For Aston Martin, 1959 was very much a watershed year; the company had finally won the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the world championship outright, and also introduced its first brand new road car in nearly a decade. With the job done, Aston Martin retired its works team and instead focused on developing a competition version of this new DB4 intended for customers to race in the Grand Touring or GT class. The new racing car was introduced at that year's London Motor Show and was appropriately dubbed the DB4 GT. Compared to the standard road car it featured a shorter wheelbase, lighter body and more powerful engine. It was immediately successful in national events but on the major races faced strong opposition from the latest Ferrari 250 GT SWB, which was lighter still. In order to bridge the gap, Aston Martin Racing developed a Lightweight version and later even commissioned Zagato to create an all new body. While all this work did not eventually bring the desired results, the various DB4 GT variants still rank among the most sought after Aston Martins.
We have taken a closer look at this finely honed GT racer with a 18-shot gallery of a DB4 GT and a 12-shot galley of two of the rare Lightweights. All are shown in action during the Goodwood Revival, where the DB4 GT is a regular entry in the prestigious RAC TT Celebration race.

Enjoy the links:

1959 - 1963 Aston Martin DB4 GT - Images, Specifications and Information

1960 Aston Martin DB4 GT Lightweight - Images, Specifications and Information