1970 Aston Martin DBS V8

A remarkable, rare and very well-presented, early fuel-injected manual Aston DBS V8, this example was once owned and restored by Aston Martin marque specialist Tony Christie. Founder of Classic Engineering, Tony bought VUT from its first owner and ran it for 34 years. He’d fallen in love after seeing the car at his local Leicestershire Aero Club. Tony still clearly recalls the view of the car from the control tower, back in the 1970s, that cemented his desire to own it, which he eventually did in 1984.

Tony comprehensively rebuilt the car from 1988 to 1990 after having a ‘whoopsie’ during hill climbing. The body and chassis needed to be totally stripped down to carry out the repairs, and so Tony took the opportunity to replace, refurbish and rebuild everything to his exacting professional standards. His work was rewarded with several magazine appearances; on the cover of the final issue of Supercar & Classics in 1991 and again in a Classic Cars supplement in September 1995.

As everything was essentially replaced or refurbished to as good – if not better than – new, with all parts picked up by Tony himself from the Aston Martin plant in Newport Pagnell, a brand-new set of instruments were added, including new clocks; reading zero of course. That means the 10,287 miles displayed are all that’s been covered since this Aston was returned to the road in 1991. In the intervening three and a bit decades the car’s been dry stored and exercised sparingly, which explains the impressive condition it remains in today.

As an early V8, fed by fuel injection and with a manual transmission, this DBS boasts a highly-sought-after specification. We couldn’t find the exact numbers – which is telling in itself – but 1969/70 manual fuel-injected DBS V8s seem to be vanishingly rare. The complex Bosch mechanical fuel-injection was often to blame, with many giving up on it and having the system replaced by carburettors.

The many images of this DBS V8 clearly show how well it presents, with Tony’s level of restoration expertise and the vendor’s care since speaking for themselves. Very little in the way of imperfections are to be found anywhere, panel gaps are exceptional, with bonnet, boot, doors and wings all showing precise and enviable shuts.

The paint finish is just as impressive with an even and highly-polished shine seen throughout. The chrome looks nearly as good as new, shining with a mirror finish that’s getting ever harder to replicate these days. The glass looks crystal clear, with the wheels gleaming, having clearly seen past refurbishment – though the rears show a little pitting under their coating – shod in a mix of Goodyear Eagle NCT & GA tyres.

The Lucas front fogs still have their vulnerable plastic covers fitted, which seem to be in great shape. Less so the lower front valance, that’s showing a crack around the offside air intake. While on the subject of minor imperfections, there’s some tiny chips to the offside rear quarter and another on the top of the driver’s A-post. None of which spoils the remarkable impression made by this remarkable Aston’s exterior.

After the dazzle of the outer panels, it’s a relief to open the door to a cabin that’s by no means a disappointment. There’s some nicely creased and aged hide covering the seats, showing fantastic patina; though we’d remedy the small holes to driver’s outer bolster before they get too much worse. The blue carpet and centre console are matched by a similar hue to the door cards. The fabric all looks great with just a few patches of minor wear to frequently fondled spots, namely the driver’s armrest and door card.

As a rare manual DBS V8, this one has three pedals and a manual stick; the knob on the latter still clearly showing its pattern. Some much newer speakers have been added to the lower door cards – the driver’s side showing some damage around its plastic perimeter. The evidently original headlining still looks good, with only a few small areas where the glue’s beginning to give up its adhesion. 

There are some stains and a little swelling to offside rear ¾ trim (presumably from moisture) but the rest of the trim – including excellent Aston Martin Wilton carpets – still presents very well. The dashboard, for instance, looks remarkable considering its 54-year vintage. The trim in the boot area remains complete and in great shape, with even the spare-wheel cover still present, along with a full tool roll.

Lifting that huge bonnet reveals a great looking engine bay with plenty of new fixings and no sign of any leaks. Bonnet soundproofing is still holding on strong and looks tidy. It’s clear that plenty of time and effort has been spent keeping this DBS V8 operating as well as possible. A plaque proclaiming ‘Tony Christie of Classic Engineering’ has been proudly affixed to the engine’s cylinder head.

The underside of this Aston appears to be very straight, with plenty of paint and underseal seemingly still offering great protection. The latter doesn’t seem to have been slapped on thick either, it’s still very clear that the floors it’s covering are still solid. These are notoriously expensive cars to restore properly, so it’s reassuring that this one’s been kept so well since it was thoroughly rebuilt. According to the vendor, it still wants for nothing. 

Now in his late 80s, Tony was nonetheless enthusiastic to share the history of VUT with us. “I owned the car for 34 years. I knew the car’s first owner Mike and, when I heard he was selling it, I drove up from Southampton to his stately home with my wife Pat. The car was dusty and dirty, stored in a coach house, surrounded by chickens! He said it had been ‘a pain in the arse’ as it was running rough. I checked all the usual things (cam timing, ignition etc.) and narrowed it down to the mechanical Bosch fuel-injection system. There wasn’t a spot of rust on it back then (in 1984). I looked over the history and Mike had just spent £9k trying to get it running correctly.”

A deal was done and after a very uneconomical 167-mile trip back home (figures peaking at two miles per gallon!), Tony went about trying to find anyone who understood the fuel-injection system. “I had no luck locally, but I remembered working with a German chap who was a Bosch development engineer and he said ‘leave it with me’. He highlighted an error in the workshop manual, which I’d been relying upon, where the mechanical fuel pump was quoted as being timed on the compression stroke for number one cylinder, when in fact it should have been on the induction stroke. He told me to turn it 180 degrees and that was it, it ran almost perfectly. I then – again on the advice of my German friend – took the car to Tower Bridge Diesels in London (whose expertise are now a part of SLSHOP), who calibrated it there and then and by 4pm that day it was on a rolling road and doing exactly 17.6mpg.”

Tony spent two years comprehensively bringing this DBS V8 up to the remarkable standard it’s seen in today. When asked for the specifics, he was more than happy to reminisce. “We removed everything from VUT, with Newport Pagnell suppling all new sills, floors – including the boot floor, outriggers and jacking points from the factory. I was taken on a tour and given some yellow chalk, which I used to mark all the bits I needed, right off the production line! When I rebuilt it, I rebuilt absolutely everything.”

That’s no exaggeration either, as Tony goes into great detail about all the work he carried out 35 years ago... “The calipers and master cylinder were rebuilt, all the hydraulics were replaced and new seals were fitted. The differential was stripped with new UJs added on the propeller shaft. A new balanced flywheel and clutch was added to the totally-rebuilt engine. The crankshaft was ground and nitride hardened, finished round for a 2.5-thou clearance. That’s why the oil pressure is beyond the maker’s expectation, it’s perfect. The cylinder liners were removed from the block and new seals were fitted (these use wet liners). The liners were then refitted and honed to original specification. In a nutshell, the car has fantastic oil pressure and uses no oil in between changes. I built five engines like this and all were the same. We added Koni shocks, matched to springs I designed myself and had made. These ensure the car has the slight rake I remembered it having when I saw it new.”

Currently with the car, there’s an original instruction manual from Aston Martin and a Hampton Court concours entrance certificate from 2001. Aside from a smattering of old tax discs from ’88 to ’15, and some invoices from 2010-onwards, the rest of the history has unfortunately been misplaced. We have some invoices from marque specialists (chiefly Richard Stewart Williams Limited, Surrey) for top-up maintenance. A total of £322.71 was spent on new engine cover gaskets in September 2011. 

Most recently of all, Tony’s old business partner – who runs Classic Engineering Wales – had the car serviced last year and added a 40% increased-size alloy radiator; coolant swapped for Evans waterless in the process.

Rare specification, early DBS V8s are permanently desirable and, according to the vendor; “if you asked Aston Martin Works Service to rebuild a similar car, it would cost over £400k.” 

With all the hard work seemingly already carried out on this example, you’re left with touching up the few remaining imperfections and either returning it to the concours arena, or simply enjoying and using it as it is. 

Either way, this represents a near unique opportunity to bag a well-specified and rare Aston - restored and owned by a marque specialist - for a fraction of what it would cost to restore one to this level from scratch. We estimate that this car will sell for £65,000-£75,000.

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located at the Bonhams|Cars Online HQ. Viewings are strictly by appointment. To make a booking, 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, and read our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.