Lagonda U.K.: Lagonda is a British luxury car manufacturer. It was established in 1906, which has been owned by Aston Martin since 1947. The marque has had a non-continuous presence in the luxury car market, being dormant for several times during its existence, most recently from 1995 to 2008 and 2010 to 2013.
Established
1906
Headquarters
United Kingdom
History
Establishment
The Lagonda company was established in 1906 in Staines, Surrey, by a Scottish-American, Wilbur Gunn (1859–1920), a former opera singer. He became a British national in 1891 and worked as a speed boat and motorcycle engineer in Staines, England. He named the company after the Shawnee settlement “Lagonda” in modern-day Springfield, Ohio, the town of his birth.
In 1907 he introduced his first car, the 20 hp, 6-cylinder Torpedo, which he used to win the Moscow–St. Petersburg trial of 1910. This success provided a healthy order for exports to Russia which continued until 1914. In 1913 Lagonda launched an advanced small car, the 11.1 with a four-cylinder 1099 cc engine, which by 1914 featured a panhard rod and a rivetted unibody body and the first ever fly-off handbrake. During the First World War Lagonda built artillery shells.
Between the wars
After the end of the war the 11.1 continued with a larger 1400 cc engine and standard electric lighting as the 11.9 until 1923 and the updated 12 until 1926. Following Wilbur Gunn’s death in 1920, three existing directors headed by Colin Parbury took charge. The first of the company’s sports models was introduced in 1925 as the 14/60 with a twin-cam 1954-cc 4-cylinder engine and hemispherical combustion chambers. A new model for 1933 was the 16–80 using a 2-litre Crossley engine with pre-selector gearbox from 1934. The Rapier, a new small car, came along in 1934 with 1104 cc engine and pre-selector gearbox.
All was not well financially and the receiver was called in 1935. The company was purchased by Alan P. Good, who just outbid Rolls-Royce. He also persuaded W. O. Bentley to leave Rolls-Royce and join Lagonda as designer along with many of his racing department staff. The 4.5-litre range now became the LG45 with lower but heavier bodies and also available in LG45R Rapide form. The LG45 came in three versions known as Sanction 1, 2 and 3 each with more Bentley touches to the engine. In 1938 the LG6 with independent front suspension by torsion bar and hydraulic brakes came in.
More Information
Along with ex-Rolls Roycers Stuart Tresillian and Charles Sewell, and design genius Frank Feeley, W.O. swallowed his distaste for the primitive conditions of Lagonda’s factory, and got to work on the new engine that was to become his masterpiece, the V-12, launched in 1937. The 4480 cc engine delivered 180 bhp (130 kW) and was said to be capable of going from 7 to 105 mph (11 to 169 km/h) in top gear and to rev to 5000 rpm. The car was exhibited at the 1939 New York Motor Show. It is a Lagonda, known as the “Rapide” model, imported from England.
Aston Martin ownership
In 1947 the company was taken over by David Brown and moved in with Aston Martin, which he had also purchased, in Feltham, Middlesex. The old Staines works at Egham Hythe passed to Petters Limited, in which A.P. Good had obtained the controlling interest. Production restarted with the last prototypes from W. O. Bentley, the 1948 2.6-Litre with new chassis featuring fully independent suspension. However, it’s new 2580 cc twin overhead cam straight 6 became the basis for the Aston Martin engines of the 1950s.
The Lagonda name was briefly revived in 1969, appearing on a four-door prototype of the then new DBS model. The prototype was allocated chassis MP230/1 and was retained by the factory until 1972 and used by Sir David Brown as his personal car, registered JPP 5G. The car originally ran a prototype 5-litre V8 engine but this was quickly replaced by an early 5.3-litre production quad carb version (VS4008EE).
A new Lagonda saloon appeared in 1976, the large and futuristic Aston Martin Lagonda designed by William Towns. This low, rather square, wedge-shaped car was manufactured on Aston Martin V8 components and was available, at least in theory, until 1989. Further, Aston Martin manufactured a concept car called the Lagonda Vignale at the 1993 Geneva motor show. During 1993–94, nine Lagonda 4-door saloons and seven shooting brakes were made based on a stretched Aston Martin Virage.
Revival
On 1 September 2008, Aston Martin said as reported by Automotive News Europe that it would relaunch its Lagonda brand to help it expand into new markets such as luxury sedans and celebrate Lagonda’s centennial anniversary in 2009. Also, Aston Martin released a 4WD, 4-seat SUV at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the first Lagonda car. So, it includes a V12 engine and 22-inch wheels.
On 9 March 2011, Aston Martin confirmed the revival of the Lagonda brand. The new range would initially consist primarily of high-end SUVs. In 2014, however, Aston Martin declared a large, low-bodied saloon version, the Taraf. The Taraf is limited to only 200 production units and is being sold in the UK and US markets, despite initial plans to be offered only in the Middle East.