Aston Martin Makes Special Vantage Trio Honoring 100-Year-Old A3

(Bloomberg) -- Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings Plc has struggled in recent years to gain its footing during the auto industry’s most dynamic era in more than a century.

It saw significant losses after going public in 2018, and in 2020—when Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll became chairman—a year of restructuring that included cash injections and ties forged to Daimler AG. Most recently, the automaker is suing a company affiliated with one of its dealers in Switzerland, alleging that it withheld deposits collected for the $3.5 million Valkyrie supercar.  

But it would be foolish to count out the 108-year-old brand just yet. Legends don’t die that easily—and Aston Martin is still making beautiful cars.

On June 23, the brand announced it would build three modern-day tributes to celebrate 100 years of its oldest surviving car, the A3. The tributes are specialized versions of the 2021 Aston Martin Vantage Roadster, which has a 503-horsepower V8 engine and costs $147,000.

A 11-horsepower roadster with a 1.5-liter, four-cylinder engine, the original A3 rolled out of Aston Martin’s then-production facility at Abingdon Road in London in 1921. Just one was made, the third of five single prototypes the company constructed before official series production began.  

The lightweight racer made its name after setting speed records in such places as the Essex Motor Club Kop Hill Climb (1922) and the Brooklands racing circuit (1923), where it hit 84.5 mph. It was used extensively and, by all accounts, rather casually by Aston Martin co-founder Lionel Martin until it disappeared for years under private owners unaware of its history. Sharp-eyed buyers who knew its significance noticed it at an auction in Newport Pagnell, England, in 2002. 

Each of the new Vantage Roadsters will include nods to the racing heritage and design of the A3. Along with traditional elegance and a sporty stance, they will have a unique grille with bright aluminum trim and black square mesh in the middle, which is similar to the retro finished look of the A3. Aston Martin’s heritage badge used at the time the A3 launched is positioned on the mesh.   

The Vantage Roadsters will also have side fender panels with a saddle-leather strap inspired by the exposed hood strap on the 1921 car, which secures the hood in place. They come with a set of bronze brake calipers, (representing the bronze detailing on A3) on bespoke 20-inch lightweight, forged, gloss-black wheels. Inside, the seats come with embroidery similar to that of the historic car, “Chestnut Tan” leather accents, and contrast stitching. Each comes with right-hand-drive, although a left-hand drive might be available, pending approval, said Henry Cozon, the head of Aston Martin’s bespoke division sales, in an email.   

The first of the centenary commissions will be unveiled in real life on June 26 at an A3 celebration at the Dallas Burston Polo Club in Warwickshire, England. Orders will be taken on-site, with first deliveries scheduled for the fall of 2021 and any others 16 weeks after the order is placed. An Aston Martin spokesperson was unable to confirm pricing at the time of this story’s publication.  

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