David Brown Speedback GT 2014 Review

Cruising in the distance was an Aston Martin DB5… only it wasn’t. What the…? Surely I hadn’t ingested that much vino with dinner last night?

I happened to be at UK’s Millbrook Proving Ground three months ago, testing the Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge, when I spied the low-slung gunmetal grey coupe lapping the challenging Hill Route. From afar it looked for all intents and purposes like James Bond’s (the Sean Connery version) wheels.

As it loomed closer, I gleaned this was no DB5. It was much wider, longer and lower. What’s more, there were many elements of this car that were at odds with the 1960s Aston. The thrusting five-slat grille, swept-back headlights and ultra-streamlined greenhouse were just a few of the traits that distinguished this as a vastly different animal.

A bit of head-scratching followed, but then a quick trawl through my dusty memory banks resulted in an ‘aha’ moment. I had indeed laid eyes on this machine before – or at least pictures of it – and the images were accompanied by a press release announcing the reveal of the David Brown Speedback GT, a retro-inspired drool chariot underpinned by modern mechanicals.

A few back-and-forth emails with the concerned PR team later, a test rendezvous – the picturesque village of Henley-on-Thames – was set, as a result of which I’m now perched behind the wheel of the Speedback GT and in the passenger seat is David Brown, the man to whom this car owes its existence.

Just in case you’re wondering, he’s not to be confused with the David Brown who owned Aston Martin Lagonda Limited from 1947 to 1972. They’re not in any way related.

A bit of background on the Speedback GT: the fact it’s a hat tip to the Swinging Sixties is patently obvious, but clothed within the hand-beaten aluminium bodywork is the entire platform of a modern-day Jaguar XKR.

There’s the same 375kW/625Nm 5.0-litre supercharged V8, six-speed ZF auto, double-wishbone front suspension and multi-link rear set-up. David Brown says the standard Jag package provided the right character for the grand tourer that he had visualised, so there was no need to tamper with any of it – electronics included.

The first seeds for the Speedback GT were planted a few years ago when Brown was participating in a classic car rally in Spain in a Ferrari Daytona that kept breaking down. The Peugeot 106 – with functional air-con – he subsequently hired proved a much more user-friendly device, so much so that he was far happier driving it than the Ferrari. This prompted him to yearn for a car with the visual drama and charisma of the Daytona, but with modern levels of refinement and creature comforts.

After some rumination he enlisted the services of former Land Rover design chief Alan Mobberley, whose past credits included the first three generations of the Discovery. Fuelled by background music from the 1960s and posters of Sophia Loren and Riva yachts plastered on the wall, the two of them set about converting Brown’s vision into sketches.

Brown says his objective was not to recreate a DB5 – he already has one of these in his garage, and he’s not exactly complimentary about it – but to encapsulate the best elements of 1960s grand tourers in a single entity.

Look closely at the Speedback GT and you’ll also see hints of Jaguar E-Type, Ferrari 250 GT and Maserati 3500 GT. However, it’s all been reimagined in a thoroughly contemporary theme, so it doesn’t have the narrow, tippy-toe stance of the yesteryear cars that inspired it.

The way it’s been crafted is also a mix of old and new. Although the aluminium bodywork has been beaten by hand, the wooden bucks upon which it was made is the result of scanning and digitising the clay model that preceded it. This means it’s precise to fractions of a millimetre, and it’s evident in the perfect shutlines and overall standard of fit and finish.

Cutting-edge Formula One software also enabled Brown and Mobberley to carry out aerodynamic simulations to ensure the Speedback would be stable at high speeds and channel enough cooling air to the brakes and supercharged V8.

Time to hit the road. With no fixed destination in mind – other than to arrive back at Henley-on-Thames in a few hours – we wind our way across classical English country lanes that are barely wide enough to accommodate two vehicles travelling in opposite directions.

It’s not the sort of terrain where you can cut loose, especially when the car you’re driving is the only prototype for a low-volume special that will retail for a whisker under half a million pounds in the UK.

First thoughts are that the Speedback GT drives much like the Jaguar XKR that spawned it. No surprises there, but what is surprising is how tight and well-sorted it feels for a car that’s a hand-built prototype. There are no rattles or squeaks, apart from a small one in the rear of the cabin that Brown says will be rectified in the next car built.

The exhaust note is delightfully fruity when you kick the supercharged V8 in the guts, yet it recedes discreetly into the background in cruise mode. It’s a nice balance for a sporting grand tourer that you could use for cross-continental expeditions. There’s also enough room in the boot for a reasonable swag of luggage, so it’s a realistic long-distance companion.

Although it can sprint to 100km/h in a claimed 4.8 seconds, the Speedback GT feels brisk rather than electrifying. It’s quick enough to keep you entertained, but it’s not by any stretch a lap-record chaser, and nor is it intended to be. Rather than being a manic machine in the vein of a Ferrari F12, the Speedback GT is more akin to a Bentley Continental GT in its refined and relaxed demeanour.

It’s pleasant to drive, but if this was the only criterion, there’s obviously no way you could justify the six-fold price premium the Speedback GT commands over the Jag XKR it’s derived from.

Jaw-dropping, crowd-pulling looks are the only reason you would buy one, and the retro-laced coupe doesn’t disappoint on this score, prompting a plethora of double takes from other motorists and bystanders as we rumbled past.

Visually, the Speedback GT is simply breathtaking, and you’d be hard-pressed to find an angle from which its proportions don’t gel beautifully. Yes, a lot of people are going to mistake it for a DB5, but anyone with half an ounce of car nous will immediately glean that it’s an entirely fresh take on a familiar theme.

The cabin is also a skilful piece of design, melding all the new-age bells and whistles – such as sat-nav and Jaguar’s rotary transmission knob that recedes when the ignition is switched off – with an olde-worlde ambience akin to what I imagine Winston Churchill’s study would have had.

There are lashings of leather and elm, rotary air vents (in place of the Jag’s rectangular ones), impeccably crafted nickel alloy knobs and switches (no plastic here) and refaced dials that are more in keeping with the era the car was inspired by.

Another nice touch is the fold-out, rear-facing picnic bench that’s incorporated in the floor of the boot. Brown says this is to cater for the polo crowd that will be part of the target audience for the Speedback GT. It’s an example of the attention to detail that’s gone into the car.

So far, Brown claims he has six orders for the Speedback – including one from a buyer in Australia – and he says even selling just 10 units will enable him to recoup the design and engineering investment that’s gone into developing and building the car.

If pure ‘want’ factor was the measure, the Speedback GT rates off the charts. The svelte coupe is a masterpiece of design, and it’s been well screwed together too. Cars don’t come more distinctive or exclusive than this.

That said, it’s still hard to stomach the £495,000 pricetag ($A885,000, or more than a Lamborghini Aventador) that’s attached to the car. This hasn’t proved a deterrent for half-a-dozen buyers, but it remains to be seen how many more will join the queue.