Estate Sale Find: 1958 Aston Martin DB2/4
The boys over at Gullwing just keep digging out the Aston Martin barn finds! Their latest is this 1958 Aston Martin DB2/4 Mk III. It has supposedly been sitting there partially disassembled for 30 years. I’m guessing that it was picked up at an estate sale auction because of all the people in the background of the photos and the claim that it has been in the ownership of the same person since 1973. Obviously, this isn’t a project for everyone, but who doesn’t love looking at a dirty old Aston? You may have to just look though because this one has a price tag of over $200k! Oh, well. It’s still fun to dream every once in while.
The DB2/4 is one of my all time favorite automobiles to come out of Great Britain. It’s actually the second model to come out of the factory after David Brown took things over and it had many improvements over the first DB2. That number 4 in the model designation meant that there was seating for four people inside. Well, that back seat was pretty small, but it did add a bit more utility. The famous Bentley designed inline-six was still under the hood albeit slightly improved and the brakes were upgraded with discs at the front. Maybe most importantly though was the refined grill shape.
That grill became an AM trademark and was even used on the dash. If you look closely you will see the silhouette around the gauges. That shape is a huge part of the company’s DNA even today. Hopefully Ford doesn’t water it down too much… Anyway, this car is going to make a great restoration candidate for someone with deep pockets and big dreams. The asking price may seem insane, but all the guides I reference show that values are on a steady march uphill. A restored example even sold for $440k back in 2013. It’s nice to see that owners are getting a return on their investments, but it’s a shame to know that I will most likely never get behind the wheel of one of these beauties.
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Comments
Bingo-bingo!! I guessed a quarter of a million before I looked! Nice to know I either
A. know the market
and/or
B. do not underestimate Gullwing Motors!
What’s the deal with Gullwing Motors and barnfinds?
No deal, they have just made some good finds lately. I have a feeling that they would never want to advertise with us anyways because there are always a few negative comments here every time we post one of their cars. We’re still waiting to hear from someone who has actually worked with them though…
Hi Jesse, After reading some of those negatives, I tried to say something nice about Gullwing back when the DB6 was up on your site. I sold a couple of cars to Peter in the past, with the understanding he needs to make a buck on them. Peter, at Gullwing has lighting speed payment (less than two hours after you hang up the phone) and the cars get picked up in a day or two. I never bought anything from him, but there is always plenty of inventory, in every condition imaginable, up at his place.
Thanks Joe. Nice little stash there!
Jesse, ..you mean one of those nitwit insane people who have thrown money at them, or worse, sold them a valuable car for too cheap ?
I think your chances to hear their side are close to zero.
Who would expose themselves to that kind of ridicule.
@joe
of course, at the prices I assume he pays, I TOO would have the money there in less than 2 hours and the car picked up within a day or two., duh.
He does very little else…
Gullwing are seen by some as the worst of the flippers, although IMHO I sure see lots of what looks like flipping by all kinds of people listing truly awful cars at very high prices on Craigslist and Ebay. All of which seems as bad or sometimes worse than what Gullwing, Beverly Hills CC, and some other places do.
As long as we have free enterprise that’s going to be the case. That, and all the money that’s chasing high end vintage cars as pleasant toys to have around or as alternatives to stocks & bonds. All of which is still being facilitated by historically low interest rates (anyone remember the prime being in the teens in the ’80s?). Which in turn was triggered by the fraud-induced financial meltdown of 2007-2008 of Wall.St and Canary Wharf.
But there is an upside. Old cars get advertised and saved instead of left under a tree in the yard until somebody gets around to hauling them off to the crusher.
Oh yeah….and we also get to see those surviving old Astons like the one in this BF entry. And Jesse’s comments about these old Astons are right on. In fact at the top of my list for a modern affordable (bought used, of course) supercar would be an Aston Vantage. Same grille shape opening as on this DB2/4, plus the link to that impressive Aston heritage.
PS…one minor correction: Ford sold Aston Martin in 2007. It’s now owned by various interests including some investors. Probably a good thing, since I seriously doubt that Ford would have kept Aston Martin going in a healthy way through the financial meltdown, plus various new models have been designed, which keeps the name & tradition going.
PPS…I just saw Jersey Joe’s comment….very interesting and helpful in allowing folks to understand Gullwing. I hope your comment will be seen as useful information, as it is for me.
Lovely car and if it is as rust-free and intact as it appears would be a good basis for either a full-blown big $$$ restoration or a refurbishment to bring it back to driver condition. It looks like some effort along those lines was undertaken over the years, e.g. the alternator, plug wires and front suspension. I suspect the former solution lies in its future given the high initial cost.
Note of correction: Ford hasn’t owned Aston Martin since 2007 and during their years of ownership, as they did with Jaguar, poured a ton of capital into the company, increasing its production capabilities and developing new products without noticeably watering down the brand DNA. Given how much money Ford lost rescuing and reviving these two brands, enthusiasts like us should be expressing our gratitude rather than invoking snarky innuendos.
Did the DB2/4 originally come with a Delco 10Si alternator? If not, then there is at least one thing that is not original….
I wasn’t referring to Ford ownership, I was talking about that grill design. Just look at a new Ford and you will know what I mean. I spotted a DB9 the other day and I honestly thought it was a Ford Fusion at first glance! Good for Ford, bad for Aston.
For 200K think I’ll just keep my house.