Aston Martin DBS - not just for secret agents in Her Majesty's service

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Aston Martin DBS - not just for secret agents in Her Majesty's service

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Created on January 28, 2019

Text:

Bruno von Rotz

Photos:

Bonhams

25

Laurent Missbauer

8

United Artists

4

Anne Dayer

2

Archiv Aston Martin

2

Archiv

19

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - the design was created by William Towns, who also designed the Lagonda four-door car

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - looks wider than it actually is at 1.83 meters

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - in its original paint finish in "Aegean Blue"

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - small tail lights, short tailgate

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - ready to hit the road

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - with twin headlights

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - DeDion rear axle

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - simple elegance

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - rare left-hand drive Vantage variant

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - leather and deep-pile carpets were part of the package

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - the six-cylinder long-stroke engine could not cope with excessively high engine speeds

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - the 300 km/h speedometer already looked a bit pretentious back then

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - the button piano in the center console

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - Clock by Kienzle

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - opulent rear seat

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - aluminum inline six-cylinder engine with two overhead camshafts

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - the four-liter engine produced around 330 hp at the time

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - Chassis badge

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - Aston Martin trademark

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - Hutse for breathing the Weber carburetors

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - Vantage lettering on the flank

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - Twin headlights

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - filigree rear lights

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - Storage wheels with central hubs

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Aston Martin DBS Vantage (1968) - Type designation

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Aston Martin DB 6 (1968) - the predecessor of the DBS

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Aston Martin DBS C Touring (1965) - side view of the touring coupé, setup for photo shoots

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Aston Martin DBS Touring (1966) - only two examples of this two-seater prototype were built

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Aston Martin DBS C Touring (1965) - rear view of the modern Touring creation

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Aston Martin DBS (1967) - with six-cylinder engine

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Aston Martin DBS (1969) - elegant design by William Towns

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Aston Martin DBS (1969) - The DBS was presented with a six-cylinder engine

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Aston Martin DBS (1968) - four-liter six-cylinder engine in the front, bought directly from Sadrudin Khan at the Geneva Motor Show - Geneva Motor Show 1968

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Aston Martin DBS V8 (1972) - aluminum body on sturdy steel structure

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Aston Martin DBS (1971) - the six-cylinder was built until 1972

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Aston Martin DBS (1968) - See-through drawing of the six-cylinder model

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Aston Martin DBS (1968) - Assembly in the factory

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Bond's Aston Martin DBS Vantage parked next to the Cougar

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Aston Martin DBS (1968) in the James Bond film "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" in 1969

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George Lazenby is interviewed by presenter Annina Frey at the opening of "Bond World"

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George Lazenby, Sylvana Henriques and presenter Annina Fre at the opening of "Bond World" in 2013

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George Lazenby alias James Bond in the midst of Blofeld's "angels"

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George Lazenby as James Bond in the 007 film

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Diana Rigg as Tracy in the Bond film on board the Aston Martin DBS

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Scene from the Bond film when Bond and Tracy go on their honeymoon in the Aston Martin DBS

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Film sketch for the Bond film - Blofeld with Irma in the Mercedes 600

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James Bond mourns the death of his wife Tracy (George Lazen with Diana Riggs Hand

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Aston Martin S 530 (1971) - concept car based on an Aston Martin DBS, won first prize in the Daily Mail competition, exhibited at the London Motor Show

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Aston Martin DBS V8 (1971) - four-seater coupé with powerful V8 engine

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Aston Martin DBS V8 (1970) - Presentation at the Paris Motor Show in 1970

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Aston Martin DBS V8 (1969) - it was not produced until some time after its launch

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Aston Martin DBS V8 (1969) - Cockpit of the V8 version hardly differs from the six-cylinder version

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Aston Martin DBS V8 (1969) - the mighty V8 engine with four overhead camshafts

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Aston Martin DBS (1969) - William Towns designed the sports car, which seemed very wide at the time

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Aston Martin DBS (1969) - Coupé for four Persions, initially with in-line six-cylinder engine from the DB6 Vantage

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Summary

Timelessly elegant, largely mature and only built in small numbers, the Aston Martin DBS with the six-cylinder engine had to wait a long time for recognition from collectors, as it was always somewhat overshadowed by the DB4 to DB6 models. Yet it even played an important role in a James Bond film. This vehicle report tells the story of the Aston Martin DBS and shows it in historical and current pictures, as well as in the sales brochure of the time.

This article contains the following chapters

At the second attempt
Innovation under the aluminum sheet
For discerning connoisseurs with a big wallet
In the service of Her Majesty
The V8 came after all
Rarely seen
One of 63
Further information

Estimated reading time: 6min

Preview (beginning of the article)

Timelessly elegant, largely mature and only built in small numbers, the Aston Martin DBS with the six-cylinder engine had to wait a long time for recognition from collectors, as it was always somewhat overshadowed by the DB4 to DB6 models. Yet it even played an important role in a James Bond film. When the DB6 slowly began to show its age in the mid-sixties, putting the sports car company Aston Martin under pressure, David Brown and his team set about finding a remedy. A possible successor to the DB6 was developed at Touring. The result was shown in Turin in 1966 and certainly had its strengths, but at home at Aston Martin they were already one step ahead.

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