LANCE and Merlin look at two Aston Martins in very different conditions. One is a rare V8 Vantage X-Pack 580X, one of only a few hundred made, which despite only having 30,000 miles on the clock is having some engine trouble. The other is a shell of a 1960 Aston Martin DB4 which Lance will be using as the base for a Zagato replica, an 18 month project that will test his skills as one of the country's leading metalwork experts. The engine is being built by Aston Martin around $125,000, and the finished car should fetch over $1.25 million.
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00:00Master Craftsman Lance McCormack owns one of Britain's best classic car restoration
00:05businesses, Romance of Rust. Helping him manage it is his son Merlin, the cutting-edge salesman,
00:12who also runs his own classic car dealership. Together they turn Rust to riches.
00:18Today, Lance and Merlin look at two Aston Martins in very different conditions, demonstrating
00:24the extremes of work they do, from tweaks and tune-ups to full rebuilds. And this first
00:30project will test Lance's skill as one of the country's leading metalwork experts.
00:34Right, what we've got here is an Aston Martin DB4, or at least the platform chassis and the
00:39superstructure of one. We've removed all the aluminium panels. We're going to be creating
00:44a Zagato replica. What you've got here is, along with the roof lines, possibly the only
00:51identifiable piece. This is where the grille would be, the DB4 grille, in here, and you
00:56can see the classic Aston shape. All steel, and it's called a platform chassis. So it's
01:01all folded box section, and that's for lightness. Everything about this was lightness, lightness.
01:08Launched in about 1958-59, the DB4 was an instant success. It went through various guises, you
01:17know, series. One, two, three, four, five. Then the five came out, which we know as the
01:21James Bond car. But this is where it all came from. And in fact, like this, there's very
01:25little to tell between that. It's only the outer panels that really gave it the James
01:31Bond shape, you know, that we know and love. Zagato were quite a flamboyant coachbuilders,
01:37very notable for making beautiful cars. And the DB4 Zagato was sanctioned by Aston Martin,
01:45who sent them these type of bodies, and they converted them and put beautiful sculptural bodies
01:51on them. They clothed them in aluminium, you know, even more flamboyant than this car was.
01:57Those cars are worth about five million. Our one finished would be just over a million pounds,
02:01but it'd be a faithful replica of a Zagato. You know, I've even got the engine being built by Aston
02:07Martin at a cost of 100,000. And it would have a GT twin plug head. So once I've completed the
02:13Zagato conversion, it would be unrecognizable. As exciting as the conversion process is,
02:19Lance has a lot of work ahead of him. Now, I do the metal work, the panel work. A friend of mine
02:24supplies me with the aluminium skins in a very crude form. That's the outer panels. I have to be
02:29responsible for the augmentation of this body, the closing up of the wheelbase by five inches. So,
02:34we're about to make a fixture that allows for that to be measured once we put the cuts in exactly
02:40the right place. These here, this is like the ribcage. This is a sill section that would all come
02:44off and be replaced with a metal of course. It's not going to be like an absolute facsimile. That's
02:49not the requirement of the customer. I mean, the rear axle will look correct from underneath. We'll
02:54house a DB7 axle, a better axle. There'll be improvements along the way. But essentially,
02:59the silhouette, the general feel, the ride will be a bit better, because obviously we've progressed a bit
03:04on suspension technology. So, there's a year and a half's work here for me. Not solid year and a
03:09half, but this will be my friend, enemy, confidant for about a year and a half. Outside, Lance joins
03:15Merlin to take a look at a rare Aston Martin, in much more recognisable condition. This one's special.
03:22So, this is an 89 V8 V8 X-Pack, 580X. There's only a few hundred of them made.
03:29How many miles has this done? It's done 30,000 miles from you.
03:3230,000. And that colour.
03:35If this wasn't an X-Pack, we'd be looking at a value of about 90,000 to 100,000. But in its current state,
03:41as an X-Pack, 240,000 to 250,000. Pop the bonnet and see if there's something gone wrong with the
03:47actual linkage itself. But despite its low mileage, the car is experienced in engine trouble.
03:56If something idles, it's showing that not all is wrong. If there's something seriously wrong,
04:02you won't get it idling. Idling is a delicate little phase, but on the acceleration there,
04:06it could be that the points have just closed up, as simple as that. Or it could be a diaphragm has gone
04:13on the fuel pump or the carburettor. But what we do with that, because I'll go as far as I can with
04:18looking, and if it's something I can manually do, but what we tend to do at this stage is give it to
04:23our rolling road man, who has computer diagnostics. He sticks probes up the exhaust and sensors on the
04:29engine, and the computers don't like, generally speaking.
04:36Yeah, I don't think his screwdriver's going to clear that.
04:43It's not terminally ill, but it needs diagnostics. Wednesday, she will dance again.
04:49Next time on Rust to Riches.
04:51This is a genuine 396SS, of which there really are only a handful in the country.