The Newport Pagnall factory yesterday

[williamp]

I popped over to see progress, and saw this:

Sunnyside. This building is listed



Further to the right you'll see something is missing, through the gates which once read "Aston Martin lagonda Ltd". But what is it...




Of course! The factory!!


As of yesterday, the only buildings remaining on this side of the road were Sunnyside, the engine building room and the building with the weather vane- used as a site office. The weather vane is no longer there, of course.
The last image shows the yard. Roughly where the digger is was the location of the shutter where compleated cars would emerge for the first time. All of this is being turned into hardcore, but if youi're quick and ask nicely, they will give you a souvener brick. Mine even has three shades of green paint on it.

[NDA]

Sad to see that.....

I saw my Vanquish built there and chatted to Stuart Bull whose name was on the motor.

Thanks for taking the trouble to post those.

[Muzzer]

It's a crying shame.

When I was a kid I lived in Newport Pagnell and I would always walk/cycle past the factory to look at the weaponry outside or a new model going out for road tests.

Rumour round the town was that you'd never find the plod on the Olney bypass next to Newport as that was a "testing" road.....

I knew various people who worked there. One guy who worked for my Dad worked in R&D in the 70s. His sole function was, with a work-mate, to drive V8s to Scotland and back for testing. This was before the days of test tracks and he gleefully informed me that he used the M1 for the trip as little as possible

[craggers]

Muzzer said:

It's a crying shame.

When I was a kid I lived in Newport Pagnell and I would always walk/cycle past the factory to look at the weaponry outside or a new model going out for road tests.

Ditto !! it is so sad, good memory of it (Used to live at Stour Close)