The Aston Martin DB4 sports car

The Aston Martin DB4 – A close look at this sports car including performance, technical data, features, rival comparison, history, used prices

from classic to modern

CAR

The Aston Martin DB4 sports car was unveiled at the October 1958 London Motor Show as the Series 1 variant and was priced at £3,967.

This 2+2 seater fixed roof coupé was the successor to the DB2/4 Mark 3 and featured restyled bodywork, designed by Carrozzeria Touring of Milan, and used aluminum paneling on a lightweight steel tubular frame. As a result, it produced a curb weight of 1308 kg.

Its Italian style was well received and created quite a stir on release.

It was fitted with Dunlop servo-assisted disc brakes at each wheel, but these were later replaced by Girling equivalents.

Coil springs were used in the independent front suspension and rear live axle, and a stabilizer bar was added.

An interesting point was that customers were offered a choice between several different rear axle ratios to suit their requirements, such as 3.31:1 for high-speed driving.

Series 1

The Series 1 was produced from October 1958 to January 1960 and was identified by the fact that it had no bumper guards and no window sills on the doors, which tended to produce increased wind noise when the car was driven. Quick.

Series 2

This variant was produced between January 1960 and April 1961 and featured:

• Adding door window frames
• Oil pan size increased to compensate for engine overheating, plus an optional oil cooler was offered
• Added larger front disc brakes

During this period, nearly 400 Series 2s were built.

Series 3

This was produced between April and September 1961 and featured the addition of three small taillights which replaced the single unit on earlier models.

Series 4

From September 1961 to the following year, the Series 4 was identified by the replacement of the egg-crate-style grille with one consisting of bars, along with a redesigned hood scoop.

An optional variant was offered with a more powerful engine fitted with three SU carburettors and a cylinder head containing enlarged valves.

series 5

This final series, from September 1962 to 1963, was distinguished by:

• Single recessed taillight
• The body was now taller and longer to provide more internal space.
• The size of the wheels was reduced to maintain the same overall height of the car.
• The front section was restyled to produce smoother lines that were carried over from the Vantage and GT models.

By the time production ended in 1963, Aston Martin had produced a total of 1,110 of the DB4 Series 1-5 sports cars.

THE MOTOR

The DB4 was powered by a 3.7 liter DOHC inline six cylinder engine with an aluminum alloy block and head, developing 240 hp at 5500 rpm and 240 ft/lbs of torque at 4250 rpm.

Linked to a four-speed manual gearbox, and running at 8.25:1 compression, and twin SU carburettors, it produced a top speed of 141mph, with 0-60mph in 8.5 seconds.

It delivered a total fuel economy of 17.7 mpg.

Early models had an unfortunate tendency for the motor to overheat.

COMPETITION

Typical competitors to the Aston Martin DB4 included the following sports cars: Ferrari 250 GTO, Jaguar E-Type Series 1, and Porsche 911.

SPORTS CARS FOR SALE

A typical price for the various series of an Aston Martin DB4 sports car is: Series 1 = $270,000/£170,000, Series 2 = $350,000/£220,000, Series 3 = $220,000/£140,000, Series 4 = $420 000/£260,000 and Series 5 = $330,000/£200,000.

This concludes my review of the Aston Martin DB4 sports car.