1969 Aston Martin sets Barons record selling for $1.2 million

(August 1, 2015) LONDON — An ultra-rare, unrestored and highly original 1969 Aston Martin DB6 Mk 1 Volante Vantage set a new record for Barons when it sold for £781,000 ($1.2 million) at Sandown Park on July 28. The highest price ever achieved for a car at a Barons sale, it broke the auction house’s previous record of £739,000, set just three months ago for a 1954 Bentley R-Type Continental Fastback "barn find."

“We believe this may be a record for an unrestored example of this particular Aston Martin, so these are very exciting times for Barons,” said company director Peter Gascoigne.

“The past six months since Tony Cavell and I took the reins have seen significant growth in the value and quality of cars across the sales, and in the overall sale results. To have two such cars within three months of each other is truly remarkable.”



The Sandown Park salesroom was packed, and the number of online bidders had swelled by 50 percent for this sale. Bidding on the Aston — one of just 29 ever made, and believed to be the final such Volante Vantage built — actually started slowly, building gradually from an initial £350,000. Then telephone bids began flooding in and the car accelerated rapidly up to the final figure paid by the UK buyer.

Another British classic was second in the popularity charts at the sale. The stunning 1968 Series 1.5 Jaguar E-type 2+2 had been the subject of a comprehensive nut-and-bolt bare metal restoration, and sold for £46,750. It was followed by a very impressive, and considerably younger, machine, the 2014 Dax Cobra, which has just 500 miles on the clock, roaring past its £20,000 estimate to sell for £32,175.