Miguel Sánchez
PHOTOS ASTON MARTIN DB5 «GOLD FINGER»AND DB4 GT ZAGATO: ASTON MARTIN MEDIA
Since BMW with the Mini and Volkswagen with the Beetle they will reap large sales figures thanks to exploiting nostalgia ... The automobile business has seen a vein in honoring great classics with current models. The last example we have in Renault and the brand resurrection Alpine with a two-seater that proclaims itself a direct heir to the A110, A species of "fine tunning" of the mythical seventies sports car. Until Citroën has gotten on the train rescuing the old van Type H.
In part, all of this reminds us of the moments in which Hollywood runs out of ideas and begins to rescue plots and plots from its golden age under a new patina. However, in the case of the automobile, it must be recognized that the nostalgic references have been made - mostly - with high doses of creativity, quality and good taste; but who is taking all this one step further is Aston Martin, make that, with permission from other brands such as Jaguar, You are entering into a sales strategy that not only winks at flagship models in its history but directly reproduces them piece by piece.
As passionate about the classics, we love this type of news, as it helps to value the legacy of such legendary brands as Aston Martin, making people talk about these models again, putting them under the spotlight again ... In short, rescuing them for the current general public. But nevertheless, there are things that squeak us and therefore we would like to create a debate among you. Is all that glitters in Aston Martin's business strategy gold? Are some of these operations in line with how we would like to see the world of classics?
We present the current situation at Aston Martin with two examples and we invite you to make use of the comments.
ENGLISH ENGINEERING, ITALIAN DESIGN. REFABRICATING THE DB4 GT ZAGATO
One of the most interesting international unions in the motor world has been that of the British Aston Martin with the Milanese coachbuilder Zagato. As a result of this union, such striking models have emerged as the 8 V1986 Zagato or the DB7 Zagato from 2003. However… There is a very special model that helped establish the canon of this collaboration: the 4 DB1960 GT Zagato. The mission was to stand up to the fearsome Ferrari 250GT SWB making the DB4 a more powerful and resounding sports car.
To do this, Aston Martin shortened the chassis and boosted the 3-liter six-cylinder engine to 6 hp, producing almost a hundred units of which about 20 were flocked in Milan by Zagato, which devised a body that, while retaining the elegant attributes of the English brand, led the DB4 GT towards a much more muscular and resounding appearance.
That very special model penetrated deep into the brand's imagination, being one of the most remembered and coveted Aston Martin in all of history. What for Ferrari is the 250 GTO by establishing the canon of its identity… For Aston Martin, this model is the result of collaboration between the English and the Italians. For all this, it is not at all strange that the British have considered replicate the model piece by piece as they did with the first evolution of the DB4 just a few months ago. Even more so when the 100th anniversary of Zagato is about to fall in this next 2019!
SOLD IN AN INSEPARABLE LOT WITH A LATEST GENERATION DBS
Of those, 25 replicas of the DB4 were produced, while now there will only be 19. Of course, together with many others from the still undisclosed DBS Zagato. As you can see, the idea is that the buyer takes together in the same indivisible batch the replica of the first collaboration between the two brands and the fruit of their latest joint work. Taking into account that reproducing a 1960 model piece by piece is not exactly cheap ... Imagine the bill if we also add a latest model that surely has a lot to do with it. DBS V12 Superleggera with more than 700 hp!
It seems that the total amount of the bill will amount to the not inconsiderable figure of 7'9 million pounds -more than 9 million euros-. However, beyond these hard-to-conceive figures there is something that makes us polemic because, To what extent are these cars going to experience a safe in which they will be treated as an investment?refuge”, As a speculative value, more than the asphalt and the curves of a circuit?
Playing the DB4 GT Zagato piece by piece is a precious tribute to historic motorsports but, taking into account the current panorama of buying and selling high-end classics ... Is there really how much passion and romanticism there is here and how much pure speculative business is among its possible buyers? Before formulating an answer, we continue with another example, this time closely linked to cinema.
MARTIN, ASTON MARTIN. THE REPRODUCTION OF THE DB5 OF 007
For many it is one of the film sagas with a greater load of topics that are difficult to swallow; For others, however, it is one of the best successions in the genre of adventures and spies starring who, like it or not, has become one of the most imitable film characters in the world thanks to a few words: "Bond, James Bond."
Yes, we're talking about the 007 saga, which has been narrating the adventures of the phlegmatic British agent since 1962 through 24 installments, which will add up to 25 in 2019. As you can see, it is an institution within the world of celluloid, which gives for many controversies ... Of course, there is something in which we believe there is no discord at all: your car.
And it is that if to Bond we have seen it on many and varied mounts, the truth is that the figure of 007 is intimately linked to the lines of the Aston Martin DB5 color "Silver birch" packed with amazing modifications fit for the fast-paced life of a British MI6 spy. This one appeared for the first time in the third installment of the saga -Goldfinfer, 1964- and then do it up to 6 more times.
And how capricious the world is full ... Aston Martin has set to work together with the production company EON -responsible for the deliveries of agent 007- to create 25 replicas of this mythical car equipped with gadgets from the movies. Of course, there are two problems that - unless you are a secret agent in her majesty's service - cannot be easily saved ...
BOND HAS PERMISSION, YOU DON'T
If you are a secret agent, the state turns a blind eye to certain adaptations that your car needs - at least in the movies. For example ... What does a rotating license plate take to give the bad guys a slip? You have it. Possibility of making a smoke screen without carrying an old truck with a smashed engine in your hands? No problem, with the James Bond DB5 you can. Are you fed up with your copilot and want to blow him up in full gear? Said and done, that's what the ejection seat is for.
Of course, if you are not in the pay of the British Crown ... We believe that with these extras you will not pass the ITV under any circumstances. Right there comes the first problem with this car: it will not be able to roll with it on the roads since, due to its curious specifications, it is impossible to obtain homologation. The truth is that in part we are happy: we are not passionate about the idea of being overtaken by an Aston Martin armed to the teeth as we go calmly down the M-30 ...
Having seen what we have seen ... The owners of these replicas will have to have a large area to use their DB5 in it "Goldfinger”As a playroom. However, here comes a question, Are these 25 units really going to be used for the enjoyment of the driving or rather as investments by way of "Refuge value" thanks to the purchase of exclusive collectibles?
RETURNS WITH THE PRICE
And it is that, following the question that we have previously left in the air ... We come to the issue of price: neither more nor less than a few 3 millones de euros. And yes, although we are talking about replicas of one of the best sports cars in history, handmade after decades without Aston Martin manufacturing the model - its production ceased in 1965 - and also equipped with the same spy gadgets as in the movie Goldfinger ... It is still a striking price.
If we add to that that the car will even be able to roll on the roads, what do we have left? Well, in our humble opinion a real whim, a toy for adults that, unfortunately, will be in most cases an element of financial speculation instead of a real sports car. Of course, we take our hats off to the marketing operation that these replicas entail and… To avoid ending up with a bad taste in our mouths we will admit that yes, it is exciting to know that somewhere in England there are artisan mechanics working on new DB5s.
Seen all this ... How do you see this resurrection of classics by Aston Martin? We are waiting for you in the comments!
