1973 Aston Martin V8 Series II

Aston Martin had always planned that the DBS of 1967 would be powered by the company's new V8 engine, first seen in 5-litre form in the works Lola-Aston Martin sports-racing cars. Production problems, however, intervened and the DBS used the 4-litre, twin overhead camshaft, straight six of the concurrently produced DB6. It was not until September 1967, that the DBS V8 was finally announced with production commencing the following April. With its platform chassis and independent suspension - coil spring/wishbone front, de Dion tube rear with Watt linkage and twin radius arms - the fine handling DBS was a perfect home for Tadek Marek's all-alloy V8. Boasting four overhead camshafts and Bosch electronic fuel injection, the 5,340cc V8 produced an impressive 320bhp at 5,000rpm; the resultant 160mph plus performance was nothing short of sensational in 1970. After David Brown sold Aston Martin in February 1972, the DBS V8 was replaced by the Series II model, now simply called the Aston Martin V8. Gone were the four headlamps and slatted grille and in their place was a black mesh grille flanked by single headlamps. The major mechanical changes were limited to electronic ignition and standard air conditioning.

This right-hand drive, UK delivered example was built in January 1973, and is one of just 288 Series II cars hand-crafted at Newport Pagnell. Although not its original colour, the car is now finished in Anthracite Metallic Grey with a Magnolia leather interior and is powered by its original engine mated to an automatic gearbox.

The comprehensive history file that accompanies this car contains a host of old MoTs, the earliest of which is dated the 1st May 1983 when the car had covered 29,512 miles. In April 1993, the car was purchased from Richard Appleyard Engineering by a Mr Roger Smith of Rotherham, at which time the recorded mileage was 37,840 miles. Mr Smith was to keep the car for a further 7 years, having the car maintained by the aforementioned specialist, as well as R.S. Williams and Aston Engineering Ltd. Bills for this period alone total more than £15,000.

In 2001, ownership passed to a Mr Paul Murray of Leicestershire who kept this V8 until 2005 when it was purchased by Mario Dominguez of Spain. By now the odometer was reading 53,550 miles and the car was given a thorough health check by Aston Engineering at a cost of £7,500. Work at this time included a full service, brake overhaul, a compression test was carried out, and new electronic ignition and a starter motor were fitted. Mr Dominguez then took the car back to Spain, which is when we believe the speedometer was changed for a kilometre unit. It's our understanding that the car came back to the UK in 2014/15 and it was reunited with the original registration 'TGU 235L' that it bears today.

Our vendor purchased the car almost a year ago, but with other Aston Martin projects currently ongoing, this car is now surplus to requirements. The odometer now reads 4,312km which equates to 2,600 miles, giving an unwarranted, but thought to be correct total mileage of 56,000 miles.

Supplied with a UK V5c and an MoT until 16th March '16, this British muscle car would benefit from a little detailing here and there, but is an eminently usable and attractive car. With its DB predecessors commanding challenging amounts, these V8s are now getting the attention they've so richly deserved for many years.