1965 Aston Martin DB5 Coupe

The Aston Martin DB5 was introduced in 1963 as the company's flagship grand tourer, incorporating modern revisions that made it more powerful that its DB4 predecessor. It was based on the DB4 chassis but with nearly 170 updates and modifications, including the covered headlights sourced from the DB4GT. The suspension was redesigned with the front adjusted for camber, while the rear received Armstrong Selectaride shock absorbers. Servo-assisted Girling disc brakes were added at all four corners. Beneath the bonnet was an enlarged version of the DB4's all-aluminum, dual overhead camshaft inline, six-cylinder engine displacing 4.0-liters and breathing through three SU carburetors (as used on the previous DB4 Vantage). The transmission was a fully synchromesh ZF five-speed manual unit.

The 'Vantage' specification increased performance even further with the help of revised camshaft profiles and three Weber carburetors. With 325 brake horsepower, it was capable of sprinting from zero-to-sixty mph in six seconds.

Between 1963 and 1965, Aston Martin built 1,059 examples of the DB5 with 180 manufactured for left-hand-drive markets. The Vantage was even more exclusive with just 70 examples built.

This fully outfitted Aston Martin DB5 was ordered new by Prince Abdul Ilah Bin Abdulaziz, son of King Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia. It has the sixth-from-last DB5 chassis number and was delivered in 1966. It left the factory with separate signal indicators and running lights in the front (standard on the soon-to-be DB6). Among its list of factory accessories included the Normalair air conditioning system, a Motorola radio with a power-operated antenna, Marchal fog lamps, two wing mirrors, two Britax lap and diagonal safety belts for the front seats, two Britax belts for the rear seat, a DB5 Continental parts kit, a heated rear windscreen, three-ear knock-off spinners, and detachable headrests. The dual fuel tanks are also believed to be original.

After H.R.H. Prince Abdul's ownership, the car's next known caretaker was William C. Mullins, Esq., of Dallas, Texas. He later sold the car to Joel Stein, of Ft. Lauderdale, in the early 1990s, who in turn sold it to George Bunting, of Hunt Valley, Maryland around 2005.

While in the custodianship of Dr. Stein, the car was mechanically refurbished and serviced by Performance Tuning and Restoration of Pompano Beach, Florida, starting in 1993. The work included rebuilding the numbers-matching engine to Vantage specification which included the addition of three side-draft Weber carburetors.

Mr. Bunting sold the car to a subsequent owner in 2013 who embarked on an extensive cosmetic restoration by Kevin Kay Restorations in Redding, California. The work included stripping the car to its bare metal and refinishing it in its factory color of Caribbean Pearl. The bumpers and much of the brightwork were re-chromed, and the windscreen was replaced. The interior was retrimmed with Connolly-type leather in factory-correct Dark Blue.

The current caretaker acquired it in August 2014 and sent it back to Kevin Kay Restorations for an additional $200,000 worth of work. A new front grille was installed, the undercarriage was detailed, and incorrect parts were replaced with proper components (including the air-conditioning compressor, spark plug wires, and non-factory Blaupunkt radio with a period-look Motorola 818 808 Aston Martin Digitized Vintage Classic radio).

After the work was completed, the car was shown at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in 2017.

By Daniel Vaughan | Dec 2022

Designed by Carrozzeria Touring and released in 1963, Aston Martin's replacement for the DB4 used a new all-aluminum engine enlarged from 3.7 to 4.0 liters with triple SU carburetors as well as a new five-speed transmission, as was used in the outgoing DB4 Vantage. The DB5 also shared the latter's faired-in headlamps. Built for Prince Abdul Llah Bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia, this Aston Martin DB5 was the sixth from last DB5 chassis to be built at the Aston factory in Newport Pagnell and was probably the last to be delivered. The car was equipped with every factory accessory available, including air conditioning, Marchal fog lamps, a heated rear screen, three-eared hubcaps and the rare Continental touring kit. Coming at the end of DB5 production, many of its additional features became standard equipment on its replacement, the Aston martin DB6, launched a few months after this car was completed.