Aston Martin Rapide to Raise North American Pulses

North America, brace yourself. On November 11, Aston Martin will have its North American debut of the elegant new four-door Rapide, a luxury car anticipated to get hearts pounding across the nation.

The November 11 debut will take place at an exclusive cocktail party held at the swank Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles and attendees and potential customers will be able to get an special sneak peek of the Rapide before it returns to England following its seven city tour of the United States.

This new car is luxury epitomized and has been on the minds of Aston Martin enthusiasts for quite some time since it was first shown in concept at the Detroit Auto Show in 2006. This winter the Rapide will travel between Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, New York, Charlotte, Palm Beach, and Dallas as part of its U.S. tour.

The Rapide elegantly combines exquisite sports car performance with four-door functionality, encapsulating Aston Martin’s core values of Power, Beauty, and Soul. Among other impressive features, the car has a specifically tuned six-speed ‘Touchtronic 2’ automatic transmission which allows the driver to change gear automatically or manually through the steering column-mounted paddles.

With beautiful hand-trimmed sports seats in the front and rear, the Rapide also has a 301 liter luggage compartment. Aston Martin CEO, Dr. Ulrich Bez said, “Rapide is the culmination of the Aston Martin range of sports cars, a car that seals the revival of a truly admired marquee. There is now an Aston Martin for every taste and for every use.”

The Rapide will retail from around $200,000 and the first deliveries are expected in spring 2010 across Aston Martin’s 36 North American dealerships.