1968 Aston Martin DB6 Coupe

An inherent instability would end up providing Aston Martin with its longest-running model up until that time in the company's history. While the Aston Martin DB5 model would help the company really take-off, it would be its tendency to take off at high speed that would give the world the DB6 grand tourer.

The DB series (so named honoring David Brown, the head of Aston Martin between 1947 and 1972) from Aston Martin was anything but new when it unveiled its DB4 in 1958. However, the DB4 would be different in so many ways from its predecessors. And yet, both the DB5 and the DB6 would bear a striking resemblance to its predecessor.

Built in Aston's Newport Pagnell facility in Buckinghamshire, England, the first model to be so built at the factory, the DB4 would be very much Italian. The tube-frame body would be designed by Carrozzeria Touring in Milan and would be built using Italian construction techniques. Blessed with a 240 hp engine and a nimble chassis, the model would become very popular and would be produced from 1958 through 1963.

The DB5 would represent the final, and perhaps most famous, evolution of the DB4. The new car would be fitted with such standards as reclining seats, electric windows, twin fuel tanks, full leather trim in the cabin and a body built to Superleggera construction technology. Enjoying a 314 hp engine in the Vantage model, the DB5 certainly had more power and a higher top-end speed than the original DB4. Here would be the car's weak point, and the point of introduction for the DB6.

Carrozzeria Touring of Milan had designed the body of the DB4 that then would be slightly altered to become the ever-popular DB5. It had been more than five years and the overall design had not changed all that much. Touring of Milan had put forth proposals for a replacement of the DB5, but all of them would be rejected as Aston Martin made the decision to do their own development.

Despite having a new facility in Newport Pagnell, Aston Martin wouldn't venture too far from the design that many had come to associate with the company. However, they would make some very important evolutions.

Wind tunnel tests verified that fastback styling of the car was actually producing aerodynamic lift, which meant the car was actually losing contact with the ground at high speed. To overcome this issue the most notable change between the DB6 and the DB5 would be used. Drawing great similarities to the Ferrari 250 Lusso or 275 GTB, a chopped Kamm-style tail would be employed. The lip-spoiler, called a Kammback tail, would help to keep the rear end planted firmly to the ground at speed and would help to give the new car a sporty look while the rest of it would be evolved along more practical lines.

The traditional DB enthusiast resisted the new rear end of the car precisely because it stopped being an Aston Martin and looked more like a copy of the Ferrari 250. However, the rest of the car would mellow the sporting aspects of the car's design making it a blend of practicality and performance.

The main effort of the DB6 was to provide more interior room, especially to the backseat. To achieve this, the DB6 would have a taller roofline that would give more headroom. The increase in height of the roofline meant the windshield would be positioned much more vertical than that of the DB4 and DB5. In addition to the car's height, the car's wheelbase would be stretched to provide more interior room. In all, the wheelbase would be stretched nearly four inches. These represented the majority of the changes to the chassis of the car. The rest of the differences would be found in the actual aesthetics.

Some of the aesthetic differences would include split front and rear bumpers and rear panels. The doors would also have the quarter windows reappear in their design. The oil-cooler air scoop would also be positioned low in the nose. Power steering would become an option for the DB6 as would air conditioning. One of the final details of the DB6 included the revised tail-light arrangement. Performance upgrades for the DB6 would include a standard five-speed manual or a three speed automatic gearbox, as well as, triple side-draft Weber carburetors capable of pushing power output to 325 hp.

All told, the greatest difference between the DB5 and the DB6 would come in the bodywork. This would be because almost the whole of the car underneath the body would be virtually identical to the DB5 including the same rear axle, running gear and suspension. While available on the DB5 at extra cost, the 'Powr-Lok' limited-slip differential and chrome wire wheels would be standard.

In spite of the purists, all of the changes and updates to the already popular styling would translate into the longest-running of the DB line. In total, production of the DB6 would run from 1965 all the way to 1971. Over that time, 1,967 DB6s would be produced and one of those would be up for sale at the 2012 RM Auction in Arizona.

DB6/3398/R was built in 1968. The car would be sold in England to an Alexander Georgiadis through H.R. Owen, Limited of London. Some time in the mid-1970s, the car would make its way to the United States. Ultimately, it would end up in California under the ownership of Edward Mathers.

Mr. Mathers would own the car all the way up to 2003 when it would become the property of another. In 2006, the car underwent an exhaustive restoration by Jim Simpson at Contemporary Classics located in Clinton, Washington.

During that restoration the car would actually undergo an evolution. The car would be converted to left-hand drive and the engine would be upgraded to Vantage specifications. However, not surprisingly, the upgrade to the Vantage specifications would be matched with correct triple Weber carburetors. These evolutions alone would give the car 325 hp out of the 4.0-liter inline 6-cylinder engine. This evolution would make this classic car enter a whole new world where top speed would increase up to 150 mph.

These evolutions wouldn't be the only work done to the car, however. The suspension would be fully rebuilt. This would include the popular and proven Steel Wings handling kit. The car would receive all new hydraulic components, as well as, a new wiring harness, stainless bumpers and entirely redone interior.

While not exactly fitting of a 1968 DB6, the car would receive some additional updates that would certainly make the car one of kind. Some of these updates include a CD stereo sound system and DB6 Mk2-style fender flares with the wider tires to match. While these updates may not have been your average option for the DB6 of 1968 they certainly do make for a stylish and handsome model of the longest running DB ever to be produced.

Given the fact the Prince of Wales owns a DB6 reflects that while the DB6 may not have quite carried along on the path forged by the DB4 and DB5, it still reflected those same iconic lines that made Aston Martin famous and the DB line one of the most memorable in automotive history.

Sources:
'Feature Lots: Lot No. 116: 1968 Aston Martin DB6', (http://www.rmauctions.com/FeatureCars.cfm?SaleCode=AZ12&CarID=r190&fc=0). RM Auctions. http://www.rmauctions.com/FeatureCars.cfm?SaleCode=AZ12&CarID=r190&fc=0. Retrieved 5 January 2012.

'Driven: 1961 Aston Martin DB4 GT', (http://www.classicdriver.com/uk/magazine/3600.asp?id=14964). Classic Driver. http://www.classicdriver.com/uk/magazine/3600.asp?id=14964. Retrieved 5 January 2012.

'Aston Martin', (http://auto.howstuffworks.com/aston-martin-sports-cars8.htm). HowStuffWorks: Reverse Engineering the World. http://auto.howstuffworks.com/aston-martin-sports-cars8.htm. Retrieved 5 January 2012.

Wikipedia contributors, 'Aston Martin DB6', Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 21 October 2011, 23:17 UTC, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Aston_Martin_DB6&oldid=456751915 accessed 5 January 2012

Wikipedia contributors, 'Aston Martin DB5', Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 20 November 2011, 01:25 UTC, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Aston_Martin_DB5&oldid=461518598 accessed 5 January 2012

Wikipedia contributors, 'Aston Martin DB4', Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 9 November 2011, 15:38 UTC, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Aston_Martin_DB4&oldid=459813262 accessed 5 January 2012

By Jeremy McMullen