1957 Aston Martin DB Mk III

This car is offered from outside of the European Union. It has been imported under temporary admission customs bond and is therefore subject to Dutch import tax (9%) on top of the winning bid price. Cars less than 30 years old will pay 10% Dutch import tax plus 21% VAT on the hammer.

The winning bidder will receive a receipt for the final hammer value, as their proof of purchase.

This vehicle has been on static display for a number of years and the documented history available is limited to that displayed in our photography section.

We have not tried to drive the car, and cannot vouch for its mechanical viability or functionality.

It will require recommissioning prior to road use and is sold ‘as seen’.

As CARS Europe BV is the guarantor of all customs duties and taxes for vehicles within Dutch customs bond, the car cannot be released to the buyer or transporter immediately after the sale. For all enquiries relating to Customs, please contact CARS Europe BV.

Purchases will only be released once cleared funds are received. All vehicles must be collected after the payment of funds.

All storage charges must be paid in full prior to the vehicle’s collection or onward transportation. Storage charges payment must be arranged with the storage company. Collection is strictly by appointment only.

Please send a booking email to the storage centre to ensure vehicle(s) are ready at time of collection. Photographic ID will be required at time of collection. If a third party is collecting for you, then written authorisation is required in advance from you and photographic ID of the third party is required at the time of collection.

Collection either by buyer or third party is only possible for vehicles within customs bond if applicable import taxes paid are paid to import into country of bonded storage location.

As soon as The Market by Bonhams receives your payment, the accounts department will send a release note to the manager of the storage facility where your car(s) is stored.

CARS Europe BV will contact you just after the sale to confirm onward transport requirements. Direct contact at CARS for enquiries is as follows; Joanna Herlihy, +31 (0) 252 682 526, +44 7483 433912, [email protected].

STORAGE CHARGES - €30 + local VAT per motor car per day commencing from the sixth day following the auction end.

CUSTOMS CHARGES - €500 per motor car (plus applicable permanent import taxes from bond).

Chassis number: AM300/3/1324

Engine number: DBA 950

The five-digit odometer reads 06348 kms.

In common with many vehicles from the vendor’s collection, the car comes with very little history and no service records.

With the proviso that we haven’t tried to drive this car and can therefore only comment on its cosmetic condition, we think it is a good example of a very rare LHD Aston Martin DB Mk III, albeit one that has some bodywork issues to which the next owner will need to attend.

The car has previously been affiliated to Automotoclub Storico Italiano (ASI), membership of which is pretty much compulsory if you want to enjoy your classic car in any meaningful capacity in Italy.

It also had a FIVA Carte D'Identite until 2009, so would have been eligible for events such as the Mille Miglia Storica.

The car was sold new in 1957 to Madame Reine Minangoy in France for the sum of £1,596. We know this (and other details) because it’s referenced on a certified copy of an Aston Martin factory record which was supplied to the car’s then owner in 2002 by the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust.

We also know from the same document that the car was supplied in Moonbeam Grey with a Red interior.

It was purchased from a Belgian owner for the vendor’s static display collection in 2007.

From 10 meters or so, this car presents very well indeed and looks to be in pretty decent condition.

Get closer and some issues become apparent.

While the aluminium body of the car is, by definition, non-ferrous and therefore incapable of rusting, it can nonetheless corrode.

Surface oxidation leads to delamination, and delamination causes blisters, or bubbling.

That’s what we think has happened in a few places on this car.

The panels are straight and even. The bodywork is free of any significant dinks, dents, folds or creases. The panel gaps and shut lines seem consistent and even. And, where undisturbed by oxidation issues, the paintwork looks pretty good, too.

The chrome and exterior trim are in decent condition, as are the lights, lenses, badging and all exterior fixtures and fittings.

The wire wheels, too, look to be in very reasonable order.

There is extensive blistering, bubbling and cracked and missing paint on the ‘C’ pillar and rear wing on the driver’s side.

There’s also blistering below the boot lid, on the roof just above the windows on both sides, around the passenger door handle and the front wing on the same side, and at the base of the rear wheel arch above the sill on the passenger side.

Beyond that, there are one or two small scratches and stone chips here and there.

The interior of the car is really very good but mirrors the exterior to the extent that it’s good in places and in need of a little attention in others.

It is certainly highly original and authentic, as far as we can see.

The red leather Connolly upholstery is showing its age on the front seats, which have cracks and splits in the leather, but it is by no means irredeemable – in our opinion.

The rear seats, unsurprisingly, have fared rather better.

The carpets and mats seem OK, if a little grubby, and the door cards look to have survived the passage of time reasonably well.

The dashboard, instruments, steering wheel and gear lever look good.

We can’t vouch for the full functionality of instruments, dials, buttons, knobs, switches or levers because we haven’t started or driven the car.

Everything in the engine bay seems to be in its right and proper place.

The undersides of the car appear to have a decent amount of structural integrity.

This car doesn’t come with any history or service records beyond what is shown in the photography section.

It must be registered in the country of your choice and you will need to contact the appropriate vehicle licensing agency for instructions on how to do this.

None of the paperwork shown in the gallery in any way constitutes any kind of licensing or registration certification.

From what we can see, this exceptionally scarce, hand-built 1957 LHD Aston Martin DB Mk III is in need of some attention to bodywork corrosion issues and one or two largely cosmetic interior jobs.

We’re confident, though, that the underling quality and rarity of this fine classic from one of the world’s great marques should make the task of restoring it to its former glory well worth the time and effort involved.

Provided, of course, that the engine, electrics and mechanicals are amenable to recommissioning.

We’re confident to offer this marvellous car for auction with an estimate of €70,000 - €100,000.