The British manufacturer of luxury sports cars celebrated its 100 years of record breaking successes and automotive brilliance with a series of events. Aston Martin’s actual birthday is on the 15th of January, which the company honored with a commemorative plaque reveal at the original home address of Aston Marin in Henniker Mews, London. This was followed by the Walter Hayes Memorial Lecture at the Park Lane Hilton Hotel. As a tribute to the founders Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford, invited guests got to watch a skit of the beginnings of the company wherein Martin was played by actor Sir John Standing.
The 2013 Nurburgring 24 Hours Race is one of the highlights of Aston Martin’s centennial year. Held last May, Aston Martin’s hydrogen-powered car ran its first zero-emission lap. Although it was just a test run, it is the first of its kind to lap in an international race. The Hybrid Hydrogen Rapide S clearly sets the bar of the environmental challenge for other race cars. While the monumental race happened, an auction for its antique collectibles at the Bonhams Aston Martin sale attracted 2000 bidders. The auction fetched £6.5 million ($10 million) which is said to be the most successful of all Bonhams sale events. Among the collectibles sold was a 1962 AM DB4 Vantage Convertible from the estate of the late Peter Gwynn. It fetched £611,900 ($9.46 million).
As part of its centennial celebration, Aston Martin joined the 24 Hours of Lemans. But this was met by the tragic death of AM’s racer, Allan Simonsen in a crash that took place at the first hour of the endurance race. Despite the grim event, AM had an eventful month of July starting with the UK race circuit Brands Hatch and a week-long centenary celebration at the AM’s Gaydon headquarters that featured factory tours and a car exhibition. A huge festivity for Aston Martin owners was also held at the historic Kensington Gardens in London.
An event for Silverstone and Wilton House Classics were held separately between July and August. The Silverstone Classic featured 100 cars from AM and the AM Club that held a parade lap at the British Grand Prix circuit. A timeline exhibit of AM Supercars and Wilton House Classics continued at the ancestral home of the Earls of Pembroke. Finally, in mid-August, Aston Martin was one of the hosts to the Monterey Automotive Week where AM cars went on tour from Napa Valley to Monterey. Guests were welcome to stay the Pebble Beach to cap off the prestigious Auto Week’s events.
