2008 Aston Martin DB9 Le Mans

First registered in April 2008, this Aston Martin DB9 LM carries build number 007 of 124 and was supplied to its first owner by Stratstone Aston Martin in Derby.

Neither the first, nor second owners added more than a few thousand miles each to the car but the third started to use it in earnest, taking it up beyond 22k miles in six years of ownership.

Its fourth owner - our vendor - acquired the car in December 2021 from Hamilton Grays in Leicestershire and drove it home to Cornwall. He wasn’t particularly looking for a DB9 - and confessed at the time of purchase that it wasn’t his sort of car.

But he’s very particular when it comes to cars and likes them to be just right - so when he stumbled upon this immaculate LM he fell under its spell and realised that owning a thoroughbred Aston was an itch he had to scratch.

He’s had fun with the DB9, has taken it on a few good trips and has kept the car well maintained and properly detailed once a month, but has decided that now is the time to find the car he really wants - a Ferrari 308 GTB. It will offer a very different driving experience to this comfortable continent-crossing DB9 but it’s a choice that we certainly can’t fault him for.

The DB9 LM wears its special edition Sarthe Silver metallic paint very well, with no obvious marks or blemishes across its sleek body. The paintwork has a 3-year ceramic coating applied and this continues to protect it from the elements.

For anyone who hasn’t made the connection, Sarthe is the département of France incorporating the town of Le Mans, and the Circuit de la Sarthe is the official name of the track on which the 24 hour race is run.

Also standard on the DB9 LM were the Magnum Silver meshes in the nose, bonnet, side strakes and rear valance - as well as the clear lenses in the tail lamp clusters. Another unique touch at the rear is the red badge depicting an outline of the Circuit de la Sarthe track.

The DB9 LM sits on 19-inch Sports Pack alloy wheels - lighter than the standard design and presenting in excellent condition with no marks or scuffing. Ex-factory, these would have also been painted in Sarthe Silver with a diamond turned finish to the spoke facings - but they were refurbished a couple of months ago and refinished in a slightly lighter silver colour.

All four corners are fitted with Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tyres, dating from 2020 and showing good tread. The red brake callipers - also standard on the LM - can be easily seen through the 5-spoke wheels.

The interior is upholstered in Obsidian Black leather with perforated seat facings and a coarse contrast stitching in red to match the Tertre Rouge dash fascia and door trims. Le Tertre Rouge - translating as “the red mound” is the highest and northernmost point on the Circuit de la Sarthe, before the racers turn south down the famous Mulsanne Straight.

All looks in very good condition, with just a little creasing to the driver’s seat-back side bolster - as is typical - and a couple of small depressions in the leather on the seat base.

The leather covering of the centre armrest has the circuit map embroidered in red and the sill plaques in either doorway also depict the Le Mans track plan and the build number “007 of 124” - although as we’ve already mentioned only 69 of these cars were ever actually made and just 15 with the steering wheel on the right side.

All dials and equipment fitted appear to be original and are understood to function correctly.

The dark grey carpets and overmats look very clean and in good order, as does the Tailor’s Grey headlining overhead.

The same dark grey carpeting extends into the spacious rear boot area. A warning triangle is stowed under the rear deck, the original first aid kit sits in a well to one side and the battery compartment to the other.

The thumping six-litre (nominal) V12 engine is pushed back well into the bulkhead of the Aston Martin but still almost fills the engine bay, making DIY maintenance something of a challenge - not that you’d want to do much more than an oil change, such is the importance of specialist attention.

The engine is mated to a Touchtronic 2 automatic transmission which later became standard fit for the 2009 model year DB9. This improved ZF unit offered faster shifting, which enabled an improved 0-60 mph time of 4.6 seconds.

This LM also has Aston Martin’s DB9 Sports Pack as standard. As well as the lighter wheels, the suspension was revised; increasing spring rates front and rear by 68% and 64% respectively. It also included a modified anti-roll bar, tweaked dampers and bump stops, and a 6mm lower ride height. These changes gave a big improvement in handling without affecting the ride comfort.

Much of the undersides are covered with an aluminium panel that not only serves an aerodynamic purpose but also gives more structural stiffness - again part of the sports pack. It also means that there isn’t much of interest to see underneath the car. There’s a little surface rust developing on the rear subframe and anti-roll bar clamps but nothing to warrant noting at the last MOT.

The DB9 has a current MOT valid until December 2023, which it passed with no advisories.

The car also comes with a full service history with all but the most recent carried out by Aston Martin main dealers or marque specialists. The entries in the service record are as follows:

• Apr 2008 - 19 miles PDI - Aston Martin Derby
• Jun 2008 - 787 - a/a
• Apr 2009 - 2,751 - Aston Martin Works, Newport Pagnell
• Mar 2010 - 3,363 - a/a
• Mar 2011 - 4,579 - a/a
• Mar 2012 - 5,443 - Aston Martin Derby
• Mar 2013 - 6,322 - a/a
• Mar 2014 - 6,535 - a/a
• Mar 2015 - 7,435 - a/a
• Jun 2016 - 11,721 - a/a
• Aug 2017 - 14,418 - Aston Martin Nottingham
• May 2019 - 19,283 - a/a
• Nov 2020 - 22,753 - McGurk, Kineton
• Nov 2021 - 23,288 - Aston Martin Nottingham
• Dec 2022 - 28,611 - CAR Services, Redruth Cornwall

There are also invoices covering some of these service visits as well as other maintenance or repair such as the replacement of both door control modules by Aston Martin Bristol in July 2022.

Other items of documentation include a copy of the model launch press release and specification sent to dealership principals and the original bill of sale of the car from Stratstone Aston Martin.

The V12 registration plate currently on the car isn’t included in the sale but the vendor is open to offers.

The DB9 may not have the cachet or the brute force of the DBS that was based on it but is still every bit an Aston Martin - hand-built in Britain with supercar performance from a 450bhp V12.

Whilst values of early DB9s have been stuck in the mid £20ks for several years now, other contemporary Astons are seeing values increase and so the noughties coupé grand tourer is finally starting to get some attention.

For this rare, low mileage, sporty DB9 Le Mans limited edition number 007 in great condition and well looked after, we think it will easily go for between £40,000 and £45,000.

We’ll leave the summary to the vendor - “it looks great, sounds great and goes great” - what more could you want?

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with the vendor in Truro, Cornwall; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.