Designer · 1936–1993

William Towns

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4: briefs
10:00: average
40 min: in total

On automotive.briefs4

10:20

Aston Martin V8 Vantage (1977)

William Towns · 1977

The Aston Martin V8 Vantage (1977) is a British grand tourer and high-performance variant of the Aston Martin V8. It was launched as 'Britain's First Supercar', citing 170 mph top speed and 0–60 mph in 5.3 seconds. Its engine shares architecture with the Lagonda but adds high-performance camshafts, increased compression, larger inlet valves, and bigger Weber carburettors. Early models produced 380 bhp. William Towns did not design it — he left Aston Martin in 1977.

9:15

Aston Martin Bulldog

William Towns · 1979

A one-off 1979 concept built to show off Newport Pagnell—and chase a title it never claimed.

10:38

Aston Martin DBS

William Towns · 1967

The Aston Martin DBS is a grand tourer produced from 1967 to 1972. It was designed by William Towns as a modern-looking successor to the DB6, following the collapse of Touring of Milan’s design effort. It shares the DB6’s 4.0 L engine and mechanical base but adopts a larger four-seat layout and a deliberately contemporary fastback silhouette with a squared front grille. It was the final model developed under David Brown’s ownership.

9:46

Aston Martin Lagonda

William Towns · 1976

The 1976 Aston Martin Lagonda Series 2 is a full-size luxury four-door saloon designed from the ground up by William Towns. It introduced the first digital instrument panel in a production car — an LED array whose development cost four times the car’s total budget. Later Series 3 used cathode-ray tubes, worsening reliability. Only 645 units were built across all generations. Its wedge shape defined 1970s automotive avant-garde. Its electronics were a warning, not a promise.