Moore? In an Aston? Not a Volvo or a Lotus? And why a DBS... not a DB5?
British auction house Bonhams sold an Aston Martin DBS last weekend for £533,500 – a record amount for a DBS.
Originally driven by Roger Moore (now Sir Roger) in the 1970s, the DBS was a six-cylinder model, rather than the later DBS V8.
The DBS was not used in the production of a James Bond film, but it is famous among action/adventure fans of a certain age, nonetheless. Appearing in 24 episodes of TV series ‘The Persuaders’, the DBS was driven by Moore’s character in the show, Lord Brett Sinclair, who was a foil to Tony Curtis’s character in the show, Danny Wilde. Curtis drove a Dino Ferrari 246 GT.
The Fezza appears to struggle keeping up with the four-litre Aston in a straight line, but catches up in the corners during the opening clip from the pilot episode. That clip, re-edited with Bond composer John Barry’s opening theme music dubbed over the video, is available on YouTube.
The DBS was just one example from over 150 lots at the Aston Martin Works auction, now in its 15th year, according to the auction house. In total, the auction netted £8.7 million, with the DBS contributing significantly to that, but the old TV star wasn’t the highest priced lot to sell. Of the 50 cars at the auction, it was a DB6 Mark 2 Volante that attracted the highest bid – £757,500. Only 21 units of that particular model were ever built.
Topped only by the DB6 Volante and the DBS, an original Vantage prototype sold for £393,500. Codenamed DP217, the prototype was based on a 1963 DB5 and its sale price was more than four times the guiding value estimated for it before the auction.
“As ever, in its 15th year the Aston Martin Works sale has been truly tremendous,” said James Knight, Bonhams Group Motoring Director. “After 15 years of running this sale we still continue to enjoy our very special partnership with Aston Martin, working collectively to deliver the right results for the brand and our clients.”
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