The wildest Aston Martin ever is now up for auction
What's the story
The 1984 Lagonda by Aston Martin has been listed for sale, and it is as futuristic as it gets. The car was designed by William Towns in the 1970s and is a luxury sedan with a wedgy design typical of the era. It looks more like something out of a sci-fi movie than an actual car.
Reliability concerns
Lagondas are known for their unreliability
The Lagondas of this era are known for their unreliability, owing to their complex British engineering. However, despite its Blade Runner-esque look, the car is just a machine. A few years ago, Car and Driver spoke to Lagonda owner Harjeet S. Kalsi who had made his own replacement relays for his 1982 model. With these in place instead of the fault-prone mechanical relays, his car has run faithfully for around two decades.
Performance details
The car is powered by a V8 engine
The 1984 Aston Martin Lagonda is powered by a 5.3-liter V8 engine, same as the one in the contemporary Vantage model. However, it has been tuned to deliver more torque at the cost of peak power. The car produces 263hp and 396Nm of torque and comes with a three-speed automatic transmission from Chrysler. Its interior is even more futuristic than its exterior, featuring hand-crafted materials, soft-touch buttons, and an LED instrument cluster made by aircraft specialist Javelina.
Market impact
The model was aimed at wealthy buyers
Despite a long development cycle, the Lagonda was a hit for Aston Martin, which touted it as the world's fastest sedan at the time. The car was targeted at affluent and adventurous buyers. This particular model is painted in maroon, just like the one owned by famous stuntman Evel Knievel. This specific model hasn't been driven much under its current ownership. Auction ends on June 15.