2011 Aston Martin Rapide First Drive by Inside Line

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02-08-2010, 09:14 AM

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2011 Aston Martin Rapide First Drive by Inside Line

The 2011 Aston Martin Rapide is the most significant car launched by the storied British automaker since Dr. Ulrich Bez took over the reins in July 2000.

It is the company's first four-door sports car — actually its first four-door of any description if you exclude its association with Lagonda. More important, the Rapide is the first Aston Martin aimed at expanding sales to buyers in so-called emerging markets as well as traditional markets such as the U.K. and America. It is also the first Aston Martin to be built outside England. Since production at Gaydon, England, is maxed out at 8,000 vehicles, assembly of the 2,000 Rapides expected to be sold every year has been turned over to Magna Steyr in Graz, Austria.

So we arrived in Valencia, Spain, to drive the 2011 Aston Martin Rapide, expecting the usual corporate anxiety surrounding a new model. You know, a long, boring technical presentation followed by a dry and lengthy corporate marketing spiel read from a teleprompter by executives in their best tailored suits. Once we endured this, they would finally turn over the keys. Fortunately, Aston Martin is not your usual car company.

What Me Worry?
It starts with Aston Martin's Dr. Ulrich Bez, the CEO. Bez began his career at Porsche, moved on to BMW, then went to Korea, then came back to Aston Martin when it was owned by Ford and now is working for a company owned by a private equity group from the Mideast. He sounds like your usual corporate suit, but then you remember that this guy once headed up Porsche's racing department, developed the 911 Turbo, Carrera RS 2.7, 968 and 993 models during his tenure at Porsche and followed that up with the design of the Z1 at BMW. How many other CEOs do you know who have driven his product in the Nürburgring 24-hour endurance race?

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2011 Aston Martin Rapide First Drive