Is Aston Martin DB2 a True Supercar?

In 1953, the Aston Martin DB2/4 was the first comprehensive revamp of the DB2 car, because the car needed to evolve. But the DB2 would always be known as the car that single handedly revived Aston Martin's career and pushed it on to greatness. The DB2 was replaced in the autumn of 1953 by the new look and feel DB2/4, and was praised for being better than its predecessor by far. The DB2/4 name meant that it was very much an Aston Martin, David Brown creation but just with four seats. But although it was four seats instead of 2, it was not a more spacious vehicle at that because the wheelbase remained unchanged, so a lot of close accommodation and shuffling around were necessary for a not so comfortable fit. As a matter of fact there was really no kind of room for the back passenger's legs with the front seats pushed almost all the way to the back. That was a poor "development" factor by Aston Martin for an otherwise superb car.

Aston Martin DB2/4 possessed a flush and contoured fastback design that was viewed as a bit more practical due to the fact that back seats and top hinged back hatch lengthened the car by 9cm more than the DB2. The top hinged hatchback was the biggest enhancement to the sports car, and the first time it was ever done, resulting in a larger luggage space. There were both coupe and convertible body-styles of the DB2/4, but the coupe's look was slightly altered from the convertibles'. The difference was a one-piece windshield displacing the previous divided glass, and the rear roof structure was humped, in order to provide some sort of headroom and comfort to those unlucky enough to have to ride in the back.

The transmission was a four speed manual David Brown, with drums for both back and front brakes, because the technology of disc pads was in its beginnings and not at yet ripe. The body of DB2/4 is made out of aluminum, and it features an independent chassis, and peculiar trailing-link suspension. The dimensions of the car are a weight of 1257kg, a wheelbase of 2515mm, a front and back track of 1372mm, a length of 4305mm, a width of 1651mm, and a height of 1359mm.

The DB2 Vantage 125 horsepower 2580cc DOCH straight 6 engine has now become standard within this vehicle, thus making this a very fast car by 1950s criteria, achieving a top speed of 111.2mph (179km/h) and acceleration of 0-60 in 12.6 seconds, and the 0-¼mile in 18.9 seconds, plus a torque of 195Nm (143.8ft-lbs) at 2400rpm. The designers also repositioned a smaller fuel tank above the spare. The overall result is a versatile and exciting sports tourer that exceeds all expectations. Sales of the DB2/4 skyrocketed and it was in high demand, so much that in mid-1954 a bigger capacity engine was offered 2922cc with 140bhp output.

DB2/4 third body layout came out in 1955, a notch-back coupe interpretation of the convertible, and with this change came a traditional front fenders and hood affixed to the chassis. The different DB2/4 generations were referred to as Mark Is, Mark IIs, and the eventually Mark IIIs in the wings. And the overall production of the cars were very low by any standard, at its highest the DB2/4 was being manufactured at six or seven cars per week, being a rigidly a hand-built car although it was in high demand. The car was an extreme successful for Aston Martin, and it was really still only the beginning.

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Source: Articlesbase.com