Lagonda
Lagonda was a British automobile brand that was known in particular in the 1930s through success at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, later went up in Aston Martin and was set in 1964 as an independent brand. 1976 Aston Martin used the name again as a model name.
Company Formation
Company founder was the former opera singer Wilbur Gunn ( † 1920), an American of Scottish descent, who emigrated in 1900 to England and initially cooperated in the construction of steamboats. After that he began in Staines, Middlesex, to build motorcycles, which he the Indian name of a small river near his hometown Ohio - was - Lagonda. So he followed the example of other Americans who chose the name of chiefs or Indian tribes such as Pontiac as a brand name for their vehicles.
In addition to motorcycles Gunn developed by the end of 1904, together with AH Cranmer a tricycle with two-cylinder engine, a so-called Voiturette, which he also sold as Lagonda with success, so the name was retained.
Three years later, Gunn brought the first four-wheeled car with four-and six-cylinder engines out.
Models and sporty reputation
Also the built from 1907 lightweight four-wheel car with 1100 cc four-stroke engine that made 11 horsepower, bore the name Lagonda. Since the car unexpectedly also liked celebrities like the Russian Tsar Nicholas II, the car was built with minor modifications until 1920.
In the 1920s and the subsequent decade founded the sports car with two- and three-liter engines the reputation of the brand Lagonda, as these cars have won several sports car races and 1935 crowned her career with a win at Le Mans. The winning car was a Lagonda Rapide M 45 However, vehicles brought like this, no economic success, so Alan Good took over 1935 Lagonda. New technical director was Walter Owen Bentley, whose company Rolls-Royce took over in 1931. Under Bentley was born 1936/37, based on the LG 5 including a luxury car with a 12-cylinder V-engine, of a cylinder capacity of 4.5 liters and an output of 175 hp ( SAE). However, the sales of this car failed to meet high expectations.
Sale of the company, going out as a separate brand
The financial burden of the Second World War and the economic failure of the new model were the reasons that Lagonda could not continue to exist as an independent brand, so the British multi-millionaire David Brown in 1947, the company bought up and integrated into Aston Martin. Under the brand name of a six-cylinder coupe and seven years later emerged even once a twelve-cylinder Lagonda for it but given the economic conditions in the 1950s, again was no market. Also the 1961-1965 Lagonda Rapide produced based on the DB 4 was only built 55 times. Brown resigned and sold Aston Martin. In 1976, Lagonda, a small resurrection, as a V8 model on Aston Martin basis was the logo of Lagonda. The William Towns futuristic sedan remained until 1990 in the program. Also, the Aston Martin Virage individual vehicles were handcrafted door sedan and even station wagon at the customer with the brand of Lagonda. In this series handmade individual pieces but never went.
Aston Martin planned in 2009, the Lagonda brand to revive for a luxury SUV in 2012. But that did not work because the Aston Martin management had plans of an SUV in the meantime discarded.