Aston Martin factory driver to attempt old speed record in the Bulldog concept
10 Jan 2021|1,034 views
Aston Martin factory driver Darren Turner is to attempt 322km/h in the Aston Martin Bulldog concept car 40 years after it was first tried. The Bulldog, styled by William Towns, is a one-off concept created in 1980 to prove that Aston Martin was not only a small company of renowned motoring artisans, but that its engineering prowess was also world class.
Aston Martin hoped that the car would be capable of over 322km/h, making it the fastest production car of its time. However, testing and development were curtailed with the car tantalisingly close to its design performance, having achieved 307km/h in testing.
In 2020, the car was given to Classic Motor Cars (CMC) in Bridgnorth, Shropshire, to carry out a complete restoration, lasting 18 months. Following this, the owner plans to run the car at over 322km/h and then take it on a world tour.
Overseeing the restoration, on behalf of the of the owner, is Richard Gauntlett, Victor Gauntlett's son who grew up with the car and his father's ambition of it becoming the fastest production car ever developed.
Richard said, "The car is well on the way to being restored and CMC will have it running by the end of the year. We will then attempt the record that never was. A critical part of this was finding the right driver for the job and someone that could get involved in overseeing the final elements of the project, in terms of set up and testing. I am delighted that Darren Turner, who has been an Aston Martin works and high-performance development driver for more than 15 years, has agreed to join the team."
Darren Turner said, "I had heard of the legend of Bulldog from within Aston Martin and when news started to filter out about the car being restored to go for the 322km/h target, I thought that was such a cool thing to do. I was following the story and thinking that it would be great to be involved in. When I was asked to drive it I didn't need to be asked twice! I really appreciate being asked and I’m looking forward to becoming part of the story of bringing Bulldog back to life and finally achieving what it set out to achieve all those years ago."
Aston Martin factory driver Darren Turner is to attempt 322km/h in the Aston Martin Bulldog concept car 40 years after it was first tried. The Bulldog, styled by William Towns, is a one-off concept created in 1980 to prove that Aston Martin was not only a small company of renowned motoring artisans, but that its engineering prowess was also world class.
Aston Martin hoped that the car would be capable of over 322km/h, making it the fastest production car of its time. However, testing and development were curtailed with the car tantalisingly close to its design performance, having achieved 307km/h in testing.
In 2020, the car was given to Classic Motor Cars (CMC) in Bridgnorth, Shropshire, to carry out a complete restoration, lasting 18 months. Following this, the owner plans to run the car at over 322km/h and then take it on a world tour.
Overseeing the restoration, on behalf of the of the owner, is Richard Gauntlett, Victor Gauntlett's son who grew up with the car and his father's ambition of it becoming the fastest production car ever developed.
Richard said, "The car is well on the way to being restored and CMC will have it running by the end of the year. We will then attempt the record that never was. A critical part of this was finding the right driver for the job and someone that could get involved in overseeing the final elements of the project, in terms of set up and testing. I am delighted that Darren Turner, who has been an Aston Martin works and high-performance development driver for more than 15 years, has agreed to join the team."
Darren Turner said, "I had heard of the legend of Bulldog from within Aston Martin and when news started to filter out about the car being restored to go for the 322km/h target, I thought that was such a cool thing to do. I was following the story and thinking that it would be great to be involved in. When I was asked to drive it I didn't need to be asked twice! I really appreciate being asked and I’m looking forward to becoming part of the story of bringing Bulldog back to life and finally achieving what it set out to achieve all those years ago."
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