1960 Aston Martin DB4 'Series II'

The Aston Martin DB4 was launched at the London Motor Show in 1958 and was the first of the very successful DB4/5/6 line-up, featuring elegant coachwork designed by Touring of Milan. The handmade aluminum bodywork panels were mounted on a steel tube frame, using the Superleggera (super light) method of construction. All round disc brakes were fitted, made first by Dunlop and later on by Girling, and all DB4s were powered by a new six-cylinder, all aluminium 3670cc engine, designed by Tadek Marek and developing around 240bhp.

The DB4 offered excellent performance for the time, with a top speed of 140mph and 60mph arriving in 8.5 seconds. The gearbox was produced by Aston's owner, David Brown, and a Vantage engine was also available, offering even higher power outputs. There were five series of the DB4, each series introduced changes and developments to the original Series One cars. The model was aptly summarised by 'Autosport': "Performance, controllability, and comfort have been combined in the Aston Martin DB4 to make it a highly desirable car: one in which long journeys can be completed very quickly indeed with the minimum of risk or discomfort and the maximum of pleasure."

This Series II Aston Martin DB4 was supplied new on 27th May 1960 to Cyril Williams Motors in Wolverhampton and registered with its current registration of 7777 DA. A copy of the factory build sheet states the car was supplied in Ming Blue with an Off-White interior and fitted with a Motorola radio. The gearbox was replaced under guarantee at the works on the 13th July 1960 and it was acquired by its second owner on 22nd January 1962, a Major J.T. Macfarlane of Bournemouth. He sold the car to a Mr. G. Bilton of Abingdon in 1964 and the car then passed through a number of keepers. It was acquired by the last registered keeper on 22nd May 1986 and it was his pride and joy for nearly thirty years until it was sold to our vendor.

A very large history file accompanies the car detailing ownership changes, copies of the factory build and worksheets, along with a record of all works and bills from 1986 onwards. In addition, there are a large number of MoT certificates dating all the way back to 1975. The car was maintained by Aston Martin up until 1964 with a mileage of 56,675.

According to the history file, a new engine was fitted in 1966, this reads 370/396 on the car today, and was a crated engine fitted by Eton Manor Group in Slough. A letter from Aston Martin on 5th February 1973, confirms that the engine is an original DB4 unit.

Presented in highly original condition, the bodywork was re-sprayed in the early 1980s to its current colour of Fiesta Red. The interior has been preserved beautifully and is almost completely original. The carpets are totally original, as is the radio and the seats, whilst slightly cracked, are still finished in the original Off White leather.

Supplied with an extremely rare Aston Martin DB4/DB4 GT workshop manual, DB4 Instruction book, DB4 parts book, current MoT certificate and a huge amount of paperwork, this DB4 is the perfect candidate for a restoration to the buyer's specification. Equally, the car is eminently usable as it is with a fresh MoT or could be transformed to fast-road or racing specification. An increasingly difficult to find blank canvas for its next owner, this Aston Martin offers superb originality and the chance to own a true motoring icon.