The Steven Malman Cars Blog

Remember the Aston Martin Lagonda Concept? If you don’t, be thankful. It is a vehicle who nobody liked in the first place, and its styling hasn’t worn well with time. Lagonda was a design study by Aston Martin, who was looking to launch Lagonda as a separate brand in order to sell luxury SUVs. The reception it received was strikingly similar to the way everyone reacted to the Bentley EXP 9 F Concept this past March.

While Aston expanded its reach with the Rapide (and hideous Cygnet…), building an SUV was ruled out under the Aston Martin name. The premise of the Lagonda made sense though; Aston did its research and concluded it would do very well in the United States and emerging markets. The research was spot on, and they apparently arrived at that conclusion earlier than Bentley and Lamborghini.

But, the Lagonda SUV was never given the green light due to the horrible reception it received. The smart thing to do would have been to try again, but we haven’t heard much since – until now. Autocar says the Langonda SUV isn’t dead. The profits are proving too hard to ignore. When Porsche was independent, it made a similar decision to produce the Cayenne. The pressure is on to diversify when you’re an independent manufacturer. Much less so when you’re under a corporate umbrella (*cough* Lamborghini cough*), but we digress. Buyers in the U.S lap SUVs, as well as in countries like China and India. Chinese and Indian buyers apparently aren’t into super cars as much as SUVs, due to poor road conditions.

Also, IHS Automotive analyst Colin Couchman says: “The traditional markets for supercars — the US and Europe — are still depressed…although the Chinese market remains buoyant, that won’t feed through to Aston because the Chinese don’t yet see the value of displaying their wealth through owning an expensive sports car.” SUVs have a lot more potential for growth, that’s for sure. We aren’t opposed to the idea either – big, luxurious SUVs are cool. However, they need to be sold under the right brand and styled properly The Lagonda Concept didn’t do the trick in that regard. If they go back to the drawing board and produce something that looks good, we could see this thing working out. Ulrich Bez said the company is doing just that, with an updated concept “in the coming year.” We’ll have to see what transpires.

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For a while, most of the automotive world was intently focused on the BMW 1-Series M. A lot of news, teasers and relentless speculation lead to its debut. Then, BMW announced it was a “one and done”, with it being put into production for just one model year. We’re not sure why they did that, but it was nice while it lasted.

As a bit of a consolation, BMW is announcing the 135is Coupe and Convertible for 2013. While it is no 1-Series M, the 135is is the most powerful standard 1-Series yet. The 1-Series is a previous generation BMW product, developed during the Bangle era. That means it is a bit legacy in terms of powertrain setup as well.

Base models of the 3- and 5-Series have turned to turbo four-cylinder power, but the 135is still has a six-cylinder. And not just any six, mind you, but BMW’s lovely turbocharged 3.0-liter inline unit. For duty in the 135is the 3.0-liter has added 20 horsepower and 17 pound-feet of torque. The result is 320 hp and 317 lb-ft of torque, mated to either a six-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. Exterior changes include a darkened grille and mirror, along with unique 18-inch wheels.

The suspension has been tweaked as well, with a stiffer tune versus the standard car. While not an M Performance model, M Sport bits have been thrown in the interior to give it a sportier feel. Compact and rear-wheel drive, the 135is should be a lot of fun to throw it around. Like the 1-Series M, enjoy it while it lasts! Like the rest of the competition, the next-generation car will be moving to a front-wheel drive platform. A FWD architecture is being developed to underpin cars like the 1-Series and upcoming MINI. The 135is starts at $44,195 (including $895 destination) and $44,895 for the convertible. If you’re interested, head to the BMW dealer – they are on sale now.

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Fisker’s funding issues with the Department of Energy have caused there to be some uncertainty over the future of the Atlantic. Formerly known by the Project NINA moniker, the Atlantic was introduced at the New York International Auto Show in April. With a commitment to government investment, Fisker secured a former General Motors plant in Wilmington, Delaware as a production facility.

Fisker has remained confident about the future of the Atlantic, as well as its ability to raise funds from private equity. So far, Fisker has raised nearly $1 billion. With or without DOE funding, we’d imagine these investors are willing to put in the funds needed to see the Atlantic to production. Like the Model S over at arch rival Tesla, the Atlantic is Fisker’s make-or-break product. New documents have been leaked that shed a bit more light on how the delay in funding has impacted the Atlantic’s arrival date.

InsideEVs says the Atlantic is now on track for full production to begin in mid-2014. The first prototypes are slated to arrive mid-next year. That is pretty disappointing given Fisker was bandying about late this year as a production start date. This a pretty significant delay, and it leaves Fisker with just the Karma for at least two years. Discussions with the DOE are said to be ongoing.

Interesting is that Fisker appears to be all-in on the Wilmington, Delaware plant. There is no contingency plans for production being undertaken elsewhere, such as with Valmet in Finland. With DOE funding unlikely, most wrote off the plant in Delaware as a production site. According to these leaked documents, though, Fisker hasn’t. As for the Atlantic itself, some new light has been shed on the car. It will make about 300 horsepower and be powered by a turbo four-cylinder sourced from BMW (which we already knew).

Bigger news though is that the price tag will be in the upper range of what was originally thought. Atlantic will start at around $50,000-60,000 – squarely in Model S territory. Fisker lists the Audi S4/A6, BMW 3- and 5-Series and the Mercedes C- and E-Class as chief competitors. The delay is disappointing. If Fisker can get its act together though, we do think the car has a good potential for success. It probably could sell on looks alone.

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