Aston Martin DBR1 Is What Racing Dreams Are Made Of
Learning the legacy of Aston’s greatest racing car only makes it more memorable and desirable.
The Aston Martin DB1 is more than a racing car. It is a machine that represents an entire legacy. It joins the ranks of names like Ford GT40, Ferrari 250, Jaguar D-Type and Porsche 917K. These are all mechanical marvels that rewrote the way the world looked at their manufacturers. Petrolicious got to spend some time with an Aston Martin DBR1, and with Aston’s in-house historian to learn more about this brand-defining automobile.
The film that resulted is a deep and passionate look at a small team of engineers and daring drivers that came together in a perfect storm of circumstances to create this racing hero. Most of the car was actually designed by a single man, Ted Cutting, who was responsible for the chassis, engine, and body. A body which is one of the most exquisite shapes ever fitted to a car.
The DBR1’s life actually started off with a string of failures and false starts, with several mechanical failures sidelining the team’s hopes of a successful World Sportcar Championship season. But in 1959, everything came together. Despite a pair of consecutive victories at the 1000km Nurburgring, the DBR1 only made the even at the behest of Stirling Moss. Despite a plow into the ditch early in the race, the DBR1 ended up winning for its third consecutive time. Then finally, at Le Mans, the most important race of the year, Aston Martin managed to secure 1st and 2nd place overall with a pair of DBR1s. The cars were so successful in that race, that the third place finisher was 25 laps back. That’s a distance of more than 200 miles.
Power, beauty, and soul indeed.
