Aston Martin to shift Rapide production to U.K.

Aston Martin said it will transfer production of the Rapide sedan to the U.K. from Magna Steyr in Austria.

Rapide production will move to the company's headquarters in Gaydon, central England, in the second half of 2012, the company said Tuesday.

Aston Martin contracted Magna Steyr to build the Rapide in 2008 because it didn't have sufficient capacity at Gaydon. Production started late 2009.

Aston Martin CEO Ulrich Bez said the Gaydon factory has become more flexible and efficient in the past three years.

"While our overall volume has not changed significantly, we now produce a far richer model mix--eight model lines (plus five variants) compared to three model lines (plus two variants) in 2008--so Rapide production is now possible" Bez said in a statement.

By Paul McVeigh- Automotive News Europe