Member Info for Richard365054

Worthwhile watching Steve Sutcliffe review the new Vantage on Utube. He'd choose it above the Porsche 911 Turbo. There's no higher praise than that. He who waits...........................l

..........................April 24................April 23...............YTD 24..................YTD 23.................% change

Aston.....................77.........................55......................462.......................361......................+ 28%

Bentley..................96........................141.....................341.......................554......................- 38%

Ferrari....................92..........................79.....................360.......................337......................+ 7%

Lamborghini..........81.........................51......................333.......................215......................+ 55%

Maserati.................43..........................67.....................199.......................384......................- 48%

McLaren.................18..........................19......................59........................107.....................- 45%

Rolls.......................43..........................41.....................178.......................195.....................- 9%

.........................March 24..........................March 23...........................YTD 24............................YTD 23

Aston.............. 217 (+22%)..........................178................................385 (+26%)......................306

Bentley.............147 (-41%)...........................250................................245 (-41%).......................413

Ferrari...............164 (+3%)............................160................................268 (+4%).........................258

Lamborghini.....167 (+43%)).........................117................................252 (+54%).......................164

Maserati.............91 (-54%)............................196................................156 (-51%)........................317

Rolls...................80 (-32%)............................117................................135 (-12%)........................154

I read in Autocar that Bentley have pushed back the launch of their all electric model by one year. That mirrors AML who announced the same decision recently.

Separately, Renault have proclaimed large electric vehicles as environmental nonsense and said that small petrol and diesel city cars should be the focus.

It seems some manufacturers are having second thoughts about the wholesale stampede towards an all electric and battery future.

ASPs have been steadily climbing regardless of specials. Towards the end of the previous era of management under Palmer, a new previous generation Vantage was available in the US for $99,000.

If Valkyrie line runs down at the end of 2024 and Valhalla takes it's place to the end of 2026, ASPs will continue to rise. I cannot remember if a Syder version was planned.

After then there are the EVs both as SUVs and Sports/GTs. Who knows how these will be priced.

This takes us into 2027 so it's already quite a timescale.

The loss for AML in last year's figures was the abject delay in DB12 deliveries. It seems one person in particular carried the can for that.

Also, just thinking about Valkyrie, that assembly line will be coming to an end roundabout the end of this year and with the tubs being similar, it's eminently sensible for the technicians to transfer, with considerable additions, onto the Valhalla line.

It would make the transition very effective.

The sales for 2023 would indicate that the DB11/DB12 assembly line was just about stationary for 2 months as a consequence of supply issues with the new infotainment screen. What a difference to figures that would have made.

I noticed that about the EV launch being quietly put back to 2026. I don't actually have any issue with that as the EV market continues to change dramatically and the range of models being launched this year is still breathtaking. Plus the cost of development can be spread over a longer time frame. With 4 heavily revamped models in production this year plus Volante versions of 3 and then the Valhalla production line, AML have a very busy period ahead.

I think there's a confirmation that stalling EV sales are due to many factors.

1. Governments and politicians blinkered in their beliefs that EV was the only way to go and believing all the hype that people like Musk told them. What they refused to take into account was many people live in properties and locations that are unsuitable for easy recharging.

2. Manufacturers who were committed to EVs mainly developed top of the range models where margins were the greatest and made little effort to design more affordable cars for the masses.

3. Manufacturers such as Toyota and Porsche focused on an alternative solution but have been pretty much ignored by the politicians and so called experts.

4. Joe Public has plenty of nous and common sense and recognises the very questionable logic of everyone driving round in much heavier cars. Many have also understood and discovered that insurance premiums are much higher, tyres are more expensive and produce considerably more particle pollution and resales of second hand electric cars present potential mine fields when no one knows how a battery has been recharged during it's lifetime and to what extent the previous driver's habits may have damaged it.

5. People don't like being told the one direction they should be taking with potentially one of life's most expensive purchases. Usually you have choices and the blinkered attitude of politicians and the corrupt way in which many behave does not give confidence or guidance for many purchasers.

6. It's all very well trying to bully people into adopting EV cars and pricing people who drive ICE cars into paying extortionate parking fees in cities and towns, but many rebel and with towns and city centres crying out for shoppers, many drivers take the view that they'll take their custom elsewhere.

When 8% of the carbon dioxide produced comes from the motor car, people wonder why this particular aspect of our lives receives such unprecedented attention. I drive a lovely 3.0 litre diesel and total around 8,000 miles a year. That produces 2 tons of CO2 a year and my own breathing produces around one third of a ton of CO2. I have neighbours that enjoy foreign holidays twice a year and they produce 3 or 4 times the CO2 that I do, but they have an electric car and perceive themselves as saving the planet. It's no wonder the whole argument is in such a mess.

But c26, you're pushing and supporting the statements that Vantage and DBX will remain unchanged and DBS will receive a minor update. In which case there's minimal expenditure at AML, apart from on the Valhalla which reaches production this year.

But just think of the high premiums being received for the 500 units of DBS 770, 110 units of Valour, 190 units of Valkyrie and AMR Pro, 80 units of Valkyrie Spider, DBX 707, DB12 and DB12 Volante. Ignoring DBX and DB12 where sales numbers are effectively unrestricted, the other models generate £1 Billion of turnover. Valhalla will yield another approximately £600 million of turnover. Total £1.6 Billion and none of this derived from the uncapped core models.

The new Vantage is recognised to launch during the 1st quarter of 2024, so most of the expenditure has occurred by now. Therefore 2 of the 4 core models have already been heavily redesigned and funded, leaving changes and redesigns to the DBX and DBS.

But none of the latter is going to happen, according to the message you promote. So likely expenditure on new model revamps is irrelevant.

Suggest the people who like to slate AML read what I posted from Autocar on the 23rd December. That gives the position on all models forc2024.

Taken from Autocar 15-22 November.

"The DB12 was an evolution on the outside but a revolution inside, with an interior that was at last as good to use as it was to sit in, thanks to a new software platform and - drum roll, please - a touchscreen infotainment system to control it. There are slicker systems out there, but at last this was an Aston without an excuse. Material quality was increased significantly, too.

We had actually expected to see more stablemates join the DB12 by now in the Lawrencd Stroll era of Aston Martin, but ironically it's the integration if the new touchscreen that has slowed the ramp-up of not only the DB12vbut the Vantage and DBS replacements to follow. For the moment, the DB12 sands alone as the Aston without excuses - but not for much longer.

Aston Martin is on course for perhaps the busiest 12 months in its 110-year history, with replacements for the Vantage sports coupe and DBS grand tourer, the heavily updated DBX SUV and the new Valhalla all to launch.

Aston Martin haven't given a specific timeliness for its model launches over the coming year, nor has it revealed whether the Vantage and DBS names will be retired, as was DB11, but it has confirmed that it will introduce the first of its next-generation sports cars in the first quarter of 2024.

At the centre of the new Aston Martin line-up will be a replacement for the DBS flagship, which is set to evolve into more of an overt supercar, the GT position now being filled specifically by the DB11-replacing DB12. While the DB12 is available only with a twin-turbo V8 supplied by Aston Martin shareholder Mercedes AMG, the DBS is tipped to serve as a celebratory swansong for the firm's own venerable 5.2-litre V12, which was ramped up to 759bhp for the final-efition DBS 770 and could be in line to receive even more grunt to do battle with Ferrari's upcoming 812 Superfast-replacement.

A power-increase over the DBS could nudge the new supercar towards the 800bhp mark, which would make it the most powerful pure-ICE road car that Aston Martin have yet produced. Indications that the DBS replacement will be a tangibly different car to the DB12 suggest it will be styled to emphasise its flagship billing, no doubt taking influence from track-bred range-toppers like the Vantage V12, DBX 707 and DBS 770, which are obviously marked out as hard-core propositions by carbonfibre bodywork elements and extensive aerodynamic packages, as well as larger intakes and bigger brakes.

Aston Martin sales in the key market of China have slid in 2023, and Chinese buyers' affinities for luxurious and performance-focused SUVs and the latest technology means updating the DBX is crucial in reversing that trend.

The first Aston Martin EV will be an SUV, likely in the vein of today's DBX, rivalling the Lotus Eletre and forthcoming Lamborghini Lanzador among others. An electric GT will follow by 2030. It will share it's platform with every other AstonbEV, including sports cars.

From recollection, AML previously said they would be launching a new model every quarter. Volante versions count as new models and Valhallah is now very close. Can't remember the article or publication but it has appeared in print that the Valhallah would commence production later this year with deliveries in early 2024. The logistics around carbon fibre production must be immense when you consider the use in the Valour and the Valhallah. Photos of the redesigned Vantage Coupe have also appeared, albeit heavily disguised.

Very well SUFCESSEX. It's been a good ride this year with more to come. Investment trusts have also performed nicely.

Good afternoon to you, SUFCESSEX. I can assure you it wasn't entertaining writing all those letters and being ignored. I also remember Osorio once stating at an AGM that all letters received would be answered. I never received an answer from Lloyds to any of my letters. The biggest disappointment is how reprehensible this Bank's performance has been for almost a decade and a half.

It's a few years since I posted on here and the reason for my leaving was when the B of E instructed the Banks not to pay their dividends, but retain them for those who were in financial distress. This was at the beginning of the Corona virus clampdown. The dividend from major banks constituted the majority of my income but writing seventeen letters to the PM, Govenor of the B of E, Chancellor, Deputy Govenor of the B of E, specific MPs in senior positions and finally my local MP and eliciting just one response in total told me exactly how irrelevant individual members of the public are who don't have a voice.

Lloyds were, are and forever will be in my eyes, charlatans. The Pirate from Portugal milked the Bank for his own benefit and the Board looked on and acquiesced and drank from the same trough. Thirteen years ago the share price was 70p. The PPI explosion hit and all and sundry claimed and the Bank was happy to pay out all claimants, honest or otherwise. In the midst of this Osorio stated that in the future dividends would be two thirds of future profits. The statement raised the share price to 93p and this triggered Osorio's bonus for the year. Here we are, years later and the share is trading in the 40s. One utter dog of a share.

This is quite an interesting statement from Laurence Stroll which also supplements comments from earlier in the week about eight new models in the forthcoming period to £2 Billion turnover. AML seem to be focusing on their area of expertise, i.e front engined Sports and GT cars with added small volumes (relatively speaking) of supercars, hypercars and specials.

By cancelling the mid engined Vanquish the current court case can only apply to Mid engined cars from 2016 for a 10 year period. So far only about 100 or so Valkyries have been delivered and Valhalla won't see customers until 2024. So the overall pot that the court case may apply to has become very much smaller.

It is quite logical that AML pursue their area of expertise and comments have already been made about the Super GT category. It has never hurt Porsche never having a mid engined high performance volume car and the forthcoming electric Aston Martin may not technically fall into any category, depending upon the number and siting of the motors.

It is very interesting how AML have massaged, tuned and developed the 770 into becoming as great a car as it now is - Autocar don't throw plaudits lightly so the review for this model is a real accolade. When Tobias Moers was with the company quite a few leading figures left as a result of his management style. It would appear the new regime have reached out and secured a lot of talent which bodes well for the DB11, DBS replacement and Vantage. What a shame that the days are numbered for new ICE cars manufactured in the UK, unlike some countries such as Germany and Italy where they realise that efuels can be part of the solution to counter global warming. Unfortunately Grant Shapps hasn't shown himself to be capable of thinking outside of the box.

In the same way that the road car company is now revealing it's wares and haven't most of us been waiting for this although not all, it's also the case that determination and investment and securing the right people is showing the benefits with the F1 team. Considering where they were, AMF1 are currently showing their heels to all bar Red Bull and the purported tie-up with Honda for 2026 as their engine supplier will doubtless lead to cross links with electric technology and powertrains.

One would reasonably expect the development and fine tuning of the 770 to be reflected in the new DB12 when it is formally unveiled in 2 weeks and for one, I cannot wait.

The tie-up with Honda has also provided rumours that Honda may provide the electric power trains for the road cars. Honda have been devotees of the ICE engine and although not wholly convinced of the mass stampede to electrification will be launching thirty electric cars between now and 2030. They are also heavily involved with the hybrid approach and developments here may have the interest of AML. Other manufacturers are also continuing to develop highly efficient ICE engines and no doubt focus is being given to hydrogen developments as well as alternative fuels.

The other unknown is would new buyers come to the brand if their success on the racetrack continues. Mercedes certainly reckon that F1 is far more beneficial than conventional advertising. Contrary to this, Ferrari sell their cars regardless of race track results. In 44 years only two drivers have won titles for the brand.

I picked up on the lack of reference in the year end statement to there being no mention of the mid engined Vanquish. I wondered if the decision was regarding the current litigation as the agreement for commission from mid engined cars ran for 10 years from 2016. Without the Vanquish the commission pot will be hugely decreased. But I also wondered if the decision came about because of the approaching ban on ICE engined cars from 2030. The alternative to a mid engined car was EV or hybrid and Aston we know are developing models for this criteria. So maybe Valhalla as a mid engined ICE car just didn't make financial sense. An EV would not be classed as mid engined by any stretch of the imagination.

GTs and Sports cars totalled around 3000 units for 2022. With hugely significant redesigns coming shortly beginning with the DB11 you could fairly expect 4500 units once the new models are available to customers. You could also see a further lift in DBX sales with a coupe version. Combining GTs and Sports cars with the volumes from Valhalla and you do see 8500 units a year with an ever increasing AVP and overall margin. The unknown is where the forthcoming new model for 2025 sits and the likely numbers. The volumes may not be hit on the original timescales but the turnover and margins will be pretty close.