RE: Aston Lagonda: Catch It While You Can
Discussion
I want to love it and always have wanted to from its first appearance when I was a member of the Aston Martin young supporters club (yes there really was such a thing back in the seventies).
I've driven and been driven in quite a few - every series including a timewarp 1989 car which was still un-driven in 1997. It is tiny inside, the tardis in reverse, flawed ergonomically in every way and awkwardly styled because of it's height, length, bulk and wheel to side height proportion. I have been in cars with no working instruments, series ones with buttons that were touch sensitive only with superhuman pressure applied, with the vertical hold on the dash CRT's gone in a series three and the instrument readouts scrolling continuously and, on a highway in Ohio in a car on fire (which was, I was told, not the first time).
To me it is quite unlovable in a way that many of the kitschier luxury cars of the 70's (Camargue for instance) are not. I want to love it like Fox Mulder wanted to believe but...I just don't and never will.
I've driven and been driven in quite a few - every series including a timewarp 1989 car which was still un-driven in 1997. It is tiny inside, the tardis in reverse, flawed ergonomically in every way and awkwardly styled because of it's height, length, bulk and wheel to side height proportion. I have been in cars with no working instruments, series ones with buttons that were touch sensitive only with superhuman pressure applied, with the vertical hold on the dash CRT's gone in a series three and the instrument readouts scrolling continuously and, on a highway in Ohio in a car on fire (which was, I was told, not the first time).
To me it is quite unlovable in a way that many of the kitschier luxury cars of the 70's (Camargue for instance) are not. I want to love it like Fox Mulder wanted to believe but...I just don't and never will.
daytona365 said:
I'd imagine it looks like this because they didn't have the facilities to, not design, but to fabricate anything better, for anything like an acceptable price. Hence straight lines and slightly cartoon like from some, (all?) angles.
I wouldn't have said close to £50k in the mid-70s was "anything like an acceptable price"!Edited by daytona365 on Thursday 18th December 11:17
Lightningman said:
Yes it sold in small number and yes it has an AM badge but that doesn't make it a great car, nor desirable (imho).
You'll find it has Lagonda badges not Aston Martin. But anyway as has been said, they're wonderfully ugly and in a strange way I rather like them. A bit like rolling up for a business meeting in an old Bristol. Back in the 70's I was in the back of my grandad's 1300 Vanden Plas Princess(!) when one of these followed us for a few miles before overtaking and shooting off down the road.
To a boy growing up on a South Wales council estate it might as well have been a space ship. To this day I remember the feeling of awe, watching it disappear down the road, and I've wanted one ever since.
I know they're cramped, ergonomically insane, frighteningly unreliable and ridiculously expensive to run and that performance is mediocre at best, but the 13 year old kid inside is still yearning to park one on the drive.
Probably fortunately, I've never had the wherewithal to do anything about it...
To a boy growing up on a South Wales council estate it might as well have been a space ship. To this day I remember the feeling of awe, watching it disappear down the road, and I've wanted one ever since.
I know they're cramped, ergonomically insane, frighteningly unreliable and ridiculously expensive to run and that performance is mediocre at best, but the 13 year old kid inside is still yearning to park one on the drive.
Probably fortunately, I've never had the wherewithal to do anything about it...
Galsia said:
IF I had the money I would buy every one had have them all crushed. Horrible.
Which makes you rather a selfish t
t ...They have road presence on the very odd occasion you see them. I remember them being launched and was just gobsmacked as a young car enthusiast - they looked like they were from another planet and the dashboard was stunning. Sadly the cars had massive issues and there seems to have been no money to fix them. I'm amazed they sold as many as they did.
RichB said:
Lightningman said:
Yes it sold in small number and yes it has an AM badge but that doesn't make it a great car, nor desirable (imho).
You'll find it has Lagonda badges not Aston Martin. But anyway as has been said, they're wonderfully ugly and in a strange way I rather like them. A bit like rolling up for a business meeting in an old Bristol. And despite its looks, a modern Audi a6 is only slightly shorter yet is wider/taller.
Unlike most I have driven one. Great fun, quite surreal. And I do like the looks
I remember being stunned that AM were actually brave enough to build these. I wonder what they were smoking during the board meeting that signed this project off? Got to be the classic example of a decision taken by a committee.
I'll admire anyone with the courage to take on this ownership proposition. Apart from my usual footling excuse (as in - no funds available) I don't think swallowing my entire supply of brave pills would get my name on the V5 here.
I'll admire anyone with the courage to take on this ownership proposition. Apart from my usual footling excuse (as in - no funds available) I don't think swallowing my entire supply of brave pills would get my name on the V5 here.
I know I shouldn't, but I really like them, especially the relatively sorted late 80's facelift.
Bill Towns eh? You can't argue with his dedication to the wedge. I always quite admired the Hustler expecially in 6 wheel format (a car made from plywood, yay!) but the abombination that was the Guyson (a converted E-Type - sacrilige!) is a step or several too far....
Bill Towns eh? You can't argue with his dedication to the wedge. I always quite admired the Hustler expecially in 6 wheel format (a car made from plywood, yay!) but the abombination that was the Guyson (a converted E-Type - sacrilige!) is a step or several too far....
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