1977 Aston Martin V8

This is a rare and unusual car.

The Series 3 V8 continued until 1978, at which point the endlessly changing owners of Aston Martin decided to usher in the Series 4, or ‘Oscar India’ models. 

The ‘Oscar India’ cars were designed to be a more luxurious version of the V8, offering such aesthetic novelties as wood veneers and leather headlining along with a host of mechanical and dynamic improvements.

But the move from the Series 3 to the Series 4 wasn’t done in one leap; it featured a little-known and today very rare increment that can be identified by the ‘S’ suffix to the engine and chassis numbers.

These cars were an interim step-up in quality, finish and performance, and were designed to move the model towards its final iteration, the ‘Oscar India’ Series 4.

The ‘S’ indicated a revised specification known as ‘First Stage Vantage Engine Tune’. 

So, not a full-fat Vantage then, but nonetheless sprinkled with some of that flagship car’s rather special magic dust. 

The ‘S’ designated and promised numerous enhancements to, among other things, valves, camshafts and carburettors. It also indicated the presence of a Vantage exhaust system and various suspension improvements, including a move to Koni shocks. 

The result was a more refined, faster and more economical version of the Series 3.

Only 184 ‘S’ cars were ever made for the UK and it just happens that we have a really very good example here with us today.

Aside from one or two minor cosmetic issues the car is in impressive condition.

One of its claims-to-fame is that it was presented to the late Queen at the Windsor Castle St. George’s Day Festival of Aston Martin in 2005 – and there’s a photograph to prove it.

So, there you go.

The bodywork is very straight and true, and there are no dimples, dinks or dents of any note anywhere that we can see. 

The shut-lines and panel gaps are crisp and even. The doors close with the satisfying heft and certainty you would want and expect to find in a hand-built car of this calibre.

Bar the odd minor scuff here and there, and some slightly lumpy silver paint in places, the GKN wheels are very good, too.

The ‘Kentucky Blue’ paint, which was reapplied as part of a bare metal restoration in 2005, looks very good in general and has a real depth of gleam to it. 

The chrome-work, which was repaired and re-plated in 2005, is very good, as are the car’s lights, lenses, badging and other exterior fixtures and fittings. The exceptions are the wing mirrors, whose black plastic housings have faded somewhat.

Mostly very decent wherever you look, the paintwork is showing a few blemishes here and there.

There are some scratches, stone chips and scuffs at on the offside wing above the wheel arch, some scratches on both sides of the bonnet bulge, and a long, sweeping scratch and some signs of a previous paint touch-up on the driver’s door. 

There are a few light scuffs and scratches on the rear offside corner and some light, swirly scratches on the boot lid.

We noticed a small spot of nascent bubbling by the chrome trim at the base of the rear screen on the nearside, and another patch at the base of the ‘A’ pillar on the same side.

The paint inside the side vents is decidedly grooved and lumpy.

The interior is in similarly impressive, and apparently authentic and original, condition. 

The ‘Light Blue’ leather upholstery has held up very well and has little more than a few light creases around the front seat bolsters to show for its years of service.

The back seats, as is so often the case, look barely acquainted with a human posterior.

There is a bit of wear to the driver’s door armrest, and the monolithic centre armrest looks like it could do with being shown some decent cleaning and feeding products.

The ‘Scandinavian Blue’ carpet running up the sill next to the driver’s seat is holed and, elsewhere, the carpets look OK but a bit grubby. A section of carpet is hanging down in the passenger footwell.

The fabric trim above the driver’s door is loose, the headlining could do with a clean, and the handbrake gaiter is rather ragged.

Some of the crackle-finish black paint on the dashboard has gone AWOL and there’s some missing black paint elsewhere around the instruments, switches and dials.

The boot is in good order. 

We have driven this car.

It fired up pretty easily and, after clearing its throat and warming up a bit, it thoroughly impressed us with its all-round capability, sprightly turn of pace, fabulous V8 growl and surprisingly good handling – no doubt courtesy of the Harvey Bailey handling pack fitted by marque specialists Davron in 2012. The same people thoroughly stripped, overhauled, refurbished (and replaced where necessary) the car’s suspension components at the same time. 

These cars are not always a pleasure to drive. This one, we can faithfully attest, absolutely is.

The engine bay is very full and notably clean, tidy and fresh in appearance. 

The car’s undersides look to be possessed of plenty of structural integrity and we saw nothing to make us tut or shake our heads. 

The car comes with a great deal of paperwork including all manner of bills, invoices and receipts from marque experts such as Davron, Ian Mason, Rikki Cann and Puddleduck Parts.

Plenty of very expensive work has been done to tackle corrosion issues as and when necessary in both the bodywork and the chassis, and there are numerous letters, assessments and valuation summaries in the history which serve to underline the consistently careful and no-compromise curation of this car over the years.

It comes with a British Motor Industry Heritage Trust Certificate, a clear HPI report, a few manuals and parts guides, photos of the car when stripped back to bare metal prior to repainting in 2005. 

In the glove compartment you’ll find a 1978 Michelin guide to restaurants in France – which somehow seems entirely appropriate in a car such as this.

We’ve seen quite a few of these brawny British bruisers in recent years and, as ever, some are better than others.

But this is only the second or third Aston V8 with a genuine ‘S’ suffix that we’ve ever encountered

This one, bar the odd scratch and scuff here and there, seems to us to be in very usable and solid condition. Driving it only serves to reinforce that opinion.

We like it. We really do.

We’re confident to offer this fine car for auction with an estimate of £50,000 - £60,000. 

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located at Bonhams|Cars Online HQ. Viewings are STRICTLY BY APPOINTMENT and we are open weekdays between 10am- 12pm or 2pm-4pm. To make a booking, please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, and read our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.