1964 Aston Martin Shooting Brake

Curated Mid-Century Modern Home Listings 📍

Jan 06, 2025

Today the sports car in wagon form is a pretty tried and true product (see the Porsche Panamera Turbo or Audi RS6 for 600 horsepower modern examples). Pairing spicy performance with genuine practicality, the muscle-car station wagon seems like something that should’ve always existed.

But that wasn’t always so obvious. Enter David Brown, Aston Martin owner and the force behind the DB5. Despite the car’s stunning performance (and looks), the DB5 wasn't the perfect fit for Brown’s own lifestyle. A passionate sportsman, Brown frequently juggled his role as Aston Martin's chairman with his love for polo and shooting, often accompanied by his two beloved dogs. In early 1964, he is reported to have stormed into a design meeting with a bold demand: create a DB5 variant that suited his active lifestyle without compromising styling or performance.

With the factory fully occupied with DB5 production, Brown turned to Harold Radford's coachbuilding firm for help. Dubbed "The Shooting Brake” the resulting DB5 conversions offered exhilarating performance, reaching speeds of over 160 mph while boasting a cavernous 40 cubic feet of cargo space. The extensive modifications significantly increased the cost, adding a hefty £2,000 to the already substantial £4,400 price tag – a sum roughly equivalent to the cost of two average UK homes at the time.

Due to the significant investment, only 12 examples were ever produced, with 8 designed for right-hand drive. This lovely green one is for sale now via Cottingham Blue Chip London.