Like a Dell factory but what comes out is a LOT more fun: We visit Aston Martin

A day out at James Bond's car maker

In addition to the Aston Martins, another line is building Lagondas, a limited run of “price on application” super saloons. While the cars we saw being made are sports cars and grand tourers, the company is reviving the Lagonda brand and aims to build cars which are more Rolls-Royce than Rolls Royces.

Cutaway showing what's inside the ZF 8-speed auto

£1.5m Vulcan is track-only

And for very special customers there is the car which shares a name with the bomber which once graced the Gaydon airbase, the Vulcan. This is a £1.5m track-only car; a rival to the Ferrari FXXK and MacLaren P1 GTR. Officially a Vulcan will never see a number plate or a road, and Aston Martin won’t even talk about a road-going version - however there are third parties which will do a conversion of race cars. Only 24 Vulcans will be built and while they are not all sold yet an Aston Martin spokesman told the Reg that "we are in good shape”.

The factory reflected in a chrome wrap

DBX: Production versions will be four door

On a more accessible level the job of the new electric DBX crossover and perhaps the electric Rapide will be to reduce the average CO₂ output of Aston Martin cars. The previous, ridiculed, Aston Martin plan for that was the Cygnet: a Toyota IQ with an Aston Martin grille, and a car which looks distinctly uncomfortable whenever you see one. The DBX seems a much more realistic approach.

The DB10 concept in the new James Bond film points the way for future two door cars, but in the immediate future it would seem that perhaps Iron Man has more to worry about in the form of the DBX and Rapide electrics cars than Spectre has to fret about the DB10. ®