This Rare 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Hatchback Is Headed to Auction at Monterey Car Week
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Vintage cars are nothing new at Monterey Car Week, but even the most seasoned collector might do a double take when they catch a glimpse of one rare vehicle heading to auction: the 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Shooting Brake by Radford.
Though the DB5 Saloon is more famous—it’s James Bond’s most iconic car, after all—Aston Martin owner David Brown, the man the car was named for, took issue with its design. An avid sportsman, Brown wanted something that would have room for both his polo gear and his hunting dogs, something the Saloon just couldn’t handle. The solution was the Shooting Brake, which was designed with an extended hatch-hack top that offered much more room. Now, RM Sotheby’s is set to auction off one of only 12 ever produced later this month.
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Brown’s altered DB5 proved to be a hit, but since Aston Martin was too busy churning out standard models of its vehicles, he asked Harrold Radford’s coachbuilding business to help meet demand.
According to the auction house, the factory-sanctioned car that’s up for auction, chassis DB5/2273/L, was ordered new with the Shooting Brake conversion. A very work-intensive process, the conversion involved basically rebuilding the car from the windscreen back. The roof was cut away, extended with steel fabrications and a single-piece rear hatchback was added to top things off. Inside, the interior was given a makeover, including rear seats that could be folded down, to increase space to a relatively cavernous 40 cubic feet. Despite all this, the car still had some zip to it, able to reach a top speed of 150 mph.
This Shooting Brake has spent its entire lifespan in Switzerland where it has passed through the hands of just three private owners. The car has undergone two extensive restorations, the latest in 2009, during which its engine was upgraded to 4.7 liters. Previously, the automatic transmission was swapped out for a five-speed ZF gearbox. The car is accompanied by a BMIHT certificate and a fully documented history file.
As if the DB5 Shooting Brake needed to be even more appealing, this specific model is one of only four that were fitted with left-hand drive for export. RM Sotheby’s expects it to sell for upwards of $1.4 million when it hits the auction block on August 15.
Of course, there are plenty of other vintage dream cars to take check out at this year’s Monterey Car Week. Here are four that made heads turn at here at Robb Report. In the meantime, check out more photos of the DB5 Shooting Brake below:
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