Running AMOC September 2010 - Aston Martin Owners Club Victoria

AREA 

REPRESENTATIVE & 

PRESIDENT 

SECRETARY TREASURER & 

MEMBERSHIP 

SECRETARY 

EVENTS 

CO-ORDINATOR 

RUNNING AMOC Running AMOC September 2010.doc Page 1 of 17 

EDITOR 

RUNNING AMOC 

Neil Boothroyd Richard Counsel Jason Vochala Tony Smith Chris Shilton 

9 Camelot Drive, 

Glen Waverly, Vic. 

3150 

Phone: 03 9887 7820 

AH 

Email: 

neil.boothroyd@daimler.com 

21Georges Ave, 

Templestowe, Vic. 

3106 

Phone: 03 9846 4085 

AH 

Email: 

vk3ylz@bigpond.net.au 

4th Floor, 124 

Exhibition Street, 

Melbourne, Vic. 3000 

Phone: 03 9654 6670 

BH 

Email: 

javochala@bigpond.com 

PO Box 317, 

Camberwell, Vic. 

3124 

Phone: 03 9819 1015 

AH 

Email: 

akns007@yahoo.com.au 

Volume 10, Number 6 September 2010 

CONTENTS 

PO Box 37, 

Coldstream. Vic. 

3770 

Phone: 0428 378 938 

Anytime 

Email: 

cshilton@genesis.net.au 

Diary of events Page 2 

Editorial comment Page 2 

Pres says Page 3 

The Saggy Spring Saga Page 4 

Lost DB2/4 Mk 3 Drophead Page 7 

Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato Page 8 

Laughs per minute Page 14 

For sale / Wanted Page 15 

Parting shot Page 16 

Published Quarterly by The Aston Martin Owners Club Victoria Register Incorporated, 

PO Box 37, Coldstream, Vic. 3770. 

Contributors Please Note 

Inclusions for next edition should be emailed to the Editor by the second Monday of the month (March, June, 

September and December) to the email address cshilton@genesis.net.au to ensure publication. Articles preferred 

in MS Word, or text format. The articles & views published in Running AMOC are of the authors & are not those 

necessarily of the Editor or Committee of Aston Martin Owners Club. Permission to reproduce any of the contents 

of this magazine should be sought through the Editor as a courtesy to the authors and artists.

DIARY OF EVENTS 

Nov 28th AMOC Vic Reg Annual Club Concours 

Venue: Rippon Lea Estate 

192 Hotham Street, Elsternwick. 

RUNNING AMOC Running AMOC September 2010.doc Page 2 of 17

Pres Says. 

Welcome to our September edition of Running AMOC. 

Spring is in the air and our Winter hiatus is over so it’s about time to drag the Aston 

out of the garage dust it off and blast away a few of the cobwebs. 

Things have been relatively quiet over the last few months, we held our AGM at Paul 

Sabine’s premises, once again thank you very much Paul. 

It was great to see about 40 members in attendance on a cold and wet Melbourne 

evening. There was plenty of healthy discussion on all things AMOC and our 

Committee remains the same with the following members re elected. 

Treasurer ............ Jason Vochala 

Secretary ............ Richard Counsel 

Editor ............. Chris Shilton 

Public Officer ............. Barry Watchorn 

Social Secretary ............. Tony Smith 

President and Area Rep ........... Neil Boothroyd 

In August Trivetts were kind enough to invite us to use their premises for our monthly 

meeting and to view a great selection of AM’s. 

Trivetts were organizing a track day at Phillip Island later that week and as well as 

their own stock had bought in an number of cars from interstate and had even flown 2 

in from the UK. Ian Bell attended the day and has some interesting stories to tell. 

(How about an article for Running AMOC Ian!) 

For those who will be attending we are looking forward to the National in October, 

At this stage we have 25 folk in 12 Astons from Victoria making the trip over to the 

Barossa region of South Australia. From the information we have received it sounds 

like the SA team have organized a terrific 3 days for the National and some great 

drives for the Tour. 

Our Victorian Concour has been locked in so don’t forget to mark Sunday 28 th of 

November in your diary. We have re booked Rippon Lea, including the West Veranda 

in case of a repeat of last year’s inclement weather. 

I think that’s about it for now. 

Hope to see you at Bells next month 

Cheers 

Neil. 

PRES SAYS 


The Saggy Spring Saga. 

A story that all AM owners can sympathize with. 

Words Neil Boothroyd Photo’s Neil Boothroyd 

We all know how it starts and my suspension saga is no different. A couple of people had 

mentioned to me that when following my DBS it was a low in the rear end 

and sagged a bit to the left, at this point my life would not be worth living if I didn’t stress 

that this phenomenon had nothing at all to do with Sally sitting in the passenger seat, I’m 

certain it was a result of the battery being mounted in that corner. 

Richard Counsel had suggested a company by the name of Centerline Suspension 

as they had manufactured a new set of rear springs for his AM V8. I took the DBS to 

Centreline and was very impressed with their knowledge and genuine interest in helping sort 

out the car. This is about the time I made that fatal mistake, I was asked “would you like the 

rest of the rear suspension checked out to see if it is OK” and silly me said yes! 

I had a call from them a few days later to say they had inspected the suspension and that the 

whole rear end had moved sideways, all the Watts link bushes were worn and the radius arm 

bushes had deteriorated and in some cases forced out of the arms, this in turn had resulted in 

the Konis operating off centre causing them to wear excessively. The complete rear end was 

removed and the fun bit of sourcing all the parts began. Glenn Bold ( thanks Glenn) of AM 

Distributors was able to provide most of the Watts link bushes and various other rubbers, 

bolts etc. The radius arm bushes proved a challenge, the bushes are vulcanized into the arms 

and not available as spare parts, after some consternation the only options were to buy new 

arms or cut the eyes off the old arms weld on larger ones and press in bushes. I wasn’t 

convinced that cutting and re-welding was the best option so I bit the bullet….or wallet in this 

case and decided on 4 new arms. My next problem was trying to source them, I tried all the 

usual AM Dealers in the UK but nobody stocked DBS arms. In desperation I rang Aston 

Martin Heritage and found them very helpful, as well as being able to supply the arms they 

explained that the arms now had renewable bushes; interestingly the new arms had larger 

eyes, the same fix as suggested by Centreline. 

With the new heavy duty springs being made, the shockers away for overhaul and the 

suspension assembly bead blasted and powder coated the rear end was coming along nicely. 

Can you guess what comes next ? Centreline suggested that with all the work on the rear I 

would end up with a Starsky and Hutch mobile with the rear up in the air and the nose 

dragging on the ground so we decided to renew the front springs, and then that question again, 

whilst we have the springs out will we check the front suspension, 

what do you do? Once again I said yes! 

Unfortunately the front end was similar to the rear, whilst not terminal, after 40 years of 

motoring almost everything was just plain tired. 

Whilst the king pins were ok the balljoints, seats and thrust pads were showing their age, as 

usual the brake reaction strut ball joints needed replacing, all the wishbone bushes were 

replaced as were the stabilizer bar links, rubbers and bushes, the front shocks were sent away 

for overhaul. Once all the new bits had been fitted the next challenge was to set up the ride 

height. The only measurement I could find was from the centre of the roof above the 

windscreen to the ground, not an easy measurement to make without drilling a hole through 

the roof and floor of the car! After a bit of ingenuity we managed to sort it out and after a 

wheel alignment we were back on the road. 

On the drive home I was amazed at the difference in handling, even on suburban roads and I 

am really looking forward to the National so I can see how it feels on a long run. 

End Result. 

DBS fantastic, Bank Balance not so good. 


Photo 1 Reassembly of the offside front suspension 


Photo 2 Offside rear suspension dismantled, driveshaft removed, upper trailing arm with old 

rear bush trying to ooze out of its collar. 

Photo 3 New trailing arms with one of the originals. 


And a useless piece of information for you, if you line up all the suspension parts of a DBS in 

a row they are 4 feet longer than the car! (see below) 

Photo 4 The presidential DBS Vantage sitting square (ride hight is now correct). 

‘Lost’ David Brown Aston for Sale by Barons, 7 September 

A ‘lost’ 1958 Aston Martin DB 2/4 MKIII drophead coupé, originally 

owned by David Brown, has emerged from beneath the tarpaulin, which 

concealed it for the last 30 years. It will now be auctioned by Barons at 

the upcoming British Heritage sale at Sandown Park on 7 September. 

This drophead coupé, one of just 84 built, was first registered to David Brown 

himself, before passing into his wife’s ownership – and then being sold on to a 

Yorkshire mill owner who had the car regularly serviced by Aston Martin. It was 


then acquired by a London-based architect, who sold it to the current vendor in 

1974. The car now offers the chance of a “fascinating rolling restoration project” 

for the right sort of buyer – one who is willing to meet the estimate of £80,000- 

£100,000. Says Laurence Sayers-Gillan, MD of Barons, “It is amazingly 

sound, and complete with its 2922cc engine, original buff logbook and workshop 

manuals and a comprehensive history file. ‘Lost’ cars of such importance come 

along very rarely and, with the direct association with such a pivotal figure in 

Aston Martin’s history, it should be a hugely rewarding project”. 

Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato 

Kidston SA 

DB4GT/0189/R, 370/0189/GT 

Full ‘Works Service’ restoration. One of just 19 examples built 

Unique original colour scheme and factory restored to ‘as new’ condition. 

Lionel Martin founded Aston Martin to construct competitive automobiles for 

private entrants like himself. Developed through a half century’s evolution, the 

DB4GT Zagato combined the enthusiasm of Aston Martin’s owners, employees 

and clients in a glorious synthesis of concept, design, materials and assembly. It 

is the ultimate expression of Aston Martin’s philosophy of building high 

performance, responsive, beautiful automobiles for a select clientele. It cemented 

Aston Martin’s reputation at the pinnacle of British grand touring automobiles, at 

once beautiful, powerful and responsive. 

One of only nineteen built, DB4GT/0189/R combines a race-bred pedigree with 

the comfort and luxury of a true granturismo. 

Aston Martin commissioned Tadek Marek, who had joined Aston in 1954, to 

create a new six for the DB4. It was designed in iron but produced in aluminium, 

a lucky consequence of suppliers’ capacity, which in the end complemented the 

lightweight coachwork of Zagato. Simultaneously Aston turned to Milanese 

coachbuilder Touring for the design and, particularly, Touring’s proprietary 

superleggera construction for the DB4. Touring required a platform chassis to 

integrate with the superleggera technique’s armature of lightweight steel tubing 

supporting a skin of thin aluminium panels, a departure for Aston Martin but one 


that would prove once again to be fortuitous in the development of the Zagatobodied 

DB4GT. 

Touring’s design for the DB4 derived directly from Aston Martin’s earlier GTs, with 

a gently curved continuous line from the front wings through the doors 

culminating in the rear wings and a sloped fastback roofline with large rear glass 

with complementary tapered quarter windows. Based on suggestions from Don 

Hayter, the DB4 was contemporary, shapely and embodied now-traditional 

features like Aston’s characteristic radiator grille and a functional bonnet air 

scoop. Touring added details that have become part of Aston Martin’s visual 

repertoire, particularly the front wing air extractor vents. A four-seater like the 

DB2/4 and DB Mark III before it, the DB4’s light weight and powerful 3.7 litre 

engine made it England’s fastest GT, a worthy counterpart to the best from its 

Italian and German competitors. 

The short wheelbase DB4GT appeared in 1959 to meet clients’ desires for an even 

lighter, more responsive Aston Martin for competition and high performance road 

use. A two-seater built on a shortened platform chassis, it also boasted a 3.7 litre 

engine cast in lighter alloy, dual ignition, triple Weber carburettors, high lift 

camshafts, 9:1 compression ratio, dual plate clutch, close ratio transmission, 

Salisbury Powr-Lok differential and large diameter Girling disc brakes, 

specifications which left no doubt about the DB4GT’s serious performance intent. 

Only a few months later Aston Martin introduced the first of its ultimate 

granturismo series, the DB4GT with competition-inspired coachwork by Zagato. 

The limited run of Zagato-bodied lightweight DB4GTs arose out of an unplanned 

meeting at Earls Court between John Wyer and Gianni Zagato. It was designed by 

Ercole Spada, then only 23 years old, a perfect blend of Spada’s gifted balance of 

its surfaces and the seductively curved profile of the DBR1. With its subtly refined 

air intake and elongated headlight tunnels with aerodynamic covers, the Zagato’s 

nose explored the limits of efficient air penetration, even pressing the bonnet so 

low over the engine that dual bulges – like Zagato’s trademark roof bubbles – 

were needed to accommodate the engine’s cam covers. 

The gently sloping roof blends cleanly into the diminutive rear deck, leaving 

barely enough roof for a 30 gallon fuel tank and spare wheel and tyre. The front 

wing tops taper downward through the doors, then rise aggressively, like the 

haunches of a beast prepared to spring, over the rear wheels before tapering 

down and in to integrate cleanly with the rear deck. It is a symphony of refined 

elegance, purposeful and devoid of superfluous embellishment. 

Marrying the best of contemporary Italian design with a 9.7:1 compression ratio, 

314bhp version of Marek’s 3.7 litre six and Aston Martin’s proven and now highly 

developed suspension, the DB4GT Zagato debuted at the 1960 London Motor 

Show. Its potential was immediately apparent and is acknowledged to have 

encouraged Ferrari to replace the 250GT Short Wheelbase Berlinetta with the 

legendary 250 GTO, about as sincere a form of flattery as can be imagined. Built 

by the craftsmen at Zagato in Milan and hand finished in the workshops at 

Newport Pagnell, only nineteen were ever completed. 

Ironically, however, the Zagato was not a sales success. The authors of the 

definitive Palawan chassis-by-chassis book on the model, Stephen Archer and 

Simon Harries, recall: “”The DB4GT Zagato sales effort was a contradiction in 

terms. No plans were made for a single production run. It was left to the market 

to decide how many of the cars should be built. It was, of course, tremendously 

exciting to drive but it was hard for many people to believe the high asking price- 

two-and-a-half times what an E-type cost- could be reconciled with such a lack of 

refinement. People, who have the wherewithal to own such cars sometimes lack 

the confidence to drive them to their limits, so some never experience the true 

thrill of owning such a remarkable car. A modern judge would be entitled to 


observe that Aston Martin had previously done a poor job at marketing their 

cars.” 

“Almost enough enthusiasts and connoisseurs did buy Zagatos early on. Not 

many kept their cars for long, however, and it was not until they began to acquire 

true classic status that a sense of real desirability became attached to them.” 

”In the end, the final two Zagato-bodied DB4s remained unsold for nine months 

until Mike Harting of HW Motors in Walton on Thames bought them at a knockdown 

price and set out to sell them himself. Tellingly, he recalls that his principal, 

ex-racing driver George Abecassis, was highly sceptical of this decision. Mike, 

however, knew what he was doing. Once in his possession, Mike published a bold 

advertisement for the cars. Claiming to be the sole selling agent for the car, 

which was true, he put down three good reasons why any serious driver simply 

must have one. The final flourish which suggests Grand Touring is made easy by 

the Zagato because of its copious luggage space- ‘luggage for two for a month in 

the sun’- is especially amusing. Mike knew his clientele, however, and he quickly 

sold the cars at a thumping profit.” 

Chassis ‘0189’ was one of those two cars. The last DB4GT Zagato built, it has an 

enigmatic early history. It is one of eleven right-hand drive Zagatos and one of 

three to receive English paint. Its striking original colour scheme is unique: 

Caribbean Pearl with Connolly red hide and carpets. Although completed on 14th 

December 1962, it waited longer than any other Zagato before being sold and 

was finally bought in a package with ‘0176’ by Mike Harting at HWM for £3,950. 

In the spring of 1963 Mike found a buyer in Mr S Miller of Horsham, Sussex, for 

the princely sum of £6,000. Chassis ‘0189’ took part in minor British hillclimbs but 

led an otherwise cosseted life. In 1970 it left for the sunny climes of South Africa, 

joining DBR1/5 in the collection of Howard Cohen and successfully taking part in 

vintage events. In 1976 it returned to the UK with Ian Campbell-Mclaren of 

Glasgow, and in 1983 entered German ownership. After spells in Switzerland and 

the UK, the Zagato was acquired in 1995 by a serious Dutch collector who 

entrusted it to Aston Martin Works Service for what the Palawan book describes 

thus: “The restoration of 2 VEV was remarkably comprehensive but this was a 

tour de force. The car was totally stripped down to the bare chassis…The Zagato 

was returned to its original state with the original colour scheme of pale blue with 

red leather inside. It’s now better than new. The final touch was the 

reinstatement of the [UK registration] number 37 PH, due to the hard work of 

Andrew McCloskey at Aston Martin.” 

David Townsend, manager of Works Service, recalls: “We performed a total body 

off full restoration in 1995, bringing the car back to its original specification after 

being a race prepared car at a cost of £141,000.” 

Acquired thereafter by the current European owner, for the past decade chassis 

‘0189’ has been kept out of the public gaze in a very private collection. Outings 

have been limited to local trips to warm through fluids and exercise the engine, 

gearbox and suspension. The total mileage covered since the full factory rebuild is 

a mere 802 miles. 

With a clear and interesting history from new, a restoration by the Aston Martin 

factory and a unique livery, ‘0189’ is one of the most important British 

granturismos in existence. Now that most DB4GT Zagatos are held by long term 

collectors for whom they are a prize constituent of their collections, the 

availability of ‘0189’ is a rare opportunity to experience the pinnacle of British 

high performance road cars in the Sixties and to add an important, and all but 

irreplaceable, component to the most comprehensive collection. 

The fortunate new owner will have much to which to look forward 


Picture 1 Striking shape. Possibly, if not probably Zagato’s finest creation. 

Picture 2 Ditto to Pic 1 


Picture 3 The original advert from HWM, yours for a mere £ 6,000 in late 1962. 

Picture 4 Twin plug and twin distributor ignition, triple 45 DCOE Webers equates to 

a great sound track and a lot of go! 


Picture 5 The office! 

Picture 6 I am not sure where you are going to put your “luggage for a month in the 

sun?”, The boot space seems to be…shall we say somewhat limited. Perhaps you 

have to send that on ahead with the butler in the Bentley! 


Picture 7 And for comparison, a fine example of a standard bodied DB4GT. 

Picture 8 This is Aston Martins’ modern day equivalent. The One Seven Seven. 


Blind Date 

Once there was a girl who wanted a boyfriend. Her mother wanted to help her, so she set up a 

blind date for her daughter. 

When the girl got back from the date she said “that was the worst night of my life!” 

“Why is that?” her mother asked? 

“He own’s a 1922 Aston Martin!” said the daughter. 

“Isn’t that a good thing?” said her mother. 

The daughter replied saying “Mum, he IS the original owner!” 

Q/. How do you pick a Bristol Car Owner in a crowd? 

A/. He will be the one with an oil soaked left shoe 

That great invention being the one-shot lubrication system. The idea being that the driver 

presses a peddle on the floor every 500 miles or so to send lubricating oil to various key 

suspension points. This is fine when new, but time and use tends to foil the best plans of 

those inventive automotive engineers, as things tend to get blocked. If this occurs the only 

thing that gets oiled is the left shoe of the driver, when pressing that peddle! 

The value of underpants! 

LAUGHS PER MINUTE 

A husband and wife were driving to the shopping centre to do their usual Saturday morning 

shopping, and their car started to misbehave. They decided to continue to the shopping centre 

and they only just made it. Upon arrival, the husband suggested to his wife that she go and do 

the shopping as usual, and he would find a mechanic, and attend to the problem with the car. 

About an hour and a half later, the wife returned to the car park with her shopping trolley full. 

As she approached their car, she noticed a crowd of people gathered around the car. She 

pushed through the crowd, and was horrified to see her husband’s legs sticking out from 

under the car, with his “wedding tackle” poking out from under the edge of his shorts. She 

couldn’t stand the embarrassment any longer, so she deciding to take immediate action by 

reaching down and promptly pushing the wedding tackle back in under his shorts. At that 

point there was a dull thud and an exclamation of pain from under the car. She stood up and 

surveyed the gathered crowd looking at her, only to see her husband standing idly by on the 

other side of their car looking sheepish. The mechanic who was under the car required 

several stiches to his hand and head! 


FOR SALE: 

Racing with David Brown Aston Martins by Chris Nixon. Volumes One & Two 

(Vol 1 with John Wyer) The definitive history of the 13 years of the Aston Martin factory 

racing programme Throughout the 50's. Published by Transport Bookman Ltd 1980. 1st 

Edition. Both books are in excellent, if not mint condition. Tight spines and bindings, no 

foxing, no clipped or marked pages and no bumped corners. Both books have matching 

excellent condition dust jackets. Dust jackets are wrapped in library quality clear pvc 

wrappers with paper backing. $800.00 for the set. Books are in Kew, Victoria and pick up is 

most welcome. Contact: Nigel Watson ph; 0425 850 909. 

AMV8 Windscreen X 2 

AMV8 Front Bumper (from a series two) 

Contact Ian Bell ph; XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 

WANTED: 

DB4 Instruction Book to suit 1962 car. 

Contact Richard Shenfield 03 9589 6004. 

FOR SALE 

WANTED 


DB 2/4 Mk 3 

PARTING SHOT

Running AMOC September 2010 - Aston Martin Owners Club Victoria

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