A unique gathering of more than 100 classic Aston Martin and Lagonda models provided the centrepiece for 70th anniversary celebrations at Aston Martin Works in Newport Pagnell recently.
The heritage home of the British marque and the place where many of its most famous models of the 20th Century were manufactured is this marking the 70th anniversary of the brand’s presence at its site in Buckinghamshire.
Aston Martin Works, is the historic home of the sports car maker and the place where around 13,000 cars were hand-built before production moved to Gaydon, Warwickshire, in 2007. Now a world-renowned heritage service and restoration facility as well as a new car dealership it is possible to view, purchase, service and restore cars from every era of the marque’s 112 years at Aston Martin Works. In 2017, ten years after the Newport Pagnell factory closed, new car production returned to the site with the DB4 GT Continuation. The DB4 GT Zagato Continuation and the DB5 Goldfinger Continuation followed.
Keynote speakers at the event included world-renowned DB7 and V12 Vanquish designer Ian Callum; motorsport and automotive engineering legend, and 1980s Nimrod privateer driver, Ray Mallock; and Iain Heggie, son of 1960s Aston Martin Managing Director Steve Heggie.
The former global headquarters of Aston Martin Lagonda, a modest mock Tudor building on Tickford Street known affectionately as ‘Sunnyside’ was the focal point for many, with an exceptional selection of DB6s gathered together there. Meanwhile DB4 and DB5 owners were asked to position their cars in front of the Aston Martin Works showroom opposite Sunnyside with V12 Vanquish, V8 and Lagonda drivers forming their own equally impressive displays around the rest of the Works site. Add a smattering of DB 2/4 and DB Mk III’s, the odd V550 and V600, and you have every major model built on the site represented.
The Works team ensured every area of the business was open throughout, with visitors able to peek ‘behind the scenes’ in the Modern and Heritage Workshops, Panel, Trim and Paint Shops, witness ongoing restorations and even purchase parts, accessories and souvenirs from a specially-created stand adjacent to the on-site Parts department.
Those with an eye for detail will have seen body bucks and an English Wheel or two as well: all referencing the traditional techniques and artisan expertise that have been handed down at Newport Pagnell for generations.
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