1967 Aston Martin DB6 Mk1 Volante to Vantage Specification

• An original right-hand drive, UK-supplied Mk1, originally delivered in Sierra Blue with a grey interior
• Later sold to both French and Swiss based owners with various invoices and some correspondence in the history file
• At some point it was upgraded to Vantage specification and fitted with a manual gearbox
• Will need fully re-commissioning after a long period of storage in a large collection
• Presented on a NOVA with UK taxes paid

Considered by many to be the last 'real' Aston Martin, the DB6 was launched in 1965 replacing the outgoing DB5. The wheelbase was now 4" (100mm) longer than before, resulting in an extensive restyle with a more raked windscreen, raised roofline and reshaped rear quarter windows. Opening front quarter-lights made a reappearance, but the major change was at the rear where a ‘Kamm’ tail with spoiler improved the aerodynamics, greatly enhancing stability at high speeds. "The tail lip halves the aerodynamic lift around maximum speed and brings in its train greater headroom and more luggage space", declared Motor magazine, concluding that the DB6 was one of the finest sports cars it had tested. Tadek Marek’s proven six cylinder engine, which had been enlarged to 3,995cc for the preceding DB5, remained unchanged offering 282bhp on triple SU carburettors rising to 325bhp in Vantage specification.

Premiered at the 1965 London Motor Show, the DB6 Volante marked the first occasion the evocative 'Volante' name had been applied to a soft-top Aston Martin. After 37 Volante convertibles had been completed on the DB5 short-wheelbase chassis, the model adopted the longer DB6 chassis in October 1966. A mere 140 DB6 based Volantes were manufactured, and of these only 29 were specified with the more powerful Vantage engine. 

According to a copy of the original build sheet, this right-hand drive, Mk1 DB6 Volante was delivered to its first owner, a Dr Frank Sondheimer of Kensington Palace Gardens, London on the 11th February 1967. DBVC/3611/R had been ordered in Sierra Blue with grey interior and a matching convertible roof and specified from new with Borg-Warner automatic transmission, 3.54:1 limited-slip differential, chrome wire wheels, a power-operated aerial, 7 pints of antifreeze and power-assisted steering.

From the Aston’s history file, it appears that its first owner retained the car until May 1980 when he sold it to a gentleman based in Lyon, France. The third owner was also French but it seems he moved to Switzerland at some point during his ownership of the DB6. The fourth owner was also based in Switzerland, having purchased the car on the 14th January 2002. There is a further invoice from 2006 from a ‘Sammy Garage’, a restoration company based in Geneva, prior to the car being exported from Switzerland.

There are various invoices in the file from the cars time in France and Switzerland along with a ‘Livret D’entretien et D’utilisation’ booklet for DB5/6 Volantes. The DB6 is presented to auction on a NOVA with UK taxes paid and as #3611/R has spent the past 10 years or so in a large private collection of carefully selected Aston Martins, it will therefore need fully recommissioning before returning to the road.

The very pinnacle of British open-top motoring in the 1960s, this beautiful DB6 Volante has, at some point, been fitted with a manual gearbox and upgraded to ‘Vantage spec’ ensuring that, once returned to the roads, this will be a real driver’s car to use and enjoy.