Old Aston Martin concept car looks like a cross between a DeLorean and a Cybertruck
- Just one Aston Martin Bulldog was ever made
- The unusual-looking car features a wedge design and gull-wing doors
- The car recently clocked a max speed of more than 200 mph
Published on Jun 12, 2024 at 11:53 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Jun 13, 2024 at 6:26 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
A 1970s one-off Aston Martin concept car dubbed The Bulldog looks like a mash-up between an original DeLorean and a Cybertruck.
The unusual-looking Bulldog was designed by William Towns – with just one rolling off the Aston Martin production line in 1979.
The Bulldog – code name DP K901 – was named in honor of the Scottish Aviation Bulldog airplane, which was flown by Aston Martin’s then-managing director Alan Curtis.
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Only one was ever made
Originally, there was supposed to be a run of around 15 to 25 Bulldogs produced, but this never came to fruition due to the cost of the project.
The Bulldog has an exceptionally angular, wedge-shaped body, which is not too dissimilar to the Tesla Cybertruck – a car that has been met with some criticism over its unusual design.
It also features DeLorean-style gull-wing doors.
Overall, the car looks a bit like what you’d get if a DeLorean and a Cybertruck had a baby.
Made in 1979, the one and only Bulldog was powered by a 5.3L V8 engine with twin Garrett turbochargers.
Aston Martin claimed the car was capable of a top speed of 237 mph but the fastest speed recorded was 191 mph.
What happened to the Aston Martin Bulldog?
In 1984, the Bulldog was sold to a collector in the Middle East for £130,000 – from there it bounced around between several collectors before eventually being rescued from a storage facility and put up for sale in the UK.
During the time it was passed between collectors, the Bulldog had undergone a color change – from silver and grey to green – and the interiors had a similar makeover and were now a light tan, rather than the original dark brown and black.
Four years ago, the car was bought by an American who set about a full restoration project to return it to its former glory.
And just last year – more than 40 years after it was launched – the Bulldog managed to crack 200 mph goal, hitting a top speed of 205.4 mph, according to goodwood.com.
Good things come to those who wait, right?
This isn’t the first ‘love it or hate it’ design from Aston Martin – the Lagonda, which was produced between 1979 and 1990 also split opinions.
So much so, that Bloomberg Businessweek named it as one of the ‘ugliest cars’ of the last 50 years; while Time magazine added it to its ‘50 Worst Cars of All Time’ list. Ouch.
However, it was seemingly love at first sight for British businessman Rodger Dudding who owns a whopping 24 of them.
Meanwhile, the 1978 Renha Formigao was recently touted as the ‘original Cybertruck’ as images of the classic vehicle emerged online.
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Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Across her career she's covered a wide variety of topics, including celebrity, cryptocurrency, politics, true crime and just about everything in between.
