Aston Martin Lagonda revealed

Touted as the pinnacle of European luxury, the new Aston Martin Lagonda limousine has officially broken cover after Oman Airlines exposed images of the car last week.

Just 100 versions of the new ultra-luxurious hand-build vehicle will be offered, reprising the Lagonda name originally launched by Aston Martin in 1976, and bringing with it some of the lines of the angular original vehicle.

Apart from the Aston Marton grille, the car's design is a major departure from the company's cookie-cutter styling approach. The roofline, rear end styling and even the side profile are dramatically different to current Astons.

As expected, the car is big and luxurious and, although specifications have not been released, is likely to be fast, thanks an expected 400kW-plus 12-cylinder engine.

The bad news is it won't be sold in Australia. Or anywhere outside the Middle East, for that matter.

In fact, all 100 units will be offered exclusively to customers deemed worthy of the vehicle via invitation only.

Pricing is still a closely-guarded secret and may remain that way considering the unique sales approach.

As a guide, Aston Martin's Q-division custom coachbuilding garage, which is responsible for the extra-long Lagonda, built the CC100 Speedster in 2013, and that car sold for around £500,000, or more than $850,000.

According to Aston Martin, the price will be "commensurate with the car's exclusivity, quality and luxurious nature". Translated: a one million-dollar-plus pricetag for the Lagonda is not out of the question.

Based on the same VH architecture as the current crop of Aston Martin sports cars -- including its closest relative, the four-door Rapide -- the Lagonda has been undergoing hot-weather testing around Muscat in Oman, where it is being subjected to temperatures of between 30 and 50 degrees.

Apart from testing ancillary functions such as air-conditioning, the four-week burn session in Oman will also allow Aston Martin engineers to gauge how the interior and exterior of the car cope with the extreme conditions.

Expected to cover around 20,000km of testing, the powertrain will also be given a decent shakedown but the details of the engine are still not known.

It's expected to run with a massaged version of Aston Martin's 6.0-litre V12 that could belt out almost 450kW, which would give it plenty of acceleration and a top speed around the triple tonne (300km/h).

Another possibility is that Aston Martin's technology sharing deal with Mercedes could provide a more efficient turbocharged big-bore engine from AMG, although that scenario is unlikely at this stage.

Either way, a ZF automatic gearbox is almost certain to be the middle man sitting between the engine and the rear wheels.

Aston Martin Design Director Marek Reichman, who styled the colossal car, said the Lagonda is not unlike its "exclusive siblings" -- the One-77 and V12 Zagato, in that it's meant to be "a piece of exceptional automotive art".

"It has been designed and developed entirely in keeping with the spirit and ethos of previous Lagonda super saloons – notably the William Towns Lagonda – and as a tribute to this car it proudly bears the Lagonda nameplate," said Reichman.

Aston Martin's Lagonda super saloon will be (hand) built at the company's Gaydon facilities in England, and will be available from 2015.