1953 Aston Martin 2.0-Litre 'Sigma' Sports - 'The Paul Jackman Special'
Registration no. 481 CMF
Chassis no. AMC/48/1EN4486
Engine no. 4/49/3

"Built by Paul Jackman from BMW 320 chassis with engine from AMC/49/5 and body by Green & Mays (sic) Ltd in part similar to DB3S." - Aston Martin Owners Club Register.

Paul Jackman was Head of Design and Development at Aston Martin in Feltham when it was taken over by David Brown after WW2. He designed and built this car as a one-off and wrote about the project in 1960 (copy article on file). The engine, gearbox, and instruments were Aston Martin, while the chassis (including the front suspension and steering) was adapted from a pre-war BMW 320 saloon and the rear axle came from a Triumph Gloria. The Gloria axle had 12" brakes, and DB1 stoppers of similar size and equipped with Alfin drums were fitted at the front.
The aluminium body over a tubular steel frame was built by Green & May Ltd of Acton, who also fabricated the seats and instrument panel, and "an excellent job they made of it". Jackman also confirmed that the engine was 'a Spa DB1 engine'. The car was completed and registered in 1953 as an 'Aston Sigma' "for no particular reason, except that she represented a sum total of a lot of toil". Jackman left Aston Martin soon afterwards to join the UK Atomic Energy Authority but kept the car for four years. He found that the Sigma would "cruise happily at any speed up to 90mph with a top speed just in excess of the 100. She gave much pleasure and proved to be very reliable...".

One David Eliades bought the car from Jackman and sold it on to David Hughes who imported the car to the USA. During the cars sojourn there we are informed, Hughes used the car on various occasions in competition, before reimporting it to the UK. The car eventually ended up in Germany where it was subject to a complete cosmetic rebuild in 1991 (invoices and photographs on file). It then went on display in a museum, incorrectly described as a DB1. The museum went bankrupt in the last financial crisis; the car was then bought at auction by a classic car dealer who discovered it was not what was claimed. The current vendor bought the Jackman Special in 2011, reckoning it to be one of the most beautiful sports cars he had ever seen.

The 1991 restoration had concentrated on the cosmetics, leaving virtually every mechanical part to be restored, rebuilt or renewed. Works carried out include an engine rebuild with new internals (2014) and overhauling the four-speed Moss gearbox (2015). Only some 6,000 miles have been covered since the engine rebuild.

According to the vendor: "The result is a car that likes to be driven hard, is predictable in its handling even with the tyres squealing happily, and no longer breaks down. It is a unique driving experience being so close to the road, unprotected and without any electronic aids whatsoever. All your senses are engaged."

Being a one-off, this car attracts a lot of attention; it has been compared to an AC Ace, Austin-Healey 3000, Jaguar C-Type and MGA but predates them all. Obscure they may be, but Green & May, whether by accident or design, came up with what seems like the blueprint for modern sports car design.