Aston Martin DB4 'Special Series'

One-off spec, factory upgraded to 'Special Series' configuration, LHD

While Aston Martin’s general manager, John Wyer, was cultivating new orders in overseas markets, development of an entirely new model was advancing at pace. He was determined that David Brown’s next project should be 'really striking'. First unveiled at the 1958 London Motor Show, the DB4 was hailed as 'more powerful than any touring car hitherto marketed by a British factory', as reported by The Motor on 1 October 1958.

Its body was designed by the Italian Carrozzeria Touring using the firm’s Superleggera construction method: a lightweight tubular framework clothed in hand-formed aluminium panels. The distinctive front grille, affectionately known as the 'egg-crate' intake, became a defining element of Aston Martin’s identity. Indeed, the DB4 established the stylistic foundation for its celebrated successors, the DB5 and DB6.



Beneath the DB4’s bonnet resides a 3.7-litre inline-six engine, producing 266 horsepower, conceived by Tadek Marek. To remedy early mechanical issues - encountered by gentlemen attempting speed records on the Italian autostrade and the French routes nationales - former racing driver Bobby Dickson was enlisted to drive the car flat out for 200 kilometres on the motorways surrounding Newport Pagnell, testing Marek’s revised modifications. Once resolved - and with Dickson having set a 56-minute record for his usual tour at an average of 214 km/h - DB4 sales resumed in earnest. It was, after all, the first production car capable of accelerating to 160 km/h from rest and returning to a standstill in under thirty seconds.

The 'Special Series' (SS) designation denoted a rare factory upgrade for enhanced performance: triple SU carburetor setup, larger valves, oil cooler and higher compression ratio - the same features of the Vantage model. Only a handful of the 165 DB4 series III were upgraded to 'SS' configuration.

DB4 'SS'

Year 1961
Paint color Caribbean Blue Pearl
Interiors Cream Connolly Leather
Delivered new to Oei Tjong Tjay, the son of Asia’s richest man in the early 20th century
Fully matching-number
Factory upgraded to ‘SS’ configuration
Extremely rare color combination – only 11 DB4 Series III built like this one
One-off specification
Rare and factory original overdrive
Full documentation and history files

This DB4, manufactured in 1961, was custom commissioned by the Chinese-Indonesian Oei Tjong Tjay, the son of Asia's richest man at the time, and it was specifically configured to his request with several features. Soon after it was purchased, upon request of Oei Tjong Tjay, Aston Martin enhanced the car with factory Special Series engine upgrades.

The list of optionals includes an engine oil cooler, Marchal front fog lamps, indicator side repeaters to both front wings, electric windows, chrome wheels, a heated rear window, an oil temperature gauge, pockets at the back of front seats, yellow headlamp bulbs, a loudspeaker wired behind the back seats, and the rare overdrive gearbox.

Nicknamed the "Man of 200 Million," Tjay wanted a car that expressed his family’s status and personal taste. His family’s wealth came from the sugar industry, which his father revolutionized, creating one of the largest conglomerates in the region. The business operated through the whole sugar value chain and across several sectors, including sugar production, trading, shipping, banking, and plantations, and had a significant presence in Southeast Asia and beyond. 


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