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1965 Aston Martin DB5 Shooting Brake: Rare, stylish, practical, and up for auction

Have you ever looked at a 1965 Aston Martin DB5 and thought, "I would totally buy one, but it's just not practical enough." If so, we're a little surprised, but at least you're not alone. According to RM Sotheby's, David Brown, the man who ran Aston Martin for several decades and started the line of DB models that continues today, felt similarly. Apparently he couldn't fit his polo gear into a regular Aston coupe, and he wanted somewhere for his dog to sit that would keep it from tearing up the seats. As such, the Aston Martin DB5 shooting brake was created for him and a few wealthy customers by coachbuilder Harold Radford. The grand total was 12. One of those 12 cars is going up for auction by RM Sotheby's. It's one of four built with left-hand drive and was sold to a Swiss buyer who optioned it with a power antenna, seat belts, passenger-side head rest, air horns and initials on the doors. The car has had two other owners and has gone through a couple restorations. The second owner picked it up in 2003 and had it restored by Aston Engineering, which bumped the displacement from 4.0 liters to 4.2 and replaced the factory automatic with a 5-speed manual. The second owner acquired it in 2009 and upped the displacement even further to 4.7 liters along with upgraded shocks and springs. The car will be auctioned at RM Sotheby's Monterey event during the week of the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. The company expects it to sell for between $1,000,000 and $1,400,000. Considering the rarity of the car, that doesn't seem terrible, but according to the Hagerty price guide, it's rather high. It values the DB5 Shooting Brake at $790,000 for a concours-quality car. For reference, Hagerty values a concours-quality DB5 coupe at $1,450,000.

F1 redemption beckons for Vettel after miserable end at Ferrari

PARIS — Sebastian Vettel is feeling optimistic about his new Formula One career with Aston Martin after turning the page on a miserable last season with Ferrari. Things went from bad to awful for the four-time F1 champion in 2020. He had just one podium finish and ended 10 of 17 races outside the top 10 last season amid a tense atmosphere worsened by the fact Ferrari did not offer him a new contract. “The whole year was a challenge. IÂ’m obviously not happy with how last year went in terms of performance, in terms of my performance," he said. “There are things that didnÂ’t go well and things I would have liked to go differently. ItÂ’s not a secret that at stages I wasnÂ’t at my happiest." Last year was a huge fall from grace for Vettel, whose confidence was already shaken after he lost the 2017 and 2018 titles to Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, despite leading both championships at the halfway stage. A driver who still shares the F1 record with Michael Schumacher for most wins in a season — 13 with Red Bull in 2013 — and has 53 wins among his 121 podiums found himself outclassed by his junior teammate Charles Leclerc in 2019 and 2020. When Leclerc was given a lucrative new contract through 2024 — and Vettel wasn't even offered one —it became clear who was considered number one in the team. The frown lines grew deeper on Vettel's face as he finished the last three races of 2020 in 13th, 12th and 14th. “It hadnÂ’t been to my standards. IÂ’ve never really cared what people think or say, or write," Vettel said. “ThatÂ’s why itÂ’s important IÂ’m at peace with myself. (I have) very, very high expectations of myself.” He even considered retiring but a move to Aston Martin has rekindled the 33-year-old German driver's enthusiasm. “IÂ’m not too old, there are older drivers returning to the grid," he said, referring to 39-year-old Fernando Alonso. “I donÂ’t think itÂ’s an age thing, I think itÂ’s more a question of (whether) you have the team and the car around you.” The Aston Martin team runs on Mercedes engines and is owned by Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll, whose son Lance Stroll is the team's other driver. The plan is to make Aston Martin a title contender within three to five years. Vettel suggested the atmosphere at Aston Martin is less stuffy than it was at powerhouse Ferrari. The Italian manufacturer with its bright red car remains the most iconic name in F1 history.

Replica Aston Martin DB5 raises big money for UK charities at auction

Classic Aston Martins tend to sell infrequently and draw massive sums when they change hands. The DB5 and other James Bond-related Astons are even pricier. That made the recent Sixty Years of James Bond charity auction an exciting event to watch because Christie’s partnered with Aston Martin to move a few movie star cars. Daniel Craig used the car as James Bond in the film, No Time To Die, racing through the streets of a small town in Italy and eventually deploying machine guns. The car retained many upgrades from its time on the silver screen, including said machine guns, a dispenser for replica bombs and more. It also still wears the body damage it sustained in the film. The ChristieÂ’s auction raised GBP2,922,000 ($3,186,031 at todayÂ’s exchange rate) for several charities in the UK, including The PrinceÂ’s Trust, The Prince of WalesÂ’s Charitable Fund, and three other charities that support current and former members of the countryÂ’s Special Forces. Aston MartinÂ’s ties with the Bond franchise go back decades, and the companyÂ’s cars have featured prominently in several films.  The vehicles are typically either built from the ground up as stunt cars with tube frames and replica bodies or are heavily modified versions of genuine Aston Martins. Either way, movie cars are light years away from anything an everyday buyer can obtain. ChristieÂ’s auctioned off other Bond cars, memorabilia, and props. The list of autos included a 1981 Aston Martin V8 that starred in No Time To Die. It also had screen time with CraigÂ’s Bond behind the wheel, but the final bid landed at a much more modest GBP630,000 ($687,928). An Aston Martin DBS Superleggera 007 Edition also crossed the auction block. The car is one of just 25 examples built by Aston in conjunction with the carÂ’s appearance in No Time To Die. It raised GBP403,200 ($440,274) for the Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales. Related video: Rinspeed | TRANSLOGIC