Ulrich Bez is out to conquer the world through Aston Martin. Hands down, Aston makes cars that everyone wants to have. That’s partially thanks to the DBS being James Bonds’ car and the DB9 being the first car to have its own fridge on the Top Gear cool wall.

They made quite a buzz with the launch of the Rapide but Aston has a lot more to offer by launching six new cars in the next six years. They’re making sure we get a yearly Aston fill until 2016.

This year, Aston will be launching the super-exclusive One-77 super car. The car’s basically designed to be one of the most exquisite cars ever built. If ever the beauty and the beast had a child, this’d be it. Aside from the halo car, Aston’s setting up the launch of the Toyota iQ-based Cygnet minicar by 2011.

By 2013, a successor to the DB9 is planned. Internally codenamed Project VH500, the car is set to pack a massive V12. A new DBS successor is also in the field by 2015. Other cars in the Aston fleet will also get successors. The Vantage will be replaced by 2014 and a new Rapide is set for 2016.

Aston will also be reviving the Lagonda marquee by 2014 with an SUV.

Source: Autocar

Now this is a debut that’s long overdue. Aston Martin has been hyping on their own version of a hyper four-door saloon for almost a year now so it must be as satisfying as a poop after a bout of constipation for these guys.

Not much surprise with the car’s debuted version versus the images Aston has previously released. Minor differences include the loss of the small side air intakes on the front bumper and slightly modified side contour. The car still looks as an Aston should though and that’s a good thing.

Powering the car is a 6.0L V2 revised from the old DB9 that now dishes out 470 bhp which is mated to a six-speed ZF automatic transmission. Good thing Aston finally fixed their flappy paddles since those come with the Rapide. It’s a bit slower than the fleet-topping DBS but a four-door that can go 0-62 in 5.3 seconds and top 188 mph is still something.

Aston will be positioning this to compete with other performance four-doors like the Maserati Quattroporte and the Lamborghini Estoque. With the announcement of the impending doom for the Porsche Panamera, that’s more opportunity for the Aston. Quite honestly, why even bother with the butt-ugly Panamera if you can go for the Rapide.

Here comes a four-door car that can probably put Ferraris and Lambos to shame for its practicality and power. Much buzz and many tidbits of details later, we finally get some official details from Aston Martin along with a side-view pic.

Powering the Rapide is a hand-built 6.0L V12 engine that dishes out 470-hp (less than the 500+ horses many speculated) and churns out 443 lb-ft of torque. The engine is mated to Aston Martin’s Touchtronic gearbox. As a sign of some racing pedigree, the power is channeled to the Rapide’s rear wheels. No 0-60 times or top speed figure yet but it’s bound to be quick a quick car.

Aston CEO Dr. Ulrich Bez has this to say about the Rapide: “[It] will exceed expectations to deliver elegance and practicality in a form that will allow driving enjoyment and comfort beyond anything that exists today. The Rapide will exist in a class all of its own, a true Aston Martin with the high performance and dynamic excellence that defines the brand, and a luxurious sporting grand tourer without equal.”

The car is set to debut late this year, and deliveries are expected to start by 2010. Production will be done in Aston’s new production facility in Graz, Austria and will be managed by Magna Steyr in coordination with Aston’s British team.

Finally, some real news about the up and coming monster Aston Martin four-door – the Rapide. With cars like the Lamborghini Estoque and the Porsche Panamera, the Rapide is sure to make the performance four-door market segment really interesting and we finally get to see official images leaked courtesy of Autocar.

The images are very close to the concept car that Aston presented a couple of years ago with some minor refinements done to the shape and curves. The Rapide is based on the DB9 chassis since the four-doors needed a longer wheelbase. It is powered by a 6.0L V12 engine that generates 480 bhp. The car is mated to a six-speed ZF auto Touchtronic gearbox.

The car is set to be slotted in between the DB9 and DBS in Aston’s range. Now this is quite confusing since, while it does have the power and performance figures that could slot it in that spot nicely, this car has got four-doors. And, in this world, that makes a lot of difference.

Source: Autocar

Reading this bit of news just made me feel sad. I have always dreamed of driving me one of these but my middle class income means that it would take me all my life and a miserly lifestyle to be able to afford the $265000 price tag on the Aston Martin DBS. Now, we might have to expect more price bumps as the company heads for a more upscale market.

Aston’s got new cars to hit the markets. The high-performance four-door Rapide will be on sale shortly. It’s beastly limited edition One-77 has sold out even before production. And they’re also out to relaunch the swanky luxury Lagonda badge.

Aside from these upcoming cars, Aston is also lining up replacements for the DB9 and the V8 Vantage into the pipeline just in time for their launches in 2011. As far as pricing is concerned, it is possible that the Vantage will be bumped to the current price range of the DB9 and the DB9 hiked up to the DBS’ price range.

Source: AutoWeek

Any news about upcoming Aston Martins are always welcome in my posting routine. Aston has gone a long way ever since it got tossed around from one company to the next. They’ve built a very strong tradition of the most exquisite of sports cars out there and they have more coming up.

The beastly One-77 has already sold out and the Lagonda badge will be revived soon. Right now, Aston’s showcasing its four-door car – the Rapide – that has enough power under the hood to put even some supercars to shame.

Amazingly, other automakers have also positioned themselves in this super four-door market with Porsche throwing in the Panamera and Lamborghini, the Estoque possibly to compete with the Rapide which was the first to be announced.

The Rapide is powered by a 6.0L V12 engine producing more than 500 horses. The Rapide will hit markets next year and the US showrooms will get them by Spring 2010 and is expected to cost at around $400,000. Oh yes, driving a beastly four-door has its costs but I could only expect the Rapide to be quite the ride.

Aston Martin is sure to be raking in big bucks if they now started to outsource production of their cars. They have announced that the Aston Martin Rapide (a concept from two years back) will be produced with Austria-based partner Magna Steyr. Aston Martin’s Gaydon plant is currently busy filling in sold-out orders for the DBS, DB9 and Vantage that they wouldn’t be able to accommodate the 2000 units/year schedule for the Rapide.

The Rapide is a 4-door sports car. If based on the concept, it should have at least a huge 6.0L V12 dishing out 480hp. Two years of development should at least bring something more to the package.

It’s still a long haul with production expected to start in 2009. Magna Steyr also makes luxury cars for Mercedes-Benz and BMW.