Restored Aston Martin Bulldog Hits 162 MPH In Shakedown Run, Eyes 200 MPH

The Aston Martin Bulldog has hit 162 mph (261 km/g) during shakedown testing, taking the gullwing-door supercar a big step closer to making good on a 41-year old promise.

A one-off concept that was originally intended to go into small scale production, the wedge-shaped Bulldog looked at one point as if it would transform Aston Martin into a fully fledged supercar brand to rival Ferrari and Lamborghini.

Power came from a 5.3-liter V8 fitted with twin Garret turbochargers that helped it produce 600 hp (608 PS) and 500 lb-ft (678 Nm) of torque. Aston also claimed that the Bulldog was capable of a 237 mph (381 km/h) top speed, which sounds like it was the kind of gearing-based BS calculation Lamborghini employed when coming up with the 190 mph (306 km/h) top speed for the Countach a decade earlier. The highest speed ever recorded for the Bulldog at the time was 192 mph (309 km/h).

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Sadly, perennially cash-strapped Aston was forced to scrap the project in 1981, the year after unveiling it, and the only car was sold, first finding a home in the Middle East before traveling to the U.S. But recently the Bulldog has undergone a massive restoration job overseen by Richard Gauntlett, the son of the late Victor Gauntlett, the Aston CEO who reluctantly pulled the plug on the program 40 years ago.

That rejuvenation work has just earned Classic Motor Cars, the shop responsible, a Royal Automobile Club Restoration of the Year award. But the Bulldog is no trailer queen. Instead of basking in the glory of its award, it found itself blasting down a runway at 162 mph (261 km/h) last weekend in a shakedown run in preparation for an assault on 200 mph (322 km/h), probably in spring 2022.

“There is still much to do,” said CMC boss Nigel Woodward, who was behind the wheel for this month’s straight-line run. “But Saturday’s session not only validated the car but also provided a lot of very useful data. The fact that without trying, and in the teeth of a 50 mph crosswind we sailed through the 160 mph mark in only ¾ of a mile, at reduced boost and on partial throttle says much. It was only a lack of bravery on my part and the fact that we were still evaluating the car that prevented us going faster”.