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18 September 2017

Weird Wagons: Aston Martin V8 Sportsman Estate

By Tom WhiteTom White
Looks fantastic from the front. (image credit: Bonhams)

1996 was just a total mess at Aston Martin. It’s a wonder they built this thing at all.

It was a dark, dark time - Aston Martin was owned by Ford as part of the race-to-the-bottom-but-classier-than-GM experiment: Premier Auto Group.

The trouble was… branding. In 1996 James Bond was driving a BMW and the brand’s jolly racing heritage was all but a forgotten memory.

Uhm, not so much from the back. (image credit: Bonhams) Uhm, not so much from the back. (image credit: Bonhams)

The 'new' V8 was meant to be a victory. A proper thumping British muscle car, made from a pure, foolish and totally baseless cash-injection from Ford.

The resulting product was, quite literally, a bunch of unwanted spare parts from Volkswagen, GM and Ford bolted to a V8 with ‘hand-built’ bodywork and trim.

From this angle, you can't even see the ugly rear lights! (image credit: Bonhams) From this angle, you can't even see the ugly rear lights! (image credit: Bonhams)

Do you have a bleak enough image yet?

Unsurprisingly, Aston Martin only managed to build 101 of the ‘base model’ V8 coupes - in total - and of them, three were sent back to the factory to be re-built by custom order as V8 Sportsman Estates.

The V8 coupe looks tough, but wasn't exactly a big seller. The V8 coupe looks tough, but wasn't exactly a big seller.

That’s right, there are only three Aston-Martin V8 Sportsman Estates in existence. It’s no wonder then, that this particular example fetched the equivalent of AU$571,591 at a Bonhams auction earlier this year. It was once owned by a French art collector, but whether that hand-built rear end counts as 'art' is up for debate.

Looks about as hobbled-together as a TVR from here. (image credit: Bonhams) Looks about as hobbled-together as a TVR from here. (image credit: Bonhams)

Although it’s a 'wagon' it hardly looks practical… two doors, cramped conditions, only four seats. It’s still clearly the 1996 supercar that the V8 coupe was trying to be, just with more room in the back. It’s for a guy who loves his pets, being broken down, and his cardigan collection but perhaps not his children.

Contort your way into this claustrophobic cavern, it's a family car, don't you know? (image credit: Bonhams) Contort your way into this claustrophobic cavern, it's a family car, don't you know? (image credit: Bonhams)

Speaking of ‘being a supercar’ the 5.3-litre V8 will put down 246-ish kW, and go 0-100km/h in less than seven seconds. As though to confirm our previous suspicions about the target audience, the Bonhams one has already had the engine rebuilt at only 9263km and comes with a matching humidor. Right to it, chaps!

Stuffy woodgrain and leather. Could be worse, could be a '90s Ford interior. (image credit: Bonhams) Stuffy woodgrain and leather. Could be worse, could be a '90s Ford interior. (image credit: Bonhams)

Would this rare Aston Martin wagon get you having cigars on a country road while waiting for roadside assist? Tell us in the comments.

This is part of a series on Weird Wagons - see more here:

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