Legacy Metrics

1955 Aston Martin DB2/4 Sports Saloon

LML/785roadUnited Kingdom
Engine
3.0L inline-six twin-cam, 140 bhp
Colour
Imperial Crimson

A 1955 Aston Martin DB2/4 3.0-litre Sports Saloon, chassis LML/785, supplied new to King Baudouin of Belgium and delivered through the Belgian Aston Martin concessionaire Mannes via the Paris embassy. Originally finished in Imperial Crimson with beige hide interior, the car is accompanied by photographs showing King Baudouin alongside his brother, the future King Albert II. Comprehensively restored to original specification over the period 2001–2008, it has since seen light use within a private collection and remains in ready-to-drive condition.

Ownership

  1. 2020-10-11Auction sale
    Sold €230,000 (≈ $253K)

    Bonhams catalogue lot →

  2. 1955-02-01 →Factory delivery
    King Baudouin of Belgium
    full documentation

    Delivered via the Belgian Aston Martin concessionaire Mannes, originally finished in Imperial Crimson with beige hide interior. Car was apparently routed through the Paris embassy, consistent with Belgian royal family practice for security purposes.

  3. 2001 → 2008
    Unknown restorer or interim owner
    none documentation

    A full restoration to original specification was carried out during this period, completed by 2008.

  4. 2011-02-01 →Auction
    Current owner since 2011
    full documentation

    Acquired at Bonhams Paris sale in February 2011 (Lot 324); kept within a private collection with limited use, maintained at a German specialist in 2019.

Competition

  1. 2019-10-01
    Zoute Concours

    Car was driven from Frankfurt to the event and back, covering roughly 1,000 kilometres in total without mechanical issues.

Maintenance & restoration

  1. 2001
    Restoration

    Full restoration to original specification commenced around 2001 and completed by 2008; scope described as comprehensive.

    Work spanned several years; the commissioning owner is not identified in the catalogue.

  2. 2019Service
    Esdar Klassische Fahrzeuge

    Major service carried out, incorporating a full overhaul of the braking system and fitment of new tyres.

    Workshop is located in Bielefeld, Germany; invoice retained in the car's file.

Are you the owner of this car?

This car's public record is built from its auction and competition history. Register your ownership and privately add your own records to make it a verified Legacy Metrics passport — provenance that backs your car's value at sale and gives your insurer evidence to price against. Roy reviews and verifies every registration personally.

Each chassis record is compiled from public auction archives and links to its source material. Ownership, competition and maintenance entries are extracted from those catalogue listings by an LLM, which can make mistakes — please contact us with any corrections. The summary is Legacy Metrics’ own writing; we do not reproduce catalogue text.

“Full” and “partial” documentation labels indicate how well each entry is corroborated in the underlying sources, not an audit of the car’s physical paperwork. Names of recent or living owners are withheld for privacy.