Aston Martin's five coolest special editions

So, it’s little surprise that Astons are kept, cared for and coveted, and none more so than the tantalising special editions that have peppered the model line-up throughout the ages.

Not one to disappoint, Aston Martin yesterday unveiled the latest addition to this exclusive family – the DBS Superleggera On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. In celebration, we’ve put together a list of the coolest special edition Astons, starting with this newest number…

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service DBS Superleggera

Aston Martin has long been associated with ‘the firm’ – ever since 007 first climbed into a DB5 in 1964’s 'Goldfinger'.

Fifty-five years, and several iterations of Bond-inspired DBs later and Aston Martin has pulled the hat out the bag with what is possibly the coolest Bondmobile yet.

Unveiled yesterday, the On Her Majesty’s Secret Service DBS Superleggera celebrates the 50^th anniversary of the namesake Bond film, and pays homage to the 1969 Aston Martin DBS driven by 007 in the movie, albeit with a super-modern 5.2-litre twin-turbo V12, 715bhp engine.

Just 50 of the top secret supercars will be built, painted olive green to match the original, with carbon-fibre effects, diamond-forged wheels and unique OHMSS badging.

A red-accented interior, inbuilt drinks case and retail price of £300,007 complete the Bond appeal.

DBS 59

Another anniversary edition, the DBS 59 celebrates Aston Martin’s one-two finish in the 1959 24 Hours of Le Mans, which took place 60 years ago this year. Commissioned by Aston Martin Cambridge, each of the 24 cars in the production run represent an hour of the race.

The British manufacturer perfectly matched the Racing Green paint to the original DBR1, before adding modern touches including a gloss carbon fibre roof panel and 21-inch forged wheels.

Bronze details, including 'Superleggera' badging on the bonnet and a bespoke front grille feature on the exterior, while a ‘59 Edition’ logo embroidered on the tan leather seats. A final nod to the car’s epic heritage can be found on the sun visor, which is embroidered with the race’s date and the 323 laps completed within the 24 hours.

DB4 GT Zagato

The only classic Aston to make our list, the DB4 GT Zagato was first seen at the London Motor Show in October 1960, after which a 19-strong run of the models were produced by Ercole Spada at the Zagato factory in Italy.

Featuring the 3,670cc straight six powertrain and shortened chassis of the standard DB4 GT, combined with a lightweight, aerodynamic Zagato body, it not only looked the part but performed too, with a claimed 0 – 60 speed of 6.1 seconds and a max of 153mph.

So iconic is the DB4 Zag' that one sold at auction at the Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard for a then British record of over £10million including premium. Of course the fact that '2 VEV' has been raced, and crashed, at Goodwood by Jim Clark had something to do with it.

One-77

As Aston Martins go, it doesn’t get much cooler than this – a retro-futuristic hypercar, dubbed "the most exclusive of the Gaydon era".

With the biggest price tag on our list of £1,150,000, the One-77 was produced in a limited run of, you guessed it, 77 units.

At the time of development in 2009, the One-77 took the title as the fastest-ever Aston Martin, with its 750bhp 7.3-litre V12 pushing it to a blistering top speed of 220 mph.

Vanquish Zagato

The Vanquish Zagato is not one, but in fact a family of four models – the coupe, Volante, Shooting Brake and Speedster. Only 99 units each of the former three were built, and just 28 examples of the roofless Speedster.

The models share the Vanquish platform, and its 592bhp 6.0-litre naturally aspirated V12 engine, but feature different carbon-fibre Zagato bodies. Both the coupe and shooting brake boast the Italian coachbuilder’s trademark double-bubble roof, while the nacelles on the Volante and Speedster also mimic this iconic shape.