Aston Martin DB2 Vantage

About the Aston Martin DB2 Vantage

The DB2 was the successor to the DB1 of which only 15 had been sold throughout the production period.. Three prototype DB2s were tested and raced throughout 1949, and the new production model was announced by Aston Martin in the Spring of 1950 timed to coincide with the New York Auto Show in April. 100 orders were taken at the show, which inspired great promise for the future of Aston Martin.

A major upgrade was the brand new engine designed by W.O. Bentley. It was the now famous 105 bhp double overhead camshaft 2,580cc, straight, six-cylinder. This replaced the four-cylinder 1970cc 90bhp engine of the DB1.

In April 1950, an engine with larger carburettors, inlet camshaft the same as the exhaust (for increased duration), and higher compression ratio pistons (8.16:1) was made available. Aston Martin's first Vantage upgrade option offered 125 hp (93 kW). Initially the higher compression ratio made the engine unsuitable for the British market, as the postwar austerity measures of the early 1950s restricted UK vehicles to 72 octane "Pool petrol".[6] The first DB2 Vantage, LML 50/21, was delivered to, and raced by, Briggs Cunningham in the United States.