Aston Martin. Probably the coolest automaker of them all, the British company is experiencing a bit of a renaissance. In the coming years, the Gaydon-based outfit will soothe our senses with a hypercar (AM-RB 001), an SUV, and a mid-engine supercar.
Motorsport pedigree is another plus point, as proven by the magnificent DB4 GT Lightweight. Aston Martin doesn’t enjoy the same racing prowess as it did back in the ‘50s and ‘60s, albeit the Vantage GTE is no trifling matter.
The road to the Vantage GTE, though, was paved by the likes of the DB4 GT Lightweight. And boy, was grandpa cool on Europe’s most acclaimed race tracks back when proper men wore tweed jackets. Of the 75 DB4 GT models built from 1959 to 1963, only eight were finished in Lightweight specification.
Developed to compete against iconic machines such as the Ferrari 250 SWB Berlinetta, the DB4 GT Lightweight also happens to be almost 5 inches (or 13 centimeters) shorter than the regular DB4. Curb weight was reduced as well by pulling every trick in the book, including thin-gauge aluminum panels. The party piece of the DB4 GT Lightweight, however, is its six-cylinder mill.
Under the large hood scoop, Aston Martin fitted a modified 3.7-liter inline-6 based on Tadek Marek’s original design. Thanks to a compression ratio of 9:1, twin-plug cylinder head, and performance-oriented Weber carburetors, the DB4 GT Lightweight also packs a serious punch. As Petrolicious highlights in its latest video, the DB4 GT Lightweight does fit the “Drive Tastefully” bill.
Every corner of this blast from the past exudes pure motorsport, even the white-painted front fascia that gives the impression the car wears lipstick. The sound is another detail that fascinates, as demonstrated by Paul Michaels of Hexagon Classics on a crispy Sunday morning run on glorious British B roads.
Aston Martin likes the DB4 GT Lightweight so much, the company decided to produce 25 continuation models at the exact same specs of the original.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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