We don’t need much of an excuse to gawp at the Aston Martin DB5 - so let’s have another look, as the ‘world’s most iconic car’ celebrates its 60th birthday.
Yep, it’s the Bond car - first driven by Sean Connery’s 007 in 1964’s Goldfinger.
But the DB5 is about much more than just Hollywood super spies, because this is the vehicle that put Aston on the map, ‘firmly establishing Aston Martin as one of Britain’s most desirable luxury brands’, according to the British firm.
That ‘DB’ bloodline is still running through Aston Martin’s veins, as you can see with the recently launched DB12 super tourer.
The two models are photographed together here ‘to celebrate the landmark anniversary’ of the DB5.
So, what’s the story behind the DB5’s creation?
Back in 1963, Aston Martin was riding a wave of popularity and its DB4 had been doing decent numbers since its launch in 1958.
But Aston Martin faced stiff competition from luxury sports car makers both home and abroad - particularly Ferrari and Jaguar - and it needed something new and fresh to ‘keep the brand on top’.
The DB5 was unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1963 with a sleeker design, electric windows, air conditioning, and a more powerful engine compared with the DB4.
This was a larger 4.0-litre, twin cam, straight six that developed 282 bhp in standard form. A top speed exceeding 150 mph prompted the Aston Martin brochure of the day to claim: ‘The DB5 is the fastest regular 4-seat GT car in the world’.
A DB5 Vantage variant followed, which upped the power to 325 bhp.
And celebs flocked to the DB5 as if it were a showbiz afterparty.
Owners included The Beatles’ Sir Paul McCartney and George Harrison, Rolling Stone Mick Jagger, comedian Peter Sellers, and Led Zeppelin's Robert Plant. Supermodel Elle McPherson has also enjoyed one in more recent years.
The DB5 wasn’t built in massive numbers either - with 887 saloons, 123 convertibles and 12 bespoke coach-built shooting brakes leaving the factory.
Aston Martin’s Executive Chairman, Lawrence Stroll – himself a DB5 owner – said: “The David Brown era gave us so many great Aston Martin sports cars but none more recognisable, revered, and desired as the DB5, which laid the foundations of our identity as a British luxury brand synonymous with style, performance, and exclusivity. It is only right that, as it turns 60, we take a moment to look back and reflect on this car’s incredible role in our storied 110-year heritage. We’re incredibly proud that the DB lineage continues today with the critically acclaimed DB12, which like those came before it, is a celebration of all we love about British hand built sportscars, with a new injection of the latest technology and highest levels of performance.”
If you want to get behind the wheel of an Aston Martin, chat with the experts in our dedicated Select Car Leasing Specialist division.
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