It’s well known that the classic car market works outside the parameters of common logic. Hence it continues to throw us curveballs, with some cars seeing values multiply in the space of a few years, while others remain virtually stagnant. You can now pay well over €100,000 for base-model Porsche 911s that were produced in the tens of thousands, but certain contemporaries – some of which were produced in mere hundreds – are still available for a fraction of that price. Of course, there are some models that are highly sought-after and thus command big money (DB4 GTs, early convertible models, and X-Packs spring to mind), although some truly classic Astons with hand-built V8s, an attractive design and, of course, plenty of brand prestige remain surprisingly affordable in relative terms.
This can be illustrated by taking a look at the lotlist of the Bonhams Aston Martin Works sale taking place on 9 May 2015 in Newport Pagnell. One example is the Aston Martin Virage with its 5.3-litre V8, of which only 426 examples were built between 1988 and 1995, available for an estimated £20,000 to £25,000 – a mere fraction of its price when new. Yes, it’s an automatic, but you’d do well to find a same-era 993 Turbo for ten times that price.
