Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato
Saturday April 12, 2008
In 1960, Aston Martin produced one of the most memorable low production sports cars ever, with the help of the Italian carrozzeria, Zagato, when it launched the Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato at the London Motor Show. The foundations for this model lay in that period of Aston Martin's history that saw the marque bought by David Brown. He purchased the firm in 1947 - along with Lagonda, and provided the funding for a new series of sports and grand touring cars, as well as lending his initials ("DB") to Aston Martin's model names, a practice carried on today. Extensive racing efforts in the fifties culminated with Roy Salvadori and Carroll Shelby driving an Aston Martin to a Le Mans win in 1959, and the World Sportscar Constructor's Championship for the same year. It was on the back of this success that the Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato was spawned.
The DB4, possibly the world's first true Grand Tourer, was introduced in 1958 and featured an all-aluminium straight six engine with twin overhead camshafts. Designed by Tadek Marek, this unit was first used in the DBR2 in 1957. Featuring square cylinder dimensions of 92.0 mm bore and stroke, the engine had a displacement of 3670 cc. In the DB4, it produced 240 bhp at 5500 rpm. An uprated version of this engine was fitted to a shortened chassis with a lighter body, called the DB4 GT. In GT tune, it produced 302 bhp at 6000 rpm, with 3 Weber carburettors replacing the twin SUs of the standard car, compression upped to 9.0:1 and two sparkplugs per cylinder. The Zagato was a development of the DB4 GT, and with a higher compression ratio of 9.7:1, managed to produce 314 bhp at 6000 rpm. Performance was fantastic, with the 0-60 mph sprint being dispatched in 6.1 seconds, and 100 mph coming up in 14.1 seconds (with a 3.31 ratio final drive, as tested by Autocar in 1962). Autocar achieved a top speed of over 150 mph (240 km/h).
The Zagato body is approximately 80 mm shorter than that of the DB4 GT, and the lines impeccable. It is at once instantly recognisable as an Aston Martin, yet has a fluidity and litheness like no other contemporary from the Newport Pagnell stable. The tubular chassis was fitted with the Zagato alloy bodywork by Zagato and shipped back to England for painting and trimming. A massive 30 gallon (136 litre) fuel tank was fitted, leaving no doubt that this was a race car for the street. Although designed with at least half a mind to racing, the Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato did not in fact achieve any great success in competition, with its natural enemy, the Ferrari 250 GTO, being more than a match for it.
Aston Martin and Zagato have revisited their working relationship on a few occasions since, but the "DB4 GTZ" will probably remain the highlight of their collaboration. A mere 19 originals were produced, along with 4 "Sanction II" models in 1991, using a 4.2 litre engine and unassigned DB4 GT chassis numbers.
The DB4, possibly the world's first true Grand Tourer, was introduced in 1958 and featured an all-aluminium straight six engine with twin overhead camshafts. Designed by Tadek Marek, this unit was first used in the DBR2 in 1957. Featuring square cylinder dimensions of 92.0 mm bore and stroke, the engine had a displacement of 3670 cc. In the DB4, it produced 240 bhp at 5500 rpm. An uprated version of this engine was fitted to a shortened chassis with a lighter body, called the DB4 GT. In GT tune, it produced 302 bhp at 6000 rpm, with 3 Weber carburettors replacing the twin SUs of the standard car, compression upped to 9.0:1 and two sparkplugs per cylinder. The Zagato was a development of the DB4 GT, and with a higher compression ratio of 9.7:1, managed to produce 314 bhp at 6000 rpm. Performance was fantastic, with the 0-60 mph sprint being dispatched in 6.1 seconds, and 100 mph coming up in 14.1 seconds (with a 3.31 ratio final drive, as tested by Autocar in 1962). Autocar achieved a top speed of over 150 mph (240 km/h).
The Zagato body is approximately 80 mm shorter than that of the DB4 GT, and the lines impeccable. It is at once instantly recognisable as an Aston Martin, yet has a fluidity and litheness like no other contemporary from the Newport Pagnell stable. The tubular chassis was fitted with the Zagato alloy bodywork by Zagato and shipped back to England for painting and trimming. A massive 30 gallon (136 litre) fuel tank was fitted, leaving no doubt that this was a race car for the street. Although designed with at least half a mind to racing, the Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato did not in fact achieve any great success in competition, with its natural enemy, the Ferrari 250 GTO, being more than a match for it.
Aston Martin and Zagato have revisited their working relationship on a few occasions since, but the "DB4 GTZ" will probably remain the highlight of their collaboration. A mere 19 originals were produced, along with 4 "Sanction II" models in 1991, using a 4.2 litre engine and unassigned DB4 GT chassis numbers.
