Obscure Aston Martin DBS V8 "Sotheby's Special" to Cross Auction Block
A strange fiberglass Aston Martin.
Conner GoldenWriter
Obscure Aston Martin DBS V8 "Sotheby's Special" to Cross Auction Block
A strange fiberglass Aston Martin.
Conner GoldenWriter
In today's world of instantaneously accessible information, the list of cars still considered to be obscure is steadily shrinking down to nothingness. This is proven by the recently uncovered 1972 Aston Martin Sotheby's Special, a one-of-three coachbuilt Aston Martin.
The rediscovered Aston Martin Sotheby's Special was commissioned back in the early 1970's as a promotional vehicle used for the W.O Wills tobacco company. Wills commissioned Ogle Design, the firm behind the Reliant Scimitar and the Bond Bug, to create the unique Aston.
Based on the 1969 - 1972 Aston Martin DBS V8, the steel-chassis was draped in a wild, shooting brake-esque fiberglass body. A Perspex canopy provided a bubble-like interior, with a strange stilted single rear seat, positioned to the right, behind the passenger. In the rear, a unique satin stainless steel plate was designed, with 22 individual holes for brake lights. The harder the driver pressed on the brake pedal, the more brake lights lit up.
Motivating this relatively light fiberglass body is a prototype 5.3-liter V-8 engine, which in DBS V8 guise, spit out an impressive 315 hp. Power is sent to the rear wheels through the numbers-matching five-speed ZF manual transmission.
Following the initial success of the first coachbuilt Aston, a second Ogle Special was created, and paraded around with the same dark blue paint and golf pinstriping. When the "Sotheby" tobacco line failed to meet success, the company repainted it into the livery of the existing "Embassy" line of cigarettes. This second car was used for the bygone Embassy Hill Formula One team, where it could often be seen parked in the paddock.
After seeing the original Ogle Special on television, a wealthy customer commissioned a third one with an automatic transmission to be built, with the list price coming in much higher than the normal purchase cost of the DBS V8, at a reported cost of $480,000 in today's market.
This "Sotheby's Special", or Ogle Special, was used on the show circuit, where it made its official public debut as the crown jewel of the 1972 Montreal Motor Show. After making its rounds, the Aston was stripped for parts, and sold, where the owner squirreled it away into a garage for 43 years. Now, this significant Aston is offered for sale at the H&H Classics auction in mid-October, where it is expected to reach $150,000 to $185,000.
