The Only Aston Martin Coupe Ever Built by Bertone Sold for Over $1 Million in New York

"They don’t make them like they used to anymore," they say. And it totally makes sense for this Aston Martin DB2/4 Coupe. This is the only coupe of the seven Bertone-bodied Aston Martins ever built. To look its best and be worth every cent, the car went through a meticulous concurs restoration by marque specialist Kevin Kay. Full numbers-matching per its factory build documents were confirmed during restoration.

It was Stanley H. "Wacky" Arnolt II the one who commissioned Bertone to build a limited run of custom bodied MG CDs in 1952. But the deal between the Italian coachbuilder and the Warsaw-born, Indiana-based businessman expanded, and soon, Bertone was building Alfa Romeos, Bentleys, and Ferraris.

There were also seven Aston Martins rebodied by Berton. The commissioner, Arnold II, insisted on the cars being advertised as the Arnold-Aston Martins. Just about anybody with enough money for this move could make such a request at that time. They were not series production cars rolling off an assembly line, so their design deferred from car to car. But the D2/4 chassis number LML/765 was the only coupe that Bertone built.

Everything about it screams exclusivity, with the wraparound rear window bearing the signature and touch of Bertone's Franco Scaglione himself.

The car was, thus, commissioned by Arnolt on August 20, 1954, for Monsieur Henrey Pagezy of Paris. The car was delivered to the French capital on January 7, 1955. It is, though, believed that the name of the client was actually a misspelling, and the one who received it was Henri Pigozzi, founder of Societe Industrielle de Mecanique et Carrosserie Automobile (SIMCA).

What turned out to be the only coupe was, in fact, intended to be one of a limited run of examples. But Aston Martin declined to supply any more chassis.

Once completed, finished in white and then in blue, respectively, the car was on display at Bertone's stand at the 1957 and 1958 Turin Motor Shows. Bertone was desperately trying to convince Aston Martin to support the DB4 project. But the British carmaker chose another Italian, Touring of Milan, instead.

The coupe set wheels on American soil in 1976. The first owner in the United States was John G. Gyann, who sold it to Dr. Jim Pavlatos of Palos Heights, Illinois. Pavlatos restored it and he sold it to sportscar dealer Bill Jacobs in Chicago.

Roger Karlson from California acquired it in 1987. The car remained in his possession for 11 whole years. It was he who worked on the mechanics following the cosmetic restoration that it had gone through before it arrived in his garage. Karlson took it to Pebble Beach in 1987.

In 2019, it ended up in the hands of the one who sold it last month in New York. He was the one who commissioned the Kevin Kay Restorations in Redding, California, to make the car look as good as new.

And that is exactly what they did: returning it to the show stand-correct metallic blue shade over the tan-colored leather that covers the seats and door cards. The team fabricated the right front bumper and taillights, which had been replaced over the years, to replicate the original units from 1955.

They also came up with original-looking hood trim, sun visors, and interior trim hardware. They brought back the original red of the exhaust tip, which was visible in a color photograph of the car from 1958.

The original straight-six 3.0-liter engine was rebuilt to a high-output specification with elevated compression, DB MK III-style valves, and camshafts, plus an upgraded oiling system. The original engine built by Aston Martin generated 140 horsepower.

The entire restoration cost a staggering $800,000, and it was completed just in time for the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in 2023.

The car was First in Class at the 2023 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and it has not been shown since. But the new owner has an invitation to the 2024 Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, on the shore of Lake Como in northern Italy. Maybe he will go back to the United States with a Best of Show award.

The model sold at an auction organized by RM Sotheby's in New York. An undisclosed customer paid $1,105,000 to drive it home. The price included a document file featuring photographs taken during the restoration process, as well as invoices and a copy of the Automobile Quarterly article about it. There is also a detailed letter account by former owner Roger Karlson.