1963 Aston Martin DP215 Design Project

After closing the racing department, the factory retained DP215 for potential future development, until an accident on the M1 motorway during night testing ended those plans.

Calvert, from the Isle of Wight, began a road-use restoration, fitting a DB6 engine and ZF gearbox. Photos document the car's condition when collected from Aston Martin. He used the car on public roads before selling it.

Noted Aston Martin collector who pursued a thoroughgoing historical restoration, collaborating with original designer Ted Cutting and sourcing a period Indianapolis Cooper-Aston engine reworked to dry-sump specification by Forward Engineering.

Car contested was DP212, co-driven by Richie Ginther and Graham Hill; rear-end lift at speed was a major handling issue encountered during the race weekend.

Co-driven by Lucien Bianchi; DP215 set a landmark by breaking 300 kph on the Mulsanne Straight in practice, but retired after approximately two hours when the CG537 gearbox failed under high torque.

DP215 was leading when a transmission issue caused a missed gearchange, resulting in engine over-revving and forced retirement.

DP215 was entered but tax regulations prevented David Brown from actually racing the car.

A DP214 driven by Salvadori defeated the Works Ferrari 250 GTO of Mike Parkes in the three-hour support race at Monza.

Gearbox repaired following the Le Mans retirement; the car was made ready for the Reims entry the following month.

S532 gearbox — the unit originally specified for the car — was fitted in place of the CG537 unit used at Le Mans.

Aston Martin factory fitted the original 1963 Works DP214/215 spare body onto the slightly damaged chassis; many unique original components including suspension, rear differential, dashboard, instruments and pedals were retained.

Work carried out at the factory prior to or at the time of sale to Malcolm Calvert.

Chassis sustained damage in a night accident on the M1 motorway during development testing.

Occurred after the racing department closed; exact date not recorded in the prose.

A DB6 engine and ZF gearbox were installed in place of the original competition drivetrain to allow road use.

Fitted during Malcolm Calvert's ownership; original four-litre engine had previously been sold to privateer Colin Crabbe for use in a DP214.

Ongoing authenticity-focused restoration undertaken in consultation with original designer Ted Cutting, including sourcing a period-correct engine; a 4.2-litre Indianapolis Cooper-Aston unit was obtained and converted to dry-sump specification by Forward Engineering to approximate the original configuration.

Carried out during Nigel Dawes's ownership; the original four-litre engine was located in a DP214 but had been converted to wet sump, so an alternative period unit was used with Cutting's approval.