Zombie Brand Lagonda To Enter Dead-On-Its-Feet SUV Segment

Edward Niedermeyer
by Edward Niedermeyer

When Aston-Martin CEO Dr Ulrich Bez announced that his firm would be reviving the Lagonda name, there was some understandable confusion. Traditionally, the Lagonda name is reserved for four-door Astons. Yet the forthcoming Rapide four-door coupe has only been called an Aston and carries Aston’s distinctive styling cues. Speaking at the Paris Auto Show, Bez confirmed that the Rapide would only be offered as an Aston-Martin, but that the Lagonda name had been exhumed to allow the company to build… get this… an SUV. “The Rapide will only be an Aston Martin,” Bez tells Autocar, “It will be a sports car and not a limo. A Lagonda will be different. There won’t ever be an Aston SUV but it fits Lagonda.” Though it’s heartening to learn that Bez wouldn’t consider sullying the Aston brand with an SUV, you’d think that logic would keep him from reviving another storied name simply to compete in a death-spiraling segment. If you want a swank British SUV you buy a Landie, right? And if you buy a four-door Aston, it’s going to be an Aston Rapide. So why the necromancy?

Edward Niedermeyer
Edward Niedermeyer

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  • Joeaverage Joeaverage on Oct 02, 2008

    Now that is ugliest SUV I've ever seen. Yeah, the segment is best forgotten for new products. Are we reaching the end of interesting and compelling vehicles? Will we reach back 60 years to something really old and make it new again? I hope so.

  • Anonymous Anonymous on Oct 02, 2008

    Reviving a dead brand name to start building SUVs. With thinking like that this guy could easily be the next GM CEO.

  • Billc83 Billc83 on Oct 02, 2008

    Actually, the idea of a Lagonda SUV isn't unprecedented. After all, it would bring back memories of the body on frame construction of the Lagondas of the 30s!

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