Author Description

Aston Martin Lagonda enjoys one of the highest reputations in the automotive world, a reputation out of all proportion to the mere 200 cars that emerge from the Newport Pagnell factory each year; their cars are very fast, very comfortable and very safe; they are also stylish, classic and tailored to the customer's whim. History and tradition exude from these thoroughbreds and it is worth mentioning that no other British manufacturer has won the World Sports Car Championship. To the handful of enthusiasts who take delivery of a new Aston, there is no other car quite like it and no other car manufacturers quite like the men from Newport Pagnell. This book takes the reader back through the pages of Aston history to the birth of the V-8 engine and on to the present day. This story is told from the inside drawing on the factory engineering records to detail the steady development of the marque, and the author charts the company's fortunes, the ebb and flow of finance and the changing faces of ownership. Inevitably it looks at the way that the modern Aston Martin is built with its brilliant blend of high technology and old-fashioned craftmanship. Former motoring journalist and now Aston Martin's Engineering Director, Michael Bowler gives an honest appraisal of all that lies behind the creation of the world's fastest production four-seater. And the veil of secrecy is finally lifted off the horsepower figures so long described as 'enough'.