DB5 was only in production for two years, but it’s Aston’s most loved car thanks to its Bond connections
https://www.carscoops.com/author/chris-chilton-cc/
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by Chris Chilton
September 13, 2023 at 14:00
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Aston Martin has been making cars for over a century, and the DB5 was only in production for two of those years. But it remains the marque’s most famous and desired machine by a country mile, in no small part thanks to its association with fictional super-spy James Bond.
The DB5 turns 60 this September, having been unveiled at the 1963 Frankfurt Motor Show, the same event where Porsche took the wraps off the 901, the car that would become better known as the 911 after Peugeot objected to the middle ‘0’ in the name. Naturally, Aston has decided to milk, sorry, mark the occasion by getting one particularly beautiful example of the DB5 together with its modern descendent, the DB12.
Aston’s continual development of the DB4 meant that the Series V version of that car was like a dry run for the DB5, though the newer machine asserted its superiority with several advances including a large bore version of the Tadek Marek-designed DOHC inline six that was enlarged from 3.7 to 4.0-liters.
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Related: Would You Have Paid $66k For This Mangled Aston Martin DB6?
Base-model DB5s with triple SU carburation made 282 hp (286 PS) and delivered a 141 mph (227 kmh) top speed and zero to 60 mph (97 kmh) time of 8.1 seconds in Autocar’s hands. But the hotter Vantage variant added later breathed through a trio of Webers that helped lift power to 325 hp (330 PS), giving more go. Aston claimed the DB5’s top speed made it the fastest production four-seater in the world and equipment like electric windows, air conditioning, and an optional three-speed automatic transmission meant that buyers didn’t have to endure racecar rawness to enjoy that level of performance.
A total of 887 DB5 coupes, 123 convertibles, and 12 special shooting brake wagons were built in this period, though Aston has added a few more to the tally recently with its Goldfinger continuation cars. And that relative rarity, plus the Bond connection, means a 282 hp coupe in good condition will set you back $635,000 according to Hagerty, with a Concours-quality Vantage drophead coming in at over $3 million.
Will the new DB12 ever be worth that kind of money? Nice as it looks, and as well as it apparently drives, we very much doubt it.
