Aston Martin Works restores £900 DB5 to its former glory

A Welshman’s long-held dream has come full circle, with Aston Martin Works completing a full restoration of a DB5 bought for less than £1000 in the early 1970s. The project returns what is said to be one of the rarest DB5 specifications to as-new condition and fulfils a promise its owner, John Williams, made to himself more than five decades ago.

Williams, then an 18-year-old welder and garage owner, spent more than a year saving £900 to buy his dream car. In 1973, he travelled from North Wales to London to view a 1965 DB5 Vantage listed in Motorsport magazine. The car, complete with Weber carburettors, wire wheels and Sundym electric windows, proved irresistible.

He drove it daily for four years before leaving it on his driveway in 1977 when he moved to the Middle East. “Then… ‘life’ happened. I’d had offers to buy her, and times when I could have done with the money, but I resisted and, as Sue said ‘you’ll never get another one’,” Williams said. His wife Sue added that neighbourhood kids treated the mothballed Aston as a playground: “Bouncing on the bonnet. One balanced on the exhaust pipe and snapped it off!”

Determined to bring the DB5 back, Williams eventually entrusted the job to Aston Martin Works in Newport Pagnell, the original home of the model. The restoration began in late 2022, and the couple visited regularly to watch the bare-metal rebuild take shape. “As time went on it became a goal of mine to get her restored; to be able to drive her again,” Williams said. “I worked hard to buy her, and we’ve worked hard to get her repaired.”

Their 1965 DB5 Vantage is one of 39 built in right-hand drive, finished in Silver Birch with the higher-output Vantage engine, which is widely considered the most desirable DB5 specification.

Aston Martin Works President Paul Spires called it “a lovely story,” adding: “Although the car was in a profoundly run-down condition when it arrived, we always relish a challenge… After more than 2,500 hours of dedicated work… the car is now finished and, to my eye at least, looks absolutely stunning.” He noted the restored DB5 could now be worth as much as £1 million. No word on how much Williams was charged for the job however. 

Seeing the finished car for the first time, Williams said; “Well, it’s been a long time coming, a long time saving, but it’s been worth every penny. It’s just amazing… My girl’s back and up and running! Back to her former glory.”