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Aston Martin DB3
When David Brown took over Aston Martin in in 1947 he already knew that he could increase the popularity of the cars by going racing. So, it didn’t take long before he set out to produce a race car. In order to help him achieve his goal he brought in Eberan von Eberhorst who had had success with Auto Union before the war. Von Eberhorst’s mission was to take the DB2 and turn it into a racing car. The result of this was the Aston Martin DB3
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| The DB3 first went racing in 1951using a 133 bhp 2.6 litre engine from the DB2 Vantage. This was later replaced by a 2.9 litre engine with 163 bhp. Success soon followed at Silverstone in 1952 when three Aston Martin DB3′s were placed 2nd, 3rd and 4th behind the race winning Jaguar C-Type. The DB3′s were entered into Le Mans later the same year but all three had to retire. However, Peter Collins and Pat Griffith recorded an overall race win at the Goodwood 9 hour race. |
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| It became apparent thought that the car was too heavy to progress beyond the 1952 season and it also lacked power compared to other cars in the field. |
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| There was a plan on the table from Willie Watson for a lighter, faster, more powerful version of the DB3 and the decision was taken to go with it. That car would become known as the Aston Martin DB3S. This decision caused von Ebelhorst to leave Aston Martin. |
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| The Aston Martin DB3 is quite a rare animal. Only ten were ever built. Five were raced by the factory and the other five were sold to private customers. A rebodied DB3 (the chassis that came third at Silverstone) was sold at auction in 2000 for £287,500 |
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| Manufacturer: Aston Martin |
| Body Style: 2 door coupe |
| Layout: Front engined, rear wheel drive |
| Engine: 2.9 litre version of the Lagonda straight six |
| Transmission: |
| Power: 163 bhp |
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| Competition: Win an Aston Martin |
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