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Aston Martin set for complete renewal by 2020


The most aggressive product plan in the history of Aston Martin will reinvent the classic British brand by 2020.

An all-new DB11 is being tweaked for production next year to headline a fresh sports car showing. A Lagonda luxury sedan and a new-age crossover also join the action.

Aston is spending more than $1.2 billion on the sports cars and there will be extra investment for the additional programs. However, it does not intend to build more than 7000 cars a year to protect the exclusivity of the brand.

An engine partnership with AMG-Mercedes is key to the plan but there is action on almost every front — this from a company that easily could have died after Ford sold it. It's also developing a new V12 engine.

Aston Martin global marketing boss Simon Sproule says: "The turnaround plan, called Second Century, is the most aggressive in the company's history. What you end up with is a product portfolio of six or seven cars. And each has a six- or seven-year lifespan."

The plan includes an all-new fourth sports model. Sproule says Aston is going its own way with a crossover based on the DBX show car, as well as a high-end challenger to Rolls-Royce and Bentley.

The three-pillar approach is intended to make Aston self-funding, with sales providing cash for future development, for the first time in its history. "You generate the cash flow to reinvest in the next generation, and the one after that," Sproule says.

He admits the crossover is critical to the plan, but says there will also be hyper cars like the exotic One-77 with pricetags to match.

"The brand is going to stay absolutely rooted to its core, which is producing the most beautiful cars in the world. The evolution will just open it up to more people. The growth for us is the sedan and the crossover. The sports car market is relatively stable, globally. We still have a big upside in mature markets, including Australia.

With the crossover product and the new generation of sports cars ... the average age of an Aston Martin buyer is likely to come down.

"A well-executed, beautiful, five-door car (based on the DBX) will be hugely significant for our volumes in Australia.

"On top of the series production cars, we will also create the special-edition cars. We've done that with Lagonda, this year with Vulcan. That is a unique program, with a high price point but a high collector value. Because we are small and independent we can do these cars very quickly."

Sproule is open about plans to make Aston Martin more relevant to younger buyers and women. "We don't have a gender problem. What's not happening right now is that women are not the first buyer," he says.

"With the crossover product and the new generation of sports cars ... the average age of an Aston Martin buyer is likely to come down.

"We know we can sell cars to younger people. With the cars we've got coming, we think we can broaden the appeal. As baby boomers live longer, this is a market that's super relevant and super important to us."

But does Aston need to change more than its products to stay relevant and become successful? "We think that Aston Martin has a really strong, unique position. We're seen as more discreet, less flashy. People who buy an Aston Martin get a thumbs-up. It's the fans' choice.

"We've got a sense of humour. We're premium but not stuffy."