I'm in Beverly Hills and my neighbor has his 1980 Lagonda parked in his garage since circa 1985 (he replaced it with a Rolls and never looked back). It's under a cover (I think it has 16,000 miles on the odo) and has not been moved since. If I recall his story, it needed a new radiator and the dealership said it would take 3 months to arrive. He parked it in disgust, bought a Rolls, and it has been parked every since. He's now about 90 and remains sharp as a tack (but stopped driving about 15 years ago). That car makes a 1969 Cadillac Broughm look like a Toyota Corolla.
A woman who owned Ford dealerships in Nottinghamshire when I was a child owned 2 of these. The first was a Geneva show car which failed badly on her and was replaced by a bespoke version, for which she commissioned a sepia book, showing every stage of the car’s production I was looking at her car outside the dealership and she spotted me . She not only took me for a ride in the car, she loaned the incredibly expensive book showing the cars assembly in blind faith that I would return the book which I did. What an experience
About 12-years ago we were visiting Hohenwerfen castle in Austria- the place where the film ‘where Eagles dare’ was filmed. About 7 of these Lagonda’s rolled into the car park, most with British plates on them. It was a double wow moment.
@Harry’s garage Hi Harry, Tom Papadopoulos - Autosport Designs, Inc. - New York. Loved the video and agree having owned many Lagonda’s over the years, Series 4 is the Lagonda that actually works! Small correction, it is not the only Rolls Royce Midnight Blue, we here in The Colonies have been lucky enough to have one in LHD. All the best, keep the throttle down :) Tom Papadopoulos Autosport Designs, Inc.
Back in the seventies I was a photographer for Street Machine Magazine and I went along to Newport Pagnell to photograph the digital dashboard in the Lagonda. Before I left I was asked if I would like a drive in the Lagonda. I had arrived in my company Chrysler Alpine so the drive around the Buckinghamshire countryside was something never to be forgotten.
I remember the old Duke of Westminster had one, when he was at the Oxford Apollo watching the Moody Blues he had it parked up directly outside. Some young copper had him brought out and told him to move it to a proper parking spot somewhere, and he took the gentle telling off very well. Back in the days when police believed in "without fear or favour"... Cool car.
Been feeling a bit blue today. Not massive. Just a bit. Seeing this pop up was such a little lift. I enjoy Harry's Garage content, and quite the fan of the Lagonda! 😊
I too, was at the Earls Court Motor Show 1976, with my late friend , Alan Thorpe. We had saved up our paper round money for weeks on end, ( earning £1.62 1/2 per week ) , for the combined coach trip from Kidderminster / entrance fee. The Lagonda was undoubtedly the car of the show, it was out of this world , both in design and price range. I remember the trip for various reasons. 1; I got pickpocketed outside Earl’s Court , so my additional fiver I’d saved for a steak meal treat after got cancelled, 2; walking from Earls Court across Hyde Park to Marble Arch to collect the coach back also seeing the orange mid engined turbo diesel Mercedes prototype in the dealership at Marble Arch, and 3; this Lagonda . 1976 , what a year! Happy days
Did you also see the 'new' Lotus Esprit too? Sorry to hear about the pick-pocketing Martin, but sounds like great memories! I saw it in the summer of 1980 at the Manchester Motor show. 👍🏻
@@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab hi Peter, yes probably did , but it was the Lagonda that stood out with headlines above everything else. Enjoyed road tests of the Esprit and , of course , it’s appearance in The Spy who Love Me, one of Sir Rogers best. You’ll laugh at this bit, we had to make do with a toffee apple each before we caught the coach back home !
It seems that everything is attainable now, either that or people hate you and think your a crook for buying such an ostentatious product. When I saw it it 76 I just dreamed of owning one, what it would be like to drive (I had a 67 anglia at the time 😭) how the dash worked etc etc it was fantastic futuristic almost other worldly at the time. Happy days indeed.
Feel for you mate because you got pick pocketed and missed out on your steak dinner. That would have been the icing on the cake for such an exciting day! Hope you eventually got your steak dinner!
@@stefanlakomy6195 thanks . No , didn’t get the steak dinner, we made do with a toffee apple ! Walking from Earls Court over Hyde park to Marble Arch to wait for the coach. Simple times, but happy days. Had a few steak meals since though
My Father took me to the 1976 show and i was so mesmerised by the AML.. and seeing this today all those years later I'm still blown away.. the colour spec really makes the car... oozing elegance from every angle... Stunning car even in 2023..
I had to write my first report for school on the 76 motorboat at the NEC . Got free tickets because my mother worked there before working at a company called Burn Tubes and could have had one of the earliest BMX bikes in the uk in the late 70s
In ‘84 starting a new job in west London, I briefly lodged in the family home of a colleague. One evening his mother turned up and got me to look at her new company car, a virtually unused 2 year old AM Lagonda that her boss wasn’t driving! We took it for a run round Fulham and it did feel like an absolute spaceship. I’ve loved them (at a distance) ever since. For context, I was driving a mini pickup at the time.
This car always reminds me of a Concorde on 4 wheels for some reason, it carries the same kudos regarding the era it was built, the engineering that went Into it and the impact it had on the general public.
That moment when Harry is sitting in the car, on his drive, explaining the dash layout and you realise just how ridiculously raked that windscreen is. God! I love the 70's designs...
My memory of the Lagonda was when driving, for a hire car company in the late '70s, up the M1 at a 'smidgeons' over the speed limit. Came up behind one of these in the outside lane and decided to 'flash it' out of the way!! It responded by a lift of the nose and a disappearance into the distance. What a car!! Will never forget that moment.
I too savour the memory of hacking up the M1 in the 1970’s , for me it was the company pool car, a ford Consul, my first drive at over 100. Then back to a fungus ridden minor traveller. Great days.
@@johnsherborne3245 Great story John! Here in Australia I distinctly remember my first drive over 100 (or 160 km/h). It was across the Mooney Mooney Bridge, heading towards Newcastle in a company white Ford Falcon. In the 30+ years since then I have ridden sports bikes and owned a 911, so 100 became a bit pedestrian. Now I'm a dad, still on sports bikes and far too responsible to do any such thing... *wink*
@@deldridg love it. In My time in Oz I owned a sigma so no great excitement alas, but I moved from that heap to a succession of Golf GTIs which were fabulous, now a project 928 on the stocks.
I've never really known what to make of the Aston Martin Lagonda. I love that it exists, but I've zero interest in having or even driving one. It's the sort of thing that works best in a museum as a piece of 70s kitsch. As an artifact, it's absolutely superb.
As a kid, I'm 52, when I first saw this car in Road & Track I was blown away by its design and futuristic CRT interior that was so far ahead of everyone else that 40-ish years later it seems even more amazing to me. Harry, thank you for reviewing this amazing car.
Epic on every level, I was there at my first motorshow in 76, this car is still imprinted in my memory. Looks absolutely amazing even now, proper ‘as you imagine’ luxury interior. Totally with Harry on this one, not the fastest but makes ALL the right noises and just so so desirable. Sadly we will never see unique cars like this ever make production again, a genuine jaw dropper and a very happy memory. Thanks for taking us for a drive Harry, absolutely loved it, same gauges as my vette as well…!
Its a pure William Towns design. He also designed the Aston Martin Bulldog 200mph supercar thats recently been restored . I believe he also did some of the early Lotus straight wedges.. The man was very fond of wedges.😉😎 He also did the amazing Hustler 4 and 6 wheel kit cars culminating in the impressive Jaguar based 6 wheel Highlander though a a lot of modern electric city car designers could take a few lessons from his Tiny Microdot 3 seater abreast DIY hybrid with its built in shopping trolley boot. Amazing given its tiny overall length and the fact he wasnt a short man either. Ive forgotten the name of his design studio🤔..but he was a genuine enthusiast for kit car design and i love the economy and practicality of his 6 wheel Hustler Huntsmans. ..I would love to see them reimagined with E power. The best version of this beast is the Estates😎 its like the car the Volvo V70 wanted to be 😂 price... If you have to ask you cannot afford one ...🙄🤣
Harry, this car captured my full attention when I was in high school and has been a sweet spot in my automotive memories from that first glimpse in whatever car magazine I was drooling over at that time. To be a young man surrounded by American muscle cars, this was the start of my love affair with stately sedans.😊
Stunning design, and for those of us who were 70's kids into cars it was an iconic dream machine! But wish they'd left the rear light cluster design alone - the series 1-3 block design looked much better.
I'm an 80's kid, but this car has fascinated me for as long as I can remember. I've never seen one in person, but read piles of classic car magazine articles about it during the 80's and 90's.
If I’m not mistaken the series 1-3 had to have secondary rear lights in the underside of the boot lid because the main rear lights lifted with the boot. I loved it as a kid in the ‘70s - inspirational, yet utterly bonkers. I think I love it even more now. Wow.
A real stunner of a car, it's hard to think that its the best part of fifty years since it landed at Earl's Court and still looks as fresh and futuristic as it did back then.
I had the pleasure of seeing one of these in the 80's in Bury, Greater Manchester. It was parked outside an old textile mill. It really did look like a space ship. What an amazing machine.
What a wonderful and rare car! My father found it ugly back in the early eighties, I, on the other hand, have always been a big fan of this design. Thank you so much for the exhaustive review.
I was at the 76 motorshow as a spotty 12 yr old and even managed to get on the stand! Seem to remember they had a separate mock up of the dashboard. Whole car was, in fact, really a mock up but as a 12 yr old, one of the best days ever. Happy times. Thanks Harry for the review.
Actually it took 16 weeks to build one of these Lagonda's. One came of the line about once a week. I was an apprentice for Aston Martin 1986 - 1990 and worked on many of them!
My friend, Martin Hamblin was the sales manager for Marshall of Cambridge Aston Martin and Jaguar in the 80's and 90's. He told me at the time that the Lagonda was by far the quickest of the range between Cambridge and Newport Pagnell. That included the Vantage and also the new Virage. It is one of my all time greatest cars.
Love love love those. There’s a light blue on tan 3rd generation in Orange County, CA where I live. Here, where Bentleys, Ferraris, Lambos….are so common, the Lagonda stands out like nothing else. What a design, what a presence!
The best automotive channel on youtube, been sitting with a smile on my face for 20 minutes, great review and what a car. I just had a thought aswell, if my lottery numbers come up, and I struggle with what cars to buy I just have to sift thru whats tested on this channel and whats in the garage and pick out quite a few of the cars tested out to put in my dream garage. Props to Harry for bringing us these cars.
A jaw dropping car when launched and now. If you want to turn heads wherever you go, I would say that £89k for such a rare car is the way to go. It’s a lot of money but in comparison with it’s price new and what £89k buys you these days that’s not a bad price
Outstanding video, Harry! This is still a spectacular looking car even today. Looks far more stunning than a current day BMW 7 series or Merc S Class, in my personal opinion. Thanks again!
I remember seeing pictures of these in car magazines in the 80's. I absolutely love the look of it. I would buy one in a heartbeat if I could afford one. Thank you.
Thank you for creating reviews like these. A refreshing change from the modern vehicles. As a child, I remember these being launched in the mid 70's, they were like space ships ! In what must have been the early 90's I first saw one on the road and I was still blown away. This year I saw four together at the AMHT Festival at the National Motor Museum - revived all those childhood memories.
I was on that stand too. My brother on the simulator and me in the car, As a fourteen year old. I seem to remember Lord Hesketh being on the stand too.
A rare sight here in Australia, however I did see one in the early 80's (I think) at the Bathurst 1000 car race. It was just parked in the paddock area behind the pits. You can't really comprehend the dimensions of these cars until you're standing next to one. They are huge.
Flamboyant medical doctor Geoffrey Edelsten had an earlier one. A few years ago I saw a black earlier one advertised by a dealer in Australia. It had standard Aston Martin timber dashboard and gauges. The ad said it had been ordered new with those. With hindsight likely a good choice. I wonder whether it cost less for that reason.
Looks like something Joe 90 should have been driving! What an enormous engine bay. So weird looking back on what was considered to be cutting edge in the 70’s. Thanks for the video Harry! 👍
I used to do garden work for an old gent on an estate house here in Ireland. He had, i think, was the only originally Irish 1990 registered Lagonda. Racing Green in colour. It was kept mostly in the garage but he would take it out for trips to town. This gent was in his eighties and every time he'd take it out he would have hit off something and it would cost him to fix it. Couldn't accept that as an avid car lover he's spacial awareness was letting him down. And possibly first signs of dementia which was what overcame him later. It also gave trouble with the electric dash and was a huge beast on narrow Irish roads. He got mad with it one day when it again failed the test. This time because of mismatched tyres. He sold it to a young guy in his early twenties for €8k. He sold it on quickly. I was distraught when i found out. Seen it again at a car show in Dublin. Hoped to speak to the current owner but was nowhere to be found. This is a review I've been waiting for.
I would LOVE to see Harry do a big Euro road trip in this very car. Maybe even a winter one with those tyres. Looks made for it. His trips are filmed/edited so well it feels like we are there with him.
Harry: We ASKED for more interesting classics...You LISTENED and...DELIVERED! 😍 What an amazing machine! 😄 I think I do prefer the looks of the original '79 version (especially lights, -front AND rear) but yes that early dash was full of issues. Imagine trying to park it though!? 😖 But HOW heavy? 😨 ...And (£120k in '89?) HOW MUCH? 😵 Still love it though, despite the OTT lambswool! 😂 ...But looks like a great tran-continental cruiser! 👍🏻Brilliant vid Harry! More like this please...10/10 ! ☺️👏🏻👍🏻
My landlord had one of these stuck in his garage in Oxford when I was there, 35 years ago, I never saw it once run. Hated the shape then, still hate it now. When I babysat for his kids, they used to play in it and pretend it was a spaceship. I think Chris, my landlord had wired the dash up so all the lights could be switched on. Probably the best use for it.
Hi Harry, fantastic..! A local businessman bought one of these back in the day where I live. I was still at school at the time & was out on my bike & saw it parked outside a local pub / restaurant. I marvelled at its futuristic look & remember seeing those Star Ship Enterprise style buttons on the dash when I stopped to have a look. Keep up the good work, your videos are Ace..!!!
As a 16yr old petrol head I can also remember this being launched in '76 and sharing Harry's thoughts exactly, Thunderbirds are Go!😂 Digital instrumentation and looks, seemingly straight from a Gerry Anderson series it was like nothing else before it or since for that matter. Digital dash aside, sumptuous interiors were nothing new but this car is obviously all about the styling and it's aged so well👍 The well proven AM V8 may feel a bit anaemic pushing 2+ tons but it does have a nicely muffled sound track. Curiously, the one fact that springs to mind whenever I see a picture of one of these is that Prince Charles had one!
I was 11 years old when I first saw the Lagonda in a magazine. I was completely floored with this car and I still get the same feeling every time I see one. Thanks for doing a video on this.
Absolutely stunning automobile!...There were several running around Beverly Hills in the late 1970's and while captivating, the fit and finish was just terrible for a vehicle of this stature. I imagine they improved over time."Thunderbirds Are Go!" is right on Harry - hope you do more classics like this.
Probably my all-time favorite classic hyper luxury car, because it was above all a futurist design which did away with all the typical luxury car looks at the time. I have always liked the quirky, forward-looking designs. And seen today, it is so slender looking - sure miss that, as much as I miss the big glass areas. Still, I think the first iteration was the mest looking - shame it is not the best example.
I remember in the mid 80' williams BMW in liverpool had one of these in, as a car mad 10 year old it was like something out of star wars. My dad took me in to see it and the salesman let me sit in it. I was a well chuffed 10 year old.
@@ianrosie4431 Good question! And if memory serves me correctly, when the Austin Metro and Maestros (complete with LCD display) were launched, they made it on to the BBC News.
I fell in love with this when I first saw it back in the 1970s. I saw several in California on the road over the years. Would love to own one. I love the earlier version in black, problems and all. Thanks for sharing.
A series 3 body (which I think looks better, especially at the back) with a series 4 interior / dash, and a Vantage engine would have been something special. I believe one Vantage Lagonda was made by the factory.
@@sovas2111 It certainly would have been. Thanks, I didn't know that. Not that I could afford one anyway, but we can all dream. And mine's in Suffolk Red.
Harry, thank you, I always watch your videos. As a serious car buff in the 70's I have to say the Aston Lagonda was the worst looking Aston I had or have ever seen. I haven't changed my opinion... keep up the good work :)
Superb, most of the cars you review you can see a review elsewhere, this is so so special. We went to the motorshow in 1976 the only time I have ever been to one. . What I remember most was the Maserati stand and all the Triumph Dolomites. I came home with loads of brochures. It is great they got the car right in the end. I have never seen one on the road ever. A great review and still a fantastic looking car. In your garage it made all your other cars look like they are from the days of Queen Victoria.
Wow, so good to see the Lagonda! I visited AM factory on business in the mid 70s and was fortunate enough to see a craftsman shaping body panels for the Lagonda. Never forgot that day.
It was cool enough that Evel Knievel had one in 1993, towing a trailer that was made of the rear end of another lagonda , with mountain bikes on it's roof... hung out with that madman for Thanksgiving 1993 at the Maxim hotel, Las Vegas.
I love this behemoth of the roads. At 17, my school friends separated mother met this shady guy whose business was very mysterious and which had links with the Italian mafia. We were permitted to go to one of the mothers boyfriends bbq/party and he arrived in a beautiful gold 2 door Aston Lagonda. We climbed in the back and the seats were divine and I remember the softness of the carpet. It was sumptuous and the creamy thick leather covering the seats was no expense spared. We glared at all the lights in the dash and how the individual led lights of the speedometer slowly illuminated the curved readout as the car gathered speed. The car just purred and its lumbering motion ignored any bumps in the road. An unforgettable car but I’m sure one of Aston’s models the Aston Martin company are willing to forget because it would be unmake-able now, but I’ll always love it and if I had the spare cash would buy one.
We have an Aston Martin / Lagonda workshop near me in Longham,Dorset. I remember staring in awe of these while they were waiting for service. I know it's a Marmite car, but for me it is so exciting just to see it stood still let alone driving down the road. This video was a previllege to watch and only made my pipe dream even bigger.
"I'm sorry officer, the low sun was shining onto my digital dashboard and I couldn't see the number displayed on the speedometer". I'm sure someone must have uttered this immortal line at some point in a Lagonda.
"I understand, Sir. These Lagonda gauges are hopelessly unreliable anyway. And I guess the car's very quiet too, so you don't get a sense of the speed you're doing. Like driving a V12 Jag." [thinks "It's nowhere near as quiet as a V12 Jag!"] "That's right, Officer. Thank you for your understanding. Move along, nothing to see here."
iconic car. Could just imagine this was like a spaceship in the 70s? Master of given so many ideas to other manufacturers front. Looks like a Volvo and a scirocco has been run over by a monster truck
Thanks for the great review of what I've always found to be a fascinating car. I remember reading anything I could find on these during the 80's, 90's and 00's - so being able to see one in an actual video review was fantastic. Had a good chuckle too at the shag pile carpet, "Knight Rider 2000" dashboard, and you accidentally triggering the fuel cap!
I remember seeing this for the first time in Car & Driver back in the day. The original pure design and digital dash. Breathtaking ultra-modern design from space! Really made a statement back then!!
There was one 2 door 5 speed manual Series 4 built by the factory as a test mule for the Virage. It has since been restored to a production level finish and sold for £287,000 at an auction at Goodwood.
Harry should front a car TV show, something focussed on classics, 60s to 90s, buying, restoring, driving, owning. Someone like Edd China as his mechanic. Guest driving appearances from his old employees and muckers, Harris, Catchpole et al, but Harry firmly ‘the gaffer’. Sort of a cross between the best bits of Wheeler Dealers (anything minus the cocky salesman Brewer) the fantastic stuff the extremely experienced and knowledgeable Mr Metcalfe normally does with his channel, and a bit of restomod content etc. There could be a huge potential viewership.
Another great video. When I was still at school I worked at a petrol station on the A1 (about 1980/81) and one of these came in for a fill-up (in the days when people who worked in filling stations actually did the filling). In the age of Marinas, Cortinas and Allegros it was like something from another planet or another age. It's still as stunning today as it was then. It seems a shame that the radical car design that made us stand in awe at the Motor Show all those years ago has virtually disappeared. This is one of the very, very few cars I'd swap for my own classic (a Bentley Continental R); the others that make the list are the Monteverdi 375/4, the Bristol 410/411 and maybe a Mercedes 600. I always fear that your dream cars would actually turn out be a disappointment when you got behind the wheel but your reaction to this car makes me think I could be wrong in this case. Get thee behind me Satan!
I remember reading about this car in motortrend and it left an impression! We have seen rolls, Bentleys and while you are wowed by them! You are absolutely speechless when you see this car!
I too remember standing at the Motor show stand gawping at this 'alien monster', Harry. I seem to remember the Bedford's (Woburn), were either one of the first (if not the first) buyer of one.
I'm in Beverly Hills and my neighbor has his 1980 Lagonda parked in his garage since circa 1985 (he replaced it with a Rolls and never looked back). It's under a cover (I think it has 16,000 miles on the odo) and has not been moved since. If I recall his story, it needed a new radiator and the dealership said it would take 3 months to arrive. He parked it in disgust, bought a Rolls, and it has been parked every since. He's now about 90 and remains sharp as a tack (but stopped driving about 15 years ago). That car makes a 1969 Cadillac Broughm look like a Toyota Corolla.
What do you do for work?
My neighbor worked in finance@@1954telecaster
I live nearby in LA. Do you think your neighbor might be interested in selling the car? Thanks!
You absolutely need to convince the old man to get the car on the road or offer to purchase it.
Paging Jay Leno
This is sooo much more interesting than the latest super car review from those other TH-camrs! Thank you Sir Metcalfe❤
Absolutely
@@paulmcgee1867 ditto!
Most You Tubers don’t actually do reviews. They’re not qualified.
It was a "super" car ! today's youngsters will watch a Laferrari review in 50 years with the same delight as yours today
See Doug DeMoro’s take on this car. Very quirky. 👌
A woman who owned Ford dealerships in Nottinghamshire when I was a child owned 2 of these.
The first was a Geneva show car which failed badly on her and was replaced by a bespoke version, for which she commissioned a sepia book, showing every stage of the car’s production
I was looking at her car outside the dealership and she spotted me .
She not only took me for a ride in the car, she loaned the incredibly expensive book showing the cars assembly in blind faith that I would return the book which I did.
What an experience
That's an amazing story. Just out of interest was the dealership Hooleys ?
@@eddie7167 nope, Gregory’s Ford. The woman died years ago, album she had made long-gone ( Actually it could have been bought out by then Hooleys?)
@@eddie7167 sorry, it did become Hooleys, how did you know?
Lovely story, thank you for sharing it!
About 12-years ago we were visiting Hohenwerfen castle in Austria- the place where the film ‘where Eagles dare’ was filmed. About 7 of these Lagonda’s rolled into the car park, most with British plates on them. It was a double wow moment.
Lagondas...
Where Lagondas Dare?
for all that these cars are? That Must of an Real Awesome moment, you lucky man.
Comparable to my visit to Duxford in 90s and watching over a dozen Spitfires fly formation over the field... Respect and Greetings from Canada, eh!
@@the_lost_navigator Almost nothing would compare to watching and hearing a dozen Spitfires flying overhead.
@Harry’s garage Hi Harry,
Tom Papadopoulos - Autosport Designs, Inc. - New York. Loved the video and agree having owned many Lagonda’s over the years, Series 4 is the Lagonda that actually works! Small correction, it is not the only Rolls Royce Midnight Blue, we here in The Colonies have been lucky enough to have one in LHD. All the best, keep the throttle down :)
Tom Papadopoulos
Autosport Designs, Inc.
Back in the seventies I was a photographer for Street Machine Magazine and I went along to Newport Pagnell to photograph the digital dashboard in the Lagonda. Before I left I was asked if I would like a drive in the Lagonda. I had arrived in my company Chrysler Alpine so the drive around the Buckinghamshire countryside was something never to be forgotten.
Chrysler Alpine, ha, bet you can still hear the tappets 😆
I must have looked at hundreds, if not thousands, of your photos back in the day! Used to have "Street Machine" delivered every month!
Thanks for the mention. It was a dream job, except of course for the Chrysler Alpine.@@christopherdean1326
Now I’m happy. The Lagonda was, and remains a candidate for my dream garage. That Harry approves is just the cherry on top of the cake. Marvellous 😁
' It's so Thunderbirds.' is the best description of the Lagonda I have ever heard.
I remember the old Duke of Westminster had one, when he was at the Oxford Apollo watching the Moody Blues he had it parked up directly outside. Some young copper had him brought out and told him to move it to a proper parking spot somewhere, and he took the gentle telling off very well. Back in the days when police believed in "without fear or favour"... Cool car.
The police never believed in that. That one officer did.
I dont think the copper knew who he was@@julianevans9548
Been feeling a bit blue today. Not massive. Just a bit. Seeing this pop up was such a little lift. I enjoy Harry's Garage content, and quite the fan of the Lagonda! 😊
@@ChesterJLampwick78don't be harsh mate, there are days when one feels a bit down, Harry's video helps brighten up your day, at least for me 😀
@@ChesterJLampwick78Show a bit more empathy for people. It’s especially important with all the shit going on in the world today.
@@ChesterJLampwick78 why be a prick when you could have just as easily been nice?
I too, was at the Earls Court Motor Show 1976, with my late friend , Alan Thorpe. We had saved up our paper round money for weeks on end, ( earning £1.62 1/2 per week ) , for the combined coach trip from Kidderminster / entrance fee. The Lagonda was undoubtedly the car of the show, it was out of this world , both in design and price range. I remember the trip for various reasons. 1; I got pickpocketed outside Earl’s Court , so my additional fiver I’d saved for a steak meal treat after got cancelled, 2; walking from Earls Court across Hyde Park to Marble Arch to collect the coach back also seeing the orange mid engined turbo diesel Mercedes prototype in the dealership at Marble Arch, and 3; this Lagonda . 1976 , what a year! Happy days
Did you also see the 'new' Lotus Esprit too? Sorry to hear about the pick-pocketing Martin, but sounds like great memories! I saw it in the summer of 1980 at the Manchester Motor show. 👍🏻
@@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab hi Peter, yes probably did , but it was the Lagonda that stood out with headlines above everything else. Enjoyed road tests of the Esprit and , of course , it’s appearance in The Spy who Love Me, one of Sir Rogers best. You’ll laugh at this bit, we had to make do with a toffee apple each before we caught the coach back home !
It seems that everything is attainable now, either that or people hate you and think your a crook for buying such an ostentatious product. When I saw it it 76 I just dreamed of owning one, what it would be like to drive (I had a 67 anglia at the time 😭) how the dash worked etc etc it was fantastic futuristic almost other worldly at the time. Happy days indeed.
Feel for you mate because you got pick pocketed and missed out on your steak dinner. That would have been the icing on the cake for such an exciting day! Hope you eventually got your steak dinner!
@@stefanlakomy6195 thanks . No , didn’t get the steak dinner, we made do with a toffee apple ! Walking from Earls Court over Hyde park to Marble Arch to wait for the coach. Simple times, but happy days. Had a few steak meals since though
My Father took me to the 1976 show and i was so mesmerised by the AML.. and seeing this today all those years later I'm still blown away.. the colour spec really makes the car... oozing elegance from every angle...
Stunning car even in 2023..
I had to write my first report for school on the 76 motorboat at the NEC .
Got free tickets because my mother worked there before working at a company called Burn Tubes and could have had one of the earliest BMX bikes in the uk in the late 70s
In ‘84 starting a new job in west London, I briefly lodged in the family home of a colleague. One evening his mother turned up and got me to look at her new company car, a virtually unused 2 year old AM Lagonda that her boss wasn’t driving! We took it for a run round Fulham and it did feel like an absolute spaceship. I’ve loved them (at a distance) ever since. For context, I was driving a mini pickup at the time.
It's always a good day when Harry post's a new video. And this is one amazing car.
This car always reminds me of a Concorde on 4 wheels for some reason, it carries the same kudos regarding the era it was built, the engineering that went Into it and the impact it had on the general public.
È il connubio perfetto
Spot on.
That moment when Harry is sitting in the car, on his drive, explaining the dash layout and you realise just how ridiculously raked that windscreen is. God! I love the 70's designs...
When creativity was more the norm
@@paulmcgee1867 Also, drugs.
My memory of the Lagonda was when driving, for a hire car company in the late '70s, up the M1 at a 'smidgeons' over the speed limit.
Came up behind one of these in the outside lane and decided to 'flash it' out of the way!!
It responded by a lift of the nose and a disappearance into the distance.
What a car!! Will never forget that moment.
I too savour the memory of hacking up the M1 in the 1970’s , for me it was the company pool car, a ford Consul, my first drive at over 100. Then back to a fungus ridden minor traveller. Great days.
@@johnsherborne3245 Great story John! Here in Australia I distinctly remember my first drive over 100 (or 160 km/h). It was across the Mooney Mooney Bridge, heading towards Newcastle in a company white Ford Falcon. In the 30+ years since then I have ridden sports bikes and owned a 911, so 100 became a bit pedestrian. Now I'm a dad, still on sports bikes and far too responsible to do any such thing... *wink*
@@deldridg love it. In My time in Oz I owned a sigma so no great excitement alas, but I moved from that heap to a succession of Golf GTIs which were fabulous, now a project 928 on the stocks.
Smidgeon. Love it 😊👍
I've never really known what to make of the Aston Martin Lagonda. I love that it exists, but I've zero interest in having or even driving one. It's the sort of thing that works best in a museum as a piece of 70s kitsch. As an artifact, it's absolutely superb.
As a kid, I'm 52, when I first saw this car in Road & Track I was blown away by its design and futuristic CRT interior that was so far ahead of everyone else that 40-ish years later it seems even more amazing to me.
Harry, thank you for reviewing this amazing car.
Same
I remember that too. Road & Track introduced me to F1 in the 80s as well. Great Magazine back in the day.
Epic on every level, I was there at my first motorshow in 76, this car is still imprinted in my memory. Looks absolutely amazing even now, proper ‘as you imagine’ luxury interior. Totally with Harry on this one, not the fastest but makes ALL the right noises and just so so desirable. Sadly we will never see unique cars like this ever make production again, a genuine jaw dropper and a very happy memory. Thanks for taking us for a drive Harry, absolutely loved it, same gauges as my vette as well…!
I would argue the Tesla Cybertruck is as radical, but not as successful a design. Certainly not as much to my taste as the Lagonda.
I was also there in 76 I’d of been 7 … crowds around it made it hard to see. I could not get close. I also remember clearly the hubris.
@@jerehadaI was there too. Was it Earl's Court?
The crowds around it were mental.
Its a pure William Towns design.
He also designed the Aston Martin Bulldog 200mph supercar thats recently been restored .
I believe he also did some of the early Lotus straight wedges..
The man was very fond of wedges.😉😎 He also did the amazing Hustler 4 and 6 wheel kit cars culminating in the impressive Jaguar based 6 wheel Highlander though a a lot of modern electric city car designers could take a few lessons from his Tiny Microdot 3 seater abreast DIY hybrid with its built in shopping trolley boot. Amazing given its tiny overall length and the fact he wasnt a short man either.
Ive forgotten the name of his design studio🤔..but he was a genuine enthusiast for kit car design and i love the economy and practicality of his 6 wheel Hustler Huntsmans. ..I would love to see them reimagined with E power.
The best version of this beast is the Estates😎 its like the car the Volvo V70 wanted to be 😂 price... If you have to ask you cannot afford one ...🙄🤣
Harry, this car captured my full attention when I was in high school and has been a sweet spot in my automotive memories from that first glimpse in whatever car magazine I was drooling over at that time.
To be a young man surrounded by American muscle cars, this was the start of my love affair with stately sedans.😊
Stunning design, and for those of us who were 70's kids into cars it was an iconic dream machine! But wish they'd left the rear light cluster design alone - the series 1-3 block design looked much better.
I haven't seen those but I was struck by how cool the rear of this car looks. Almost 80s
Agree.
What a great, thorough review👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
@@SamCyanideit is 80’s.
I'm an 80's kid, but this car has fascinated me for as long as I can remember. I've never seen one in person, but read piles of classic car magazine articles about it during the 80's and 90's.
If I’m not mistaken the series 1-3 had to have secondary rear lights in the underside of the boot lid because the main rear lights lifted with the boot. I loved it as a kid in the ‘70s - inspirational, yet utterly bonkers. I think I love it even more now. Wow.
Hats off to Harry and Johnny Smith reviewing interesting cars👏👏👏
A real stunner of a car, it's hard to think that its the best part of fifty years since it landed at Earl's Court and still looks as fresh and futuristic as it did back then.
I had the pleasure of seeing one of these in the 80's in Bury, Greater Manchester. It was parked outside an old textile mill. It really did look like a space ship. What an amazing machine.
What a wonderful and rare car! My father found it ugly back in the early eighties, I, on the other hand, have always been a big fan of this design. Thank you so much for the exhaustive review.
Must have looked absolutely incredible at launched, still extremely striking and unique, awesome thing!!
I was at the 76 motorshow as a spotty 12 yr old and even managed to get on the stand! Seem to remember they had a separate mock up of the dashboard. Whole car was, in fact, really a mock up but as a 12 yr old, one of the best days ever. Happy times. Thanks Harry for the review.
Actually it took 16 weeks to build one of these Lagonda's. One came of the line about once a week. I was an apprentice for Aston Martin 1986 - 1990 and worked on many of them!
My friend, Martin Hamblin was the sales manager for Marshall of Cambridge Aston Martin and Jaguar in the 80's and 90's. He told me at the time that the Lagonda was by far the quickest of the range between Cambridge and Newport Pagnell. That included the Vantage and also the new Virage. It is one of my all time greatest cars.
When I was a kid looking at the car magazines.... this was the ultimate. A fantasy car. Wonderful to see.
This has always been one of my favorite cars, thanks Harry!
Love love love those. There’s a light blue on tan 3rd generation in Orange County, CA where I live. Here, where Bentleys, Ferraris, Lambos….are so common, the Lagonda stands out like nothing else. What a design, what a presence!
The best automotive channel on youtube, been sitting with a smile on my face for 20 minutes, great review and what a car. I just had a thought aswell, if my lottery numbers come up, and I struggle with what cars to buy I just have to sift thru whats tested on this channel and whats in the garage and pick out quite a few of the cars tested out to put in my dream garage. Props to Harry for bringing us these cars.
Love the fact you said plonker. Reminds me of you know what. Great vid.
A jaw dropping car when launched and now. If you want to turn heads wherever you go, I would say that £89k for such a rare car is the way to go. It’s a lot of money but in comparison with it’s price new and what £89k buys you these days that’s not a bad price
What an icon of a automobile. Timeless, clean lines. Certainly one of the (forgotten) greats!
Outstanding video, Harry! This is still a spectacular looking car even today. Looks far more stunning than a current day BMW 7 series or Merc S Class, in my personal opinion. Thanks again!
I remember seeing pictures of these in car magazines in the 80's. I absolutely love the look of it. I would buy one in a heartbeat if I could afford one. Thank you.
Thank you for creating reviews like these. A refreshing change from the modern vehicles.
As a child, I remember these being launched in the mid 70's, they were like space ships !
In what must have been the early 90's I first saw one on the road and I was still blown away.
This year I saw four together at the AMHT Festival at the National Motor Museum - revived all those childhood memories.
I was on that stand too. My brother on the simulator and me in the car, As a fourteen year old. I seem to remember Lord Hesketh being on the stand too.
A rare sight here in Australia, however I did see one in the early 80's (I think) at the Bathurst 1000 car race. It was just parked in the paddock area behind the pits. You can't really comprehend the dimensions of these cars until you're standing next to one. They are huge.
Flamboyant medical doctor Geoffrey Edelsten had an earlier one.
A few years ago I saw a black earlier one advertised by a dealer in Australia.
It had standard Aston Martin timber dashboard and gauges. The ad said it had been ordered new with those.
With hindsight likely a good choice.
I wonder whether it cost less for that reason.
Jaguar XJ Series 3 cars are long, c 4.95m. Being relatively low makes them look even longer.
Still c 300mm shorter than a Lagonda though.
Looks like something Joe 90 should have been driving! What an enormous engine bay. So weird looking back on what was considered to be cutting edge in the 70’s. Thanks for the video Harry! 👍
or Parker.
I used to do garden work for an old gent on an estate house here in Ireland.
He had, i think, was the only originally Irish 1990 registered Lagonda. Racing Green in colour. It was kept mostly in the garage but he would take it out for trips to town.
This gent was in his eighties and every time he'd take it out he would have hit off something and it would cost him to fix it. Couldn't accept that as an avid car lover he's spacial awareness was letting him down. And possibly first signs of dementia which was what overcame him later. It also gave trouble with the electric dash and was a huge beast on narrow Irish roads.
He got mad with it one day when it again failed the test. This time because of mismatched tyres. He sold it to a young guy in his early twenties for €8k. He sold it on quickly. I was distraught when i found out.
Seen it again at a car show in Dublin. Hoped to speak to the current owner but was nowhere to be found.
This is a review I've been waiting for.
I would LOVE to see Harry do a big Euro road trip in this very car. Maybe even a winter one with those tyres. Looks made for it. His trips are filmed/edited so well it feels like we are there with him.
I was there in 76 as well Harry.
Harry: We ASKED for more interesting classics...You LISTENED and...DELIVERED! 😍 What an amazing machine! 😄 I think I do prefer the looks of the original '79 version (especially lights, -front AND rear) but yes that early dash was full of issues. Imagine trying to park it though!? 😖 But HOW heavy? 😨 ...And (£120k in '89?) HOW MUCH? 😵 Still love it though, despite the OTT lambswool! 😂 ...But looks like a great tran-continental cruiser! 👍🏻Brilliant vid Harry! More like this please...10/10 ! ☺️👏🏻👍🏻
My landlord had one of these stuck in his garage in Oxford when I was there, 35 years ago, I never saw it once run. Hated the shape then, still hate it now. When I babysat for his kids, they used to play in it and pretend it was a spaceship. I think Chris, my landlord had wired the dash up so all the lights could be switched on. Probably the best use for it.
Hi Harry, fantastic..! A local businessman bought one of these back in the day where I live. I was still at school at the time & was out on my bike & saw it parked outside a local pub / restaurant. I marvelled at its futuristic look & remember seeing those Star Ship Enterprise style buttons on the dash when I stopped to have a look. Keep up the good work, your videos are Ace..!!!
What a treat! Thank you Harry for taking us on a drive in this amazing car.
As a 16yr old petrol head I can also remember this being launched in '76 and sharing Harry's thoughts exactly, Thunderbirds are Go!😂 Digital instrumentation and looks, seemingly straight from a Gerry Anderson series it was like nothing else before it or since for that matter. Digital dash aside, sumptuous interiors were nothing new but this car is obviously all about the styling and it's aged so well👍 The well proven AM V8 may feel a bit anaemic pushing 2+ tons but it does have a nicely muffled sound track. Curiously, the one fact that springs to mind whenever I see a picture of one of these is that Prince Charles had one!
I was 11 years old when I first saw the Lagonda in a magazine. I was completely floored with this car and I still get the same feeling every time I see one. Thanks for doing a video on this.
Absolutely stunning automobile!...There were several running around Beverly Hills in the late 1970's and while captivating, the fit and finish was just terrible for a vehicle of this stature. I imagine they improved over time."Thunderbirds Are Go!" is right on Harry - hope you do more classics like this.
Great to see a video on the Lagonda! Such a wild, awesome looking car.
Probably my all-time favorite classic hyper luxury car, because it was above all a futurist design which did away with all the typical luxury car looks at the time. I have always liked the quirky, forward-looking designs. And seen today, it is so slender looking - sure miss that, as much as I miss the big glass areas. Still, I think the first iteration was the mest looking - shame it is not the best example.
I remember in the mid 80' williams BMW in liverpool had one of these in, as a car mad 10 year old it was like something out of star wars. My dad took me in to see it and the salesman let me sit in it. I was a well chuffed 10 year old.
Although it’s a bit gaudy it has a certain amount of charm, I bet it’s seriously comfortable to travel in too, good one Harry. 😀👏👍🏍
Compared to most modern stuff (esp. SUVs) it's wonderfully understated.
That blue luggage is so cool
The only production car I remember being on Blue Peter. It looked like the future.
I think the Aston Martin Bulldog made an appearance too, at some stage. But then, my memory is not as good as it once was.
I wonder what Biddy Baxter drove?! @@MrAjjm65
@@ianrosie4431 Good question! And if memory serves me correctly, when the Austin Metro and Maestros (complete with LCD display) were launched, they made it on to the BBC News.
I fell in love with this when I first saw it back in the 1970s. I saw several in California on the road over the years. Would love to own one. I love the earlier version in black, problems and all. Thanks for sharing.
A series 3 body (which I think looks better, especially at the back) with a series 4 interior / dash, and a Vantage engine would have been something special. I believe one Vantage Lagonda was made by the factory.
@@sovas2111 It certainly would have been. Thanks, I didn't know that. Not that I could afford one anyway, but we can all dream. And mine's in Suffolk Red.
100% agree with you, the serie 3 looks much better! That car with a more powerful engine my dream ever.
Harry this is you at your best
Great car from from the past
And you sharing with us the experience
Harry, thank you, I always watch your videos. As a serious car buff in the 70's I have to say the Aston Lagonda was the worst looking Aston I had or have ever seen. I haven't changed my opinion... keep up the good work :)
15:46 OH HOW VULGAR......I like it. Smashing video Harry, thank you and to the good folk letting you share it with us.
Thank you Harry, for this phenomenal video!!
Superb, most of the cars you review you can see a review elsewhere, this is so so special. We went to the motorshow in 1976 the only time I have ever been to one. . What I remember most was the Maserati stand and all the Triumph Dolomites. I came home with loads of brochures. It is great they got the car right in the end. I have never seen one on the road ever. A great review and still a fantastic looking car. In your garage it made all your other cars look like they are from the days of Queen Victoria.
Iconic car - thanks for the review. From some angles it reminds me so much of the Volvo 470 series.
I remember being driven in one, in Yorkshire, in 1986; and that really was a unique experience...
I LOVED that you hustled this around your favourite bit of road. I had the biggest grin watching that. Thanks for showing us such a unique car, Harry.
Wow, so good to see the Lagonda! I visited AM factory on business in the mid 70s and was fortunate enough to see a craftsman shaping body panels for the Lagonda. Never forgot that day.
Still a wonderful space ship. I had the pleasure once to see one in the real world and it was so unreal...I will never forget this moment
Always thought it looked like a gigantic Volvo 740, great video Harry!
Possibly the most stunning car ever designed. Talk about turning heads ...
What a great and entertaining, yet calm and relaxing way of presenting. Incredible quality!
It was cool enough that Evel Knievel had one in 1993, towing a trailer that was made of the rear end of another lagonda , with mountain bikes on it's roof... hung out with that madman for Thanksgiving 1993 at the Maxim hotel, Las Vegas.
I love this behemoth of the roads. At 17, my school friends separated mother met this shady guy whose business was very mysterious and which had links with the Italian mafia. We were permitted to go to one of the mothers boyfriends bbq/party and he arrived in a beautiful gold 2 door Aston Lagonda. We climbed in the back and the seats were divine and I remember the softness of the carpet. It was sumptuous and the creamy thick leather covering the seats was no expense spared. We glared at all the lights in the dash and how the individual led lights of the speedometer slowly illuminated the curved readout as the car gathered speed. The car just purred and its lumbering motion ignored any bumps in the road. An unforgettable car but I’m sure one of Aston’s models the Aston Martin company are willing to forget because it would be unmake-able now, but I’ll always love it and if I had the spare cash would buy one.
Insane car, but I just love it. Thank you Harry for your presentation. What a joy!
I NEVER knew mutch about these but finally this channel has filled that particular hole. Thank you.
Thank you.
A review of an extraordinary classic car like this is the best.
Like you Harry, could not believe it, when first shown. Deserves to be preserved and cherished….
11:35 "What a plonker" lol
very much enjoyed. thank you for sharing
A wonderful, wonderful thing and lovely video to escape into, thanks Harry.
We have an Aston Martin / Lagonda workshop near me in Longham,Dorset. I remember staring in awe of these while they were waiting for service. I know it's a Marmite car, but for me it is so exciting just to see it stood still let alone driving down the road. This video was a previllege to watch and only made my pipe dream even bigger.
"I'm sorry officer, the low sun was shining onto my digital dashboard and I couldn't see the number displayed on the speedometer". I'm sure someone must have uttered this immortal line at some point in a Lagonda.
"I understand, Sir. These Lagonda gauges are hopelessly unreliable anyway. And I guess the car's very quiet too, so you don't get a sense of the speed you're doing. Like driving a V12 Jag."
[thinks "It's nowhere near as quiet as a V12 Jag!"] "That's right, Officer. Thank you for your understanding. Move along, nothing to see here."
iconic car. Could just imagine this was like a spaceship in the 70s? Master of given so many ideas to other manufacturers front. Looks like a Volvo and a scirocco has been run over by a monster truck
Thanks for the great review of what I've always found to be a fascinating car. I remember reading anything I could find on these during the 80's, 90's and 00's - so being able to see one in an actual video review was fantastic. Had a good chuckle too at the shag pile carpet, "Knight Rider 2000" dashboard, and you accidentally triggering the fuel cap!
Never seen an Series 4, there was an earlier version parked near my home back in period. I’ve never heard one tyre squeal either! Thanks Harry
I remember seeing this for the first time in Car & Driver back in the day. The original pure design and digital dash. Breathtaking ultra-modern design from space!
Really made a statement back then!!
Thanks for another great video Harry. I remember first seeing these cars in the Dupont Registry and being in awe of them as well
Amazing car! I remember a friend of my Dad bringing one over to our house in the 80s, when I was a kid. Vast and futuristic!
There was one 2 door 5 speed manual Series 4 built by the factory as a test mule for the Virage. It has since been restored to a production level finish and sold for £287,000 at an auction at Goodwood.
This video just made me smile. Such an elegant thing.
Wonderful. Amazing value too for good one like that. Always loved them. Buy it Harry
I had this one up on my wall right next to a Countach (circa 1980). Classic design, imo.
Harry should front a car TV show, something focussed on classics, 60s to 90s, buying, restoring, driving, owning. Someone like Edd China as his mechanic. Guest driving appearances from his old employees and muckers, Harris, Catchpole et al, but Harry firmly ‘the gaffer’. Sort of a cross between the best bits of Wheeler Dealers (anything minus the cocky salesman Brewer) the fantastic stuff the extremely experienced and knowledgeable Mr Metcalfe normally does with his channel, and a bit of restomod content etc. There could be a huge potential viewership.
Another great video. When I was still at school I worked at a petrol station on the A1 (about 1980/81) and one of these came in for a fill-up (in the days when people who worked in filling stations actually did the filling). In the age of Marinas, Cortinas and Allegros it was like something from another planet or another age. It's still as stunning today as it was then. It seems a shame that the radical car design that made us stand in awe at the Motor Show all those years ago has virtually disappeared. This is one of the very, very few cars I'd swap for my own classic (a Bentley Continental R); the others that make the list are the Monteverdi 375/4, the Bristol 410/411 and maybe a Mercedes 600. I always fear that your dream cars would actually turn out be a disappointment when you got behind the wheel but your reaction to this car makes me think I could be wrong in this case. Get thee behind me Satan!
I remember reading about this car in motortrend and it left an impression! We have seen rolls, Bentleys and while you are wowed by them! You are absolutely speechless when you see this car!
Great video throughly enjoyed. Brings back memories.
I too remember standing at the Motor show stand gawping at this 'alien monster', Harry.
I seem to remember the Bedford's (Woburn), were either one of the first (if not the first) buyer of one.