1976 Aston Martin V8
£95,000 from Richards of England, Lincoln, UK
WITHOUT THE LATER Vantage’s more aggressive bodywork and larger wheels, there’s something very appealing about the original William Towns V8. It can be hard to keep track of the various iterations, but the pre-‘Oscar India’ V8 does without the rear spoiler or front airdam while representing a big evolution from the DBS and DBS-V8 – initially powered by a powerful Bosch fuel-injected engine.
Offered by Richards of England, this V8 is finished in its original shade of Cairngorm Brown – and the larger bonnet scoop signifies that it features the later Weber carburettor-fed 5.3-litre engine, with 310bhp from the factory. Even this automatic variant could hit 62mph in 6.2sec and go on to 146mph.
Ordered new in the UK by Ahmed Abdelghani of Aramco Oil, one of the best things about this car is its fully documented history. Each of its seven owners has maintained the V8 correctly, including the rectification of many common V8 issues over the years. It changed owners three times between 1976 and 1981, but when Mrs Eileen Elizabeth Berthet acquired the V8 it remained with her for over three decades. By 1990 it required some welding to the sills, which was undertaken by HWM Aston Martin. It was also given a full repaint the same year.
It then went directly to Aston Martin Lagonda for further structural work the following year, as well as what can only be described as a comprehensive mechanical restoration – despite the regular servicing.
MoT certificates suggest that, following this work, the V8 was given a rest from regular use, covering a little over 2500 miles over the next decade. There’s still plenty of maintenance history during this time.
Its current owner bought the V8 in 2016, since when he has spared no expense in bringing what was an already good car up to a much higher standard. In 2017 it was sent to Stratton Motor Company for a full bare-metal respray back to its glorious original colour. Stratton has maintained the car since, undertaking significant work each year to make this a very presentable and incredibly usable example.