Aston Martin DB2 1950 - World Of Classic Cars -

Aston Martin DB2 1950

David Brown’s vision for a new Aston Martin truly came to life at the 1949 24 Hours of Le Mans with the debut of the DB2. It was far sportier in appearance than the first car of the Brown era, and more importantly, it featured W.O. Bentley’s 2.6-litre, twin-cam engine, which Aston had acquired with Brown’s purchase of Lagonda.
Following the construction of three race cars and a development car, 46 customer cars were made with the famous washboard side-vents and grille, which is a now-prized fascia that would change with succeeding versions of the model. The DB2 was more of a quintessential sports car than the DB touring saloons that followed, and it was arguably the company’s purest effort at a dual-purpose sports racer, in the true spirit of the legendary 1950s racing circuit.

Aston Martin DB2 1950

This beautiful Aston was just the 13th DB2 made and only the ninth customer car. It was imported new in September 1950 to Trident Motors, the Ford distributor in Toronto, Canada. The car was quickly acquired by J.C. Gillies’ racing team of Toronto, Canada, and driven to Sebring, Florida, to compete in the inaugural Sam Collier Memorial Grand Prix 6 Hours of Endurance held on 31 December 1950.
LML/50/13 was one of three DB2 examples to compete that afternoon, and the car, wearing #29, was piloted by Charles Wheaton and Peter Dillnut to a 4th place finish in the three-litre class. The car also received the Adele Chinetti Cup for Most Sporting Effort, in recognition of how far it had travelled to compete. The DB2’s participation (along with renowned privateers Briggs Cunningham in LML/50/21, Jim Kimberly in his Ferrari 195 S, and Luigi Chinetti in Cunningham’s Ferrari) was photographically captured in a March 1951 feature in Road & Track magazine.

Aston Martin DB2 1950

Sometime over the following year, the car’s engine was modified to Vantage specifications, and it is believed that this may have been the first non-factory conversion. The modified engine is highlighted by the addition of a three-carburettor induction configuration, and it powered the car to a 1st overall finish, under Wheaton’s guidance, at the Sports Car Trophy Races at Edenvale, Canada, on 2 August 2 1952.
The DB2 continued to race until its retirement around 1960, when it was put in storage. Little is known of the car’s interim history until its discovery in barn-find condition by Aston Martin Club of America stalwart Jack Boxstrom. LML/50/13 was sold to marque collector Robert Burt for proper renewal, and it was treated to a full restoration, care of Steel Wings of Hopewell, New Jersey. Over $250,000 was invested in this process, which included enlarging the engine’s displacement to 2.9 litres and upgrading the motor with numerous components originally used in the DB3S race cars.

Aston Martin DB2 1950

The high level of execution quickly resulted in significant recognition, with the car winning the Chief Judge’s Award at the 2010 Greenwich Concours d’Elegance and it being chosen for display at a 2011 spring exhibit that was dedicated to “The Best of Britain” at the Simeone Automotive Museum.