2017 Aston Martin DB4

[05XR8]

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mellor.nsf/story2/C7043D6B1FB4AF72CA2580970004BC87

ASTON MARTIN is following the lead of fellow British sportscar-maker Jaguar and has confirmed that it will recreate one of its rarest and most desirable models to date in an exclusive run of 25 ‘continuation’ DB4 GTs.

Like Jaguar’s reborn cars, the new Aston Martin DB4 GTs will be a strictly track-only proposition with all 25 examples built to Lightweight specification. Just 75 of the original DB4 GTs were ever crafted at the UK factory but lightweight versions are an even rarer beast with just eight completed.

Deliveries of the exclusive DB4s will start in the third quarter of 2017 but Aston Martin has not advertised how much it is asking customers to stump for their piece of the company’s history, although original examples might offer a guideline. If you can find an original DB4 GT Lightweight for sale you’ll need a budget of about $A5.1m to make it yours.

 

[MisterWaffles]

Bleh, these reproduction models have no history. They're just overpriced garage queens for rich buisnessmen who couldn't get their hands on an original.

 

[05XR8]

I don't know who cried first, the Aston Martin accounting team or those rich business men.

 

[sumbrownkid]

This is pretty much the automotive world's version of HD Remastered games.

 

[Aerocoupe]

Wow, automakers are really getting lazy; first it was retro inspired designs, now it's just building more of the original.

 

[GranTurismo guy]

Wow, automakers are really getting lazy

Yeah, because making this really stops everything else they are doing.

seriously?

 

[05XR8]

Didn't Shelby finish building a few Cobras back in the '90s? Or were the unfinished shells found by someone? I think they were still classified as '66 models.

 

[Aerocoupe]

Yeah, because making this really stops everything else they are doing.

seriously?

In a way, it devalues all of the original Lightweight DB4s because all 25 of these continuation models are going to be built to that spec, and seeing as how Aston Martin themselves are building them, I can see people considering them as true as the eight originals. Thus, with the supply being more than doubled, there's a good chance the demand for the model going down slightly and reducing the value of all of them (I know 8 isn't a large number to start with, but a total of 33 is quadruple the original amount).

The reason I called it lazy was the fact that Aston probably had all of the old blueprints for the DB4 lying around and thought "hey, if Jaguar can make its own reproductions of a classic race car then so can we!". The space, materials, labor, and tools to build these things all cost money, and with a sticker of $1.5 million, it's probably a lot of it. That money could have gone towards the development of a new model, engine, or even been routed to their racing programs. Hell, they could've been creative and instead of following Jaguar's lead, Aston could revive the DB4 name and make a small, lightweight coupe inspired by the ethos of the original instead of just building more of them. This also begs the question: will other European makes follow suit in this? How long until Ferrari makes a batch of 250 TRs, or Porsche makes more 550 Spiders?

I'm not saying it's a bad thing to take inspiration from the past, but I don't see much point in remaking it 1:1 and making special cars a bit less special.

 

[TexRex]

I don't think they're necessary, but I also don't think the originals will be devalued as a result of the 25 reproductions being made available, as those who don't know the difference aren't going to affect anything. It sounds as though there will be enough to differentiate the reproductions and the originals that those who actually matter will be able to figure it out.

I'd prefer a slab-side DB3S anyway...

 

[Robin]

So they are doing a Jaguar... there is a lot of negative reaction to these 'first party replicas' especially among the classic car scene. They will just end up in collections of rich guys who don't actually care that they have in essence bought a hugely overpriced kit car! They certainly won't appreciate in value anywhere near like the proper originals.

 

[TexRex]

Seeing as kit cars are [as the name implies] built from kits, that's really not what these are--they're being sold in a state of completion rather than partial completion. "Some assembly required" does not apply.

 

[Robin]

Seeing as kit cars are [as the name implies] built from kits, that's really not what these are--they're being sold in a state of completion rather than partial completion. "Some assembly required" does not apply.

You can pay to have some kit cars assembled by the manufacturer, like with Caterham.

 

[TexRex]

You can pay to have some kit cars assembled by the manufacturer, like with Caterham.

So how far are we going to stretch this? All cars are kit cars because they're the sum of their individual parts assembled? If a car [or anything else] is available for purchase in kit form, it's a kit--it doesn't matter who assembles it. If Aston Martin does this with these 25, though we know they won't, then yes, it too is a kit.

 

[Tornado]

Aston won't do these as a kit because they don't need to, like Shelby did.

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

The more the merrier. The sentimentality and emo-ness of the automotive scene (perpetuated by the likes of Evo & Petrolicious; watching their videos is like listening to dashboard confessionals or watching the notebook!) is suffocating. It's a damn car. Ironically, Aston's exact marketing strategy with this decision is based on sentimentality....good move Aston Martin, good move.

 

[Heldenzeit]

Don't think they will affect the value of the originals since these new ones have no provenance or race history.

 

[C-ZETA]

I just thought they were being funny and bringing the name back for a new car for some reason. But hey, if they want to make an old car again, but better, then why not?