We are delighted to offer for sale this incredibly original 1974 Aston Martin V8 (Series 3).

The Heritage Certificate on file confirms that this factory right hand drive, home market car was finished in Cambridge Blue with a Natural interior (trim code VM 846). It was completed on the 3rd May 1974 and despatched on the 24 June 1974 to dealer GE Fletcher Company Developments, Brierley Hill, Staffordshire.

The Details of Equipment are noted as: Weber carburettors, automatic gearbox, two door mirrors, two headrests, two rear seat belts, side repeater flashers, side marker lights, overriders and a larger capacity fuel tank.

It is understood that the car was first used by one of the dealership executives until it was sold by The Aston Martin Centre - Cheylesmore Garage Coventry in the UK on the 21st November 1975 to WM Martin (Sheldon) Ltd from Solilhull in the West Midlands. At that time the odometer read 23,683 miles. The car was then registered as SRW78M.

This car has been in continuous family ownership since it was purchased from The Aston Martin Centre - Cheylesmore Garage Coventry in the UK on the 17th February 1976. At that time the odometer read 25,900 miles. The car was subsequently registered as MJB21.

Shortly after purchasing his Aston Martin V8, the owner decided on a colour change for the car. There is an invoice on file from Aston Martin Lagonda in Newport Pagnell dated 19th August 1977 for miscellaneous work, including a 30,000 mile service and a repaint in larch green. At that time he also had an electric sunroof fitted.

In July 1979 the car was returned to Aston Martin to rectify water leaks from the sunroof and the boot, adjust the doors to reduce wind noise and repair a dent on the nose of the car.

In August 1981 Aston Martin carried out a 5,000 mile service. At that time all four wheels were replaced. The replacement wheels are date stamped 1975.

The last MOT on file is dated 12th August 1986 at which time the odometer was 45,905 miles.

The owner spent time working in the UK and he moved back to Brisbane, Australia in 1987 and brought this Aston Martin V8 and a Ferrari Dino 246 GT with him.

This car has lived in Brisbane ever since. Over the next 39 years the car has been used sparingly and today the odometer reads 49,973 miles!

Despite the limited use this Aston Martin has been regularly serviced and maintained over the years by highly respected local specialist Norm Singleton.

In recent years the car has essentially been in storage, though it has been started and the engine run to operating temperature from time to time.

Incredibly, it has been some 38 years now since this car was repainted. Apart from the repaint, this car is incredibly original.

As you will see from the photos, larch green is a perfect colour for this Aston Martin V8. The paint has held up really well and from a few meters away it presents really well. On closer inspection you will notice some imperfections here and there. Most noticeably, there are some defects in the paint on the nose of the car. Generally, the panel gaps are good. The biggest issue with this car is that there is corrosion evident at the front of both sills, around the right front jacking point and at the bottom of both doors.

The trade mark Aston Martin wheels are a real feature on these V8s and on this car they are in good condition and present well. They are shod with Avon radial tyres, size 225/70VR15. These tyres are old and should be replaced.

The interior presents well with just the right amount of patina. Everything is most likely original, including the carpets! The seats are in good condition with no rips or tears in the leather. They are comfortable and still provide ample support. There are some marks on the bolster of the drivers seat, most likely caused by the arm rest rubbing on the leather over the years. The carpets are still presentable, though there are some small ink spot like stains in some areas. The rears seats have probably not been used much and still present well. The dashboard is in good condition and all the instruments are clear and appear to be in a good working order.

Despite this car not having been used much in recent years, it has been well maintained. As noted above, the car requires some cosmetic attention, however, our underside inspection revealed that the car has had recent mechanical attention. There are new brake lines, new hoses, the rear section of the exhaust system appears to be new and various components of the rear suspension have been refurbished/replaced, including the shock absorbers.

As with most cars from this period the car will require the use of the choke when started from cold. Given this cars recent lack of use, we were intrigued as to how easily it would start and drive. The first question was answered quickly as the 5,340cc V8 engine burst into life at the first turn of the key. Once the engine fired up you can back the choke off fairly quickly.  Every time we have had to start this car it has started easily, even from stone cold. Perhaps it is just begging to be driven! The V8 has a great exhaust note and a deep throaty burble. On our short test drive the cars vital signs were all good. The oil pressure gauge showed a healthy 60 psi and the coolant temperature was steady at 80 degrees celsius. The engine appears to be healthy, the gear changes are smooth and the car did everything one would expect it to do. Due to lack of use in recent years, this car will benefit from a major service and tune.

As the new custodian of this Aston Martin V8  you have the option to do the bare minimum to bring the car up to a roadworthy condition and just enjoy it as is, or you carry out a major cosmetic restoration and return the car to its original colour or perhaps chose something in between these two options. The choice is yours.

The car has books, including an original service book, a Heritage Certificate as well as an excellent history file from its time in the UK.

The car has been competitively priced, taking into account that it does require some cosmetic attention and a major service.

Highlights:

- Incredibly original early Aston Martin V8.
- Desirable model with Weber carburettors.
- Matching numbers example.
- Continuous ownership since 1976.
- Great value entry level to Aston Martin ownership.

Price $129,950


Background

Aston Martin has produced bespoke sports cars for over 100 years. The company began in 1913, when founders Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford realised their desire to build distinctive, high quality sports cars that were both exhilarating to drive and a beauty to behold. Martin regularly competed in hill climb races at Aston Clinton, and a simple combination of the name of the event and the driver gave birth to one of the most famous automotive marques. Source: www.astonmartin.com.

Whilst Aston Martin produced some wonderful cars in their early years business, was always a struggle and the company was severely disrupted during both World War I and II. The company went bankrupt on more than one occasion and has endured many different owners throughout its history.

David Brown acquired Aston Martin in February 1947 and the first car produced during his ownership was the Aston Martin 2 Litre Sports, later known as the DB1, which was built in extremely limited numbers from 1948 to 1950. This was succeeded by the Aston Martin DB2 in 1950, which featured a new double overhead cam straight six engine of 2.6 litre (2580 cc) capacity, and was a car that really put post war Aston Martin on the map. The David Brown era was arguably Aston Martins finest with the company winning LeMans in 1959 and the sixties producing the legendary DB4, DB5 and DB6 models.

The first of the Newport Pagnell designed cars, the DBS, was introduced in 1967. The DBS was initially powered by Aston Martins tried and true 6 cylinder engine as the companys new V8 engine was not ready.

From September 1967 through until May 1972 Aston Martin produced 829 DBS chassis. One of these was used in a crash test and 26 of these were later fitted with a V8 engine which leaves a total of 802 six cylinder Aston Martin DBS. Of these 802 cars, 621 were right hand drive and 181 left hand drive. The DBS was available with a five speed ZF manual gearbox or an automatic gearbox or. Interestingly, 317 of the right hand drive cars were fitted with the five speed manual gearbox. It is understood that Aston Martin only built circa 70 right hand drive examples equipped with the Vantage engine.

In September 1969 the DBS was superseded by the DBS V8, powered by the all new 5.3 litre V8 engine which was finally ready for production. The DBS V8 remained in production through until April 1972 and circa 400 cars were built.  It was then renamed and became the Aston Martin V8, which became a great success for the marque.

The first of the Aston Martin V8s, now referred to as Series 2 cars, were built from May 1972 through until July 1973. These cars were powered by a similar engine to the DBS V8, albeit with Bosch fuel injection rather than the earlier carburettors. Just 288 Series 2 cars were built.

The Series 3 Aston Martin V8 reverted back to using Weber carburettors. This model featured a larger bonnet scoop to cover the four Weber 42DCNF carburettors as well as other subtle cosmetic changes. There were many other detailed improvements to the car with revised front seats, revised switches, improved cooling to engine and transmission plus a new fuel tank which gave more luggage space. Production of Series 3 cars lasted from 1973 through until October 1978 and in total 967 examples were produced in this time. Interestingly, production of the V8 was interrupted for over a year between December 1974 and Spring 1976, when the company hit financial difficulties.

In October 1978 Aston Martin introduced the Aston Martin V8 Series 4, otherwise known as the Oscar India (Oscar India = October Introduction, from the phonetic alphabet). The car now sporting burr walnut trim, a blanked off bonnet scoop and a revised boot lid and rear wings to create a sculpted spoiler was visually very similar to the Vantage. The car remained in production through until 1985 and only 352 examples were produced.

In 1986 the final iteration of the Aston Martin V8 was introduced. The last of these cars was easily identified as the famous bonnet scoop had essentially been eliminated. It was no longer required, as Aston Martin was targeting the lucrative American market had to revert back to fuel injection to meet emission requirements. The Aston Martin Series 5 was quite successful and 405 cars were built.

The Aston Martin V8 was produced for 17 years, with production finally coming to an end in 1989. Just over 2,000 cars were built, plus the Volantes and Vantages.