Aston Martin 2-Litre Sports
Encyclopedia
The Aston Martin 2-Litre Sports was a sports car
sold by Aston Martin
from 1948 to 1950. It was the first product of the company under new owner, David Brown
, and is retrospectively known as the DB1. The car debuted at the 1948 London Motor Show and was based on the "Atom" prototype. Just 15 were sold.
The Atom was an Aston Martin project developed during World War II
. Its tube-frame chassis and 2.0 L four cylinder
engine were developed by Claude Hill.
Shortly after David Brown purchased Aston Martin, construction began on an updated version. This prototype was entered at the 24 Hours race at Spa
in 1948 as a way of testing its durability, and the car won the race outright with drivers St. John Horsfall and Leslie Johnson
. The Spa car was rebuilt and shown at the London Motor Show as an example of a new "Spa Replica" series for public sale, but there were no takers. The single Spa car has been until recently kept in the Dutch Motor Museum. In 2006 it returned to the UK and has been fully restored.
Along with the cycle-fender Spa car, Brown directed Aston to build a 2-seat roadster
with a more conventional body for the London show. This 2-Litre Sports, as the name suggested, used the 2.0 L Claude Hill engine. This 90 hp (67 kW) unit could propel the small, light vehicle to 93 mph (150 km/h).
13 of the cars wore an open roadster body, as shown in London, complete with a 3-part grille suggesting the later Aston Martin design. One unique feature of these cars was the compartment in one front wing for the spare wheel. One more 2-Litre car was shipped as a chassis for custom coachwork
.
After the 1950 introduction of the replacement DB2
, with the W. O. Bentley
designed Lagonda
straight-6
engine, the 2-Litre Sports became known widely as the DB1. At this point only 12 had been produced, however since the DB2 was a hardtop and a customer wanted a softtop, chassis numbers 13,14 and 15 were produced to special order.
Sports car
A sports car is a small, usually two seat, two door automobile designed for high speed driving and maneuverability....
sold by Aston Martin
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Limited is a British manufacturer of luxury sports cars, based in Gaydon, Warwickshire. The company name is derived from the name of one of the company's founders, Lionel Martin, and from the Aston Hill speed hillclimb near Aston Clinton in Buckinghamshire...
from 1948 to 1950. It was the first product of the company under new owner, David Brown
David Brown (entrepreneur)
Sir David Brown was an English entrepreneur, managing director of his family firm David Brown Limited and one time owner of shipbuilders Vosper Thornycroft and automobile manufacturer Aston Martin....
, and is retrospectively known as the DB1. The car debuted at the 1948 London Motor Show and was based on the "Atom" prototype. Just 15 were sold.
The Atom was an Aston Martin project developed during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Its tube-frame chassis and 2.0 L four cylinder
Straight-4
The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
engine were developed by Claude Hill.
Shortly after David Brown purchased Aston Martin, construction began on an updated version. This prototype was entered at the 24 Hours race at Spa
Spa, Belgium
Spa is a municipality of Belgium. It lies in the country's Walloon Region and Province of Liège. It is situated in a valley in the Ardennes mountain chain, some southeast of Liège, and southwest of Aachen. As of 1 January 2006, Spa had a total population of 10,543...
in 1948 as a way of testing its durability, and the car won the race outright with drivers St. John Horsfall and Leslie Johnson
Leslie Johnson
Leslie George Johnson was a British racing driver who competed in rallies, hill climbs, sports car races and Grand Prix races.-Overview:...
. The Spa car was rebuilt and shown at the London Motor Show as an example of a new "Spa Replica" series for public sale, but there were no takers. The single Spa car has been until recently kept in the Dutch Motor Museum. In 2006 it returned to the UK and has been fully restored.
Along with the cycle-fender Spa car, Brown directed Aston to build a 2-seat roadster
Roadster
A roadster is a two-seat open car with emphasis on sporty handling and without a fixed roof or side weather protection. Strictly speaking a roadster with wind-up windows is a convertible but as true roadsters are no longer made the distinction is now irrelevant...
with a more conventional body for the London show. This 2-Litre Sports, as the name suggested, used the 2.0 L Claude Hill engine. This 90 hp (67 kW) unit could propel the small, light vehicle to 93 mph (150 km/h).
13 of the cars wore an open roadster body, as shown in London, complete with a 3-part grille suggesting the later Aston Martin design. One unique feature of these cars was the compartment in one front wing for the spare wheel. One more 2-Litre car was shipped as a chassis for custom coachwork
Coachwork
Coachwork is the body of a horse-drawn coach or carriage, a motor vehicle , a railroad car or railway carriage. Usually reserved for bodies built on a separate chassis, rather than being of unitary or monocoque construction...
.
After the 1950 introduction of the replacement DB2
Aston Martin DB2
The Aston Martin DB2 is a sports car sold by Aston Martin from May 1950 through to April 1953. It was a major advancement over the 2-Litre Sports model it replaced, with a dual overhead cam straight-6 in place of the previously-used pushrod straight-4. The car featured a 2.6 L engine, and was...
, with the W. O. Bentley
W. O. Bentley
Walter Owen Bentley, MBE engineer; designer of aero engines, designer and racer of motor cars, founder of Bentley Motors Limited in Cricklewood near London.He was known as "W.O." without any need to add the word Bentley....
designed Lagonda
Lagonda
Lagonda is a British luxury car marque, founded as a company in 1906 in Staines, Middlesex by a former opera singer from Ohio, but of Scottish ancestry, named Wilbur Gunn . He named the company after a river near the town of his birth, Springfield, Ohio, United States...
straight-6
Straight-6
The straight-six engine or inline-six engine is a six-cylinder internal combustion engine with all six cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankcase...
engine, the 2-Litre Sports became known widely as the DB1. At this point only 12 had been produced, however since the DB2 was a hardtop and a customer wanted a softtop, chassis numbers 13,14 and 15 were produced to special order.