Aston Martin recently released photos of a 1965 DB5 it had restored after years of disuse. The owner of this particular car had bought it as a teenager in 1972 and used it as his daily driver for a few years, and after he finally parked it for good on his driveway in 1977, it simply sat there – life and a job overseas got in the way.
The car was in absolutely awful shape after having sat outside for nearly 50 years, with neighbourhood kids playing in it and on it, and John Williams, the owner, just hadn’t been able to part with it even if it ended up looking like it could hardly turn a wheel ever again. But luckily, after years of working and saving funds, he was able to take his Aston back to the factory to be restored back to showroom shine, as it turns out to have been a particularly rare specification to begin with. As he says, there had been numerous offers from people eager to buy the rotting car, but he persisted and kept it.
It goes without saying that most Aston Martin DB5s are Silver Birch without even knowing it. To clarify, the James Bond 007 cinematic universe has such a strong connection to Aston Martin DB5s that many of them end up repainted silver to match the Goldfinger car. This car, however, was silver from factory, and in addition it was a right-hand-drive Vantage with triple Webers and 315 horsepower, the more powerful engine choice.
Restored, it’s a car worth a million pounds, even if the three-year factory restoration at Aston’s Newport Pagnell workshop cannot have come cheap, either. Looking at the “before” photos, it’s no wonder it took over 2,500 hours to get it back to the condition in which it once left the factory gates.
The owner is understandably happy with the result, after 50 years of dreaming about driving his car again. Looking at the photos and comparing its condition before and after, I keep thinking which car would make a great story in the same fashion. I’ve driven my old Volkswagen Polo to Wolfsburg, where it was built in 1986, but at the time it didn’t need a full factory resto, not that I could have afforded it then or today. In Japan, Mazda offers a full, two-month factory refurbishment for the NA Miata, which reportedly costs $60,000, far more than a new ND generation car. Mercedes-Benz offers a lot of the parts needed to restore most of its classic catalogue, as well as performing authentic factory restoration at its Classic Center in Fellbach, Germany.
I’ve had a cheap 1992 Peugeot 405 Mi16 for a decade, and most of that time it’s sat in a barn, waiting for me to have the time, funds, and skills to get it right. I’d love to trailer it to the factory museum in France and let them find parts for it for a change.
It takes a strong emotional connection to steadfastly hold onto a car, hoping the time would come to get it back in the condition it deserves, especially if you’re not capable of restoring it yourself.
Which car, still existing or already far gone, would you have the original manufacturer restore?
Every single Subaru WRX.
Give them all a factory reset.
Scrape off all the decals, and tint. Back to factory exhaust tips.
I’m not convinced that I’d do this with any of my vehicles. I’ve worked on all of them enough to have seen some of the stuff the various factories did the first time around.
A factory screw-up is still factory!
I had an 86 Subaru XT that was turned into a very unsuccessful lemons car, but when we first got it, the outside had ruined paint, but the sheet metal was perfect. It was too far gone otherwise to do a restoration properly, but I’d have loved to get it back to perfect but with a modern drivetrain. We did after all prove that you can fit a 2004+ WRX drivetrain into it 8 times (and also that you simply can’t make a WRX engine or transmission last more than 2 hours endurance racing). 240hp and AWD in a 2200Lb car was a riot when it worked though.
As weird as it might sound, for me it’d probably be a Pontiac Fiero.
I’d love to have a factory new version of GM’s perhaps most oddball of all time car.
I like the cut of your jib.
Honestly restomods are more my jam.
I’d love a i3s REX with a NACS connector
A car as close to my first car as I could get: a Mk1 VW Scirocco in Diamond Silver Metallic, with a black interior and a four-speed. Must have an aftermarket BBS front spoiler as well. Mine was a ’79, but any ’78-81 would do.
I’ve long thought that if I could buy a new ’91-94 Sentra SE-R, I would, so I would send the SE-R that I’ve had since new in ’93 back for a restoration.
I would love to have had my 1970 Volvo 1800E get a factory restore job. I had it for 6 years, and still miss it. Too bad the frame just totally rusted away.
I’m an oddball and am prepared to catch some flack, but I’ve got a 1990 Camry I got in 95 as my first car. It turned over 120k on the way home from the lot and currently sits at just under 280k. It needs struts, a paint job, AC system, timing belt, and an odd, intermittent transmission issue resolved. But I still love it. I prefer the small, boxy late 80’s cars that came out of Japan in that era.
I would want a SAAB restored Sonnet but since, well SAAB is not what it was…
I would love a Volvo P1800ES factory restored.
It would have been cheaper to lock his doors and buy a car cover. Things happen, I guess.
Dreams of a crazy old man, but my 79 Renault 5 GTL (Le Car) with over 100 k needs to resurrected from my barn. I understand Torch’s joy at getting the 2CV running, even with DT’s 5 gallon gas can on board. Too many memories of smoking BWW’s on the Solo 2 courses. Mick was right, what a drag it is getting old.
My 1990 Dodge Dakota. It was a unicorn with 4wd and an eight-foot bed!
Excellent call and I likewise expect a 90s Ford Ranger to be a similarly worthy choice!
I tried to send my Bolt back to the factory for the battery recall a few years ago, when the Chevy rep trying to help me was failing to find a dealership in the state that would do the work. After about a month, I suggested that Chevy just pick my car up, along with any others in the area that needed the recall, and send them back to the Orion factory that was idled at the time and do the battery replacement there. She actually looked into it, but said it wouldn’t work. Finally, she did find a dealership, which of course screwed up refilling the coolant, so I had to make another trip (200+ miles for me) to another dealership a few months later to get it all completed.
Would Fiat restore a Lancia Stratos HF Stradale? If money were no object, that would be my pick. Or a Type 037…
Maybe a rusty, time worn Lada 2101 or a Trabant just to see if a full factory restoration would even make a bit of difference.
Gee, if the genie could resurrect American LaFrance and have them put in the time on my dad’s 1942 pumper (and would it be too much to ask for fresh tires?), that’d make a great Father’s Day gift. It’s getting darned difficult to find parts and qualified technicians!
my 300k mile ’01 Volvo V70 T5M. Mostly so i wouldnt have to. It sits outside my garage buried in this winter’s snowy remnants awaiting its time to be disassembled and refurbed. This shouldn’t take more than 2 years (hahahaha).
Volvo seems to be one of those companies that could do a restoration/modernizing thing. (restornizing?,motoration? modernation? i wish there was a non-restomod word for this).
Perhaps i’ll call them and make my pitch to be their guy, lol. I’ve restored two P2 V70R’s, that complexity qualifies me, right? right?
I prefer the build over the ownership of anything. Owning it and driving it are gravy. Building it myself is the actual purpose of the hobby for me. So I wouldn’t ever be interested in having a car restored by the factory. Perfect, exact as new, versions of cars aren’t high on my list of “interesting to own” automobiles. Great for a museum, not great for my garage.
If I had f-you money I’d bring a 1986 Plymouth Horizon to Stellantis HQ and tell them not to bother with the restoration but that it’s the sort of car they should be building now.
I think you could do that more or less for free…
My first car, a 1993 Nissan Sentra SE-R. There can’t be many left in driveable condition
It might sound boring and pedestrian, but I dream of owning (what I consider to be) the best car ever made, in factory-fresh condition. If someone hands me a ton of money, I’m finding a very nice Mercedes-Benz 300TD-T (S123) and sending it to the Mercedes restoration center in California for a ground-up restoration. I would then daily it for the rest of my natural life.
If I won the lottery I’d send our W126 for a full restoration. I’m sure I could buy one in much better shape for a lot less money, but if money was no object it’s the way I’d go. A 300TD is also a great suggestion.
Volkswagen, do my Bug. But redo the paint in its current colors, keep the Freeway Flyer gears and 1776 in it, and for all that is good do not throw out my Enkei Compes.
I’d like to send my 2009 CLK350 to the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center in Long Beach for a complete restoration.
I’d also like to send both a 450SL and 280SE Cabriolet to Monceau for complete restoration and EV conversion.
John Williams is the coolest guy on earth. Bought a DB5 as a teenager? And then had the balls to let it sit in a driveway for 50 years, because fuck you, right? And then decides upon a full resto at the factory? Damn…
Surely he could afford it with all that Star Wars money! /s I know, not the same guy.