLR are just finishing their own engine plant in the UK

 

I agree, VW has spread its influence too far across too many brands and as a result there are too many clones using the same underpinnings. That said, I do suppose that these brands might not even exist with any level of credibility without VWs sponsorship.

FF

 

I hope so, I wish them the best and their cars continue to get better and better. On top of this, their announcement to increase product development spent to around $4 billion in 2013-14 is both very exciting and impressive. If only Aston had access to such resources.

That said, I'm not sure if the engines to be built in this new JLR 4 cylinder engine plant are all their own work, or if they are really solving the supply problems that they have had and will be building somewhat under licence. As far as I read the deal was signed with Ford for years to come - which makes me wonder why Aston can't make similar such arrangements with Ford?

FF

 

Interesting discussion, would like to add;

I believe that the development costs for a new engine are being over-estimated. The One-77 engine was a blueprint for this as it was a re-working of the existing V12, this shows a lot of the detail

http://www.enginetechnologyinternati...ton_Martin.pdf

(had to enlarge it to get it to display properly for me, also can't find the video explaining more)

Since I see AM's position as precarious going forward, desperate times require the use of the One-77 engine for the Vanquish to put it on par with aventador, f12, etc... all the work is done, leave out the fancy materials, then source a nice DCT tranny.Then in a couple years collaborate with ricardo or cosworth for a new V8. Stop coming out with new models like the virage and just bring the strong names up to the competition.


Exhaust notes can be tweaked but the engine is really the heart of a car. And sound is one of the mainstays of AM, particularly that V12.

 

Racerx,
Nice article. Thanks for posting. The investment cost disparity that you may be questioning is probably because we are comparing bespoke engine modification (one-77) and an up to date engine development more able to support the brand at a grass roots level. Note the investment in the new JLR 4-cylinder manufacturing plant mentioned above is quoted at around $750m, and that doesn't include development costs

FF

 

i couldn't agree more. I'll never be happy eating imitation crab while the real thing is still available. Ha Ha...

 

Not much help but this is what they said on their quaterly conference call a few days ago:

You will definitely be asking questions around press reports that have been issued around a cooperation for Mercedes and Daimler and Daimler have been commenting on that.* I would maybe just say that we confirm that we are talking to Daimler on cooperation as we do with many others but that at this point in time we cannot disclose specific details.* So whilst I can understand that while many of you will be very interested in that please do understand that we cannot further elaborate on that in the question and answer session.

 

Merc/AMG make great V8s and V12s and they've worked out great for Pagani, having said that, I wouldn't buy another Aston if it had a Merc engine under the hood. It's just a personal preference but I hate Daimler. I much rather see Investindustrial seek engines from VW group, for example the V12 in the Lamborghini Aventador would be an excellent replacement in all of Astons V12 models and anyone of Audi's 500+bhp V8s would do well in a Vantage. Quite honestly, I hope that when Investindustrial brings Aston to profitability like they did with Ducati, they follow the same path and sell Aston to VW. I know it's not a poplar idea but the fact is that both Bentley and Lamborghini have flourished under VW ownership and I believe Aston would do well within that group.

 

I don't think Aston will drop there V12, there is much they have not done with it yet, with just adding VVT..this engine is running at 700hp with no issues. Has not been put in a production car like the DB9/Vanquish at 700hp..but the power is there. If and when Aston does pair up with a large AG, I believe it will be more for the replace of the Jag style V8 engine, electronics/modules/ecu's, SUV chassis. Aston is wanting to bring in Lagonda fore the SUV market to hit mainly China with..and the electronics, we are full of Volvo and Jag hardware, this is time to go..

Aston already has a set VH chassis that can be worked with for more years to come, along with a V12 engine as previously stated still has a lot to show.

I also don't hope on a Daimler deal..ever look at some of the newer Benz..Hard cheap plastic filled interiors. Out of the 2 I would look forward to VW AG..They seem to let the brand stay true still to there routes..it's British, keep it British..it's Italian, keep it Italian..etc