1990 Aston Martin Virage

This 5.3-litre, 3-speed automatic Virage was supplied by Aston Martin London to Mr Simon Miller of Denham on 1 May 1990 with its first registration ‘G505VUU’. The factory records show that he placed his order in April 1988, ahead of the public debut of the car in October of that year - clearly he had some inside knowledge. It was the 24th production car out of the 427 built.

The second owner, property developer and car trader Mr Alan Mennel of Doncaster bought the car in 1992 and four years later it moved to Billingshurst, West Sussex into the keeping of Mr Simon Hester of Lamina Dielectrics where it carried the private registration ‘RO 1179’.

The fourth owner was Keith Dare, a farmer from Axminster in Devon, who bought the car in 1999 at 29,136 miles and re-registered it with its current plate. He kept the Virage for 12 years in a climate controlled garage housing his small collection - which also included two other Astons - and only taxed it for the road during the summertime. The car underwent extensive refurbishment during his ownership and even took part in a Royal parade - see History Highlights for more detail.

Sadly Mr Dare passed away and the car was sold at the Bonhams Aston Martin Works Service Sale in 2012 to the Noble House Aston Martin Heritage dealership in the Netherlands, just east of Amsterdam, where it was retained on display in their showroom.

In late 2015, an independent trader bought the Virage and returned it to the UK by way of Le Riche Automobile Restorers in Jersey. Once again it was sold through Bonhams at their London Olympia sale in December 2017 and, again, it passed into the trade.

The last owner, its sixth, is our vendor - who bought the car in August 2021 from Kingsley Re-Engineered, more widely known for selling modernised classic Range Rovers. He’s owned modern Astons before but fancied having an older one that he had admired in his younger days.

He’s had work done on the Virage here and there to improve it, and has driven it now and then but largely it has been a “looking at car” sitting in his garage. With domestic pressure to release the space and a feeling that such a car deserves to be driven more, he’s reluctantly parting with it.

The exterior is finished in Buckinghamshire Green which contains a metallic flake that really bursts into life in the sunshine. The paint finish is, to quote our boss, “a bloody good one” which sadly was marred slightly recently by a couple of scrapes.

One is on the bottom of the front air dam on the driver’s side and the other on the nearside front wheel arch. The first the owner did straight after having the lower front repainted and was apparently done entering his garage. Ouch! The second, on the wheel arch, he has no idea where or how it happened, but it is how it is. Remedial work to these areas will have the Aston looking back to its best in no time.

The original spec 16-inch alloy wheels are in good order, with just a little deterioration of some of the centre badges. All are fitted with Avon Turbospeed tyres dating from 2020, having very little wear. AM logo’d dust caps provide a nice finishing touch.

The interior is upholstered in leather, with dark green on the upper dash and tan everywhere else. There’s a little patina across the leather seats, particularly the side bolsters as you’d expect, but no obvious damage or undue wear.

The door trims and dash have burr walnut veneers and the centre console sports a retro-feel trip computer and, below that, entertainment is provided by a modern Kenwood stereo with DAB radio. The radio and its powered antenna work as they should, as do the windows and the seats but getting the mirrors to move on command is something for the next owner to investigate.

Particularly nice classic features include the simple two-spoke steering wheel, free from anything other than a logo’d horn push, and the gear selector with its plain upside-down pear-shaped knob and release button on top.

The plush Wilton carpets are dark green and are clean and tidy, with just a small tear, barely visible under the front passenger seat. Up above the roll and tuck headlining is tan alcantara and also in good order. Overall the cabin feels special and is a very pleasant place to be.

Under the front-hinged bonnet, the engine bay looks in generally good order with protective paint around the walls. The mechanicals and ancillaries show recent attention as evidenced by the invoices on file.

The undersides of the car have a good coating of waxoyl or similar and appear relatively clean and free of obvious damage or serious corrosion. It looks as though one of the front undertray sections is missing or detached but there is evidence of recent renewal of bushes on the front suspension links.

The boot space is nicely carpeted in the same dark green as the car’s interior. Behind the linings are stowage for the battery, toolkit - which appears complete, warning triangle, and the bright red Ruote OZ space saver wheel and tyre in good condition. An indoor cover is included with the car.

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

The box file of documentation that comes with the car includes numerous invoices dating from around 1997, the original Aston Martin Warranty document and relevant magazine articles.

The owner’s book pack comes with the car and includes the service booklet containing the following entries:

• Sep 1990 - 980 miles - AML Newport Pagnel
• Jan 1993 - 6,420 - JCT600 Bradford
• Aug 1993 - 9,396 - a/a
• Mar 1997 - 14,848 - AddSpeed Engineering, Horsham
• Apr 1998 - 21,755 - a/a
• Feb 1999 - 26,490 - unknown
• May 2001 - 31,414 - Shute Garage, Devon
• Apr 2004 - 32,755 - Andrew Moss Sports Car Services, Honiton
• May 2006 - 34,038 - a/a
• Mar 2009 - 34,084 - a/a
• Nov 2015 - 35080 - AM Heritage, Netherlands (Almere east of Amsterdam)
• Dec 2018 - ?? - Grange Aston Martin
• Nov 2022 - ?? - Oselli, Milton Keynes

In 2004, extensive refurbishment works were undertaken including replacing corroded/rusting panels and renewing the offside and nearside lower front wings, door posts and door seals prior to a respray. The invoices on file suggest that genuine Aston Martin parts were used throughout and the quality of the restoration was rewarded when the Virage was paraded in front of HM The Queen in April 2005 at The Royal Windsor St George's Day Festival of Aston Martin.

In late 2015 the car was transported from Amsterdam via the UK to Jersey to Le Riche Automobile Restorers for a full recommissioning, servicing and prepping for the sale in December 2017. This work included repair and repaint of the front bumper and bonnet, which had developed blistering, repairs to door lock and mirrors, front grille and investigating a whine from the differential and the non-working heater. Over £5k was spent including shipping costs.

Bonhams reported an issue which artificially added around 30,000 miles to the digital odometer during consignment for their 2017 sale when the battery was disconnected. It now reads around 66,000 but the true mileage is understood to be closer to 36,000 miles.

During the 2018 service at Grange, the differential was repaired and refitted at a total cost of nearly £2.5k.

In recent months, the current owner has spent just over £3k with Oselli of Milton Keynes to rectify starting issues. The air intake system and all vacuum lines were stripped out and replaced, along with a full service including a new battery, plugs and front brake pads.

Having spent money recently to address any running and driving issues, the owner tells us that it now purrs beautifully, and is particularly at home cruising on the motorway, as befits a grand tourer.

The Aston Martin Virage family of cars that spanned the nineties are from an often overlooked era of the marque coming after the popular musclebound V8 but prior to the big V12 models taking over the show. But now that values of its predecessors have rocketed skywards, more attention is being paid to these more svelte brutes in suits.

We think this beautifully specified and largely well-presented Virage will sell for between £30,000 and £40,000, which is no money at all for what owners will tell you is one of the “last real Astons”.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; we are open weekdays 9am-5pm, 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’.