A CLASSIC Aston Martin which languished in a field for 20 years and had so many holes in it that it 'looked like Swiss cheese' has undergone a stunning restoration in Dorset.
The 1970 DB6 Mk2 was driven over to France shortly after it was made but left abandoned in a French field after its driver door caught fire.
It did not move for two decades before someone salvaged the rusty vehicle and moved it into a garage in Lille, north east France.
The Aston Martin gathered dust for another 20 years before a wealthy Paris property developer and classic car collector learnt about it 'through a pub chat'.
He went to the garage to inspect the car and was so taken by it that he paid an undisclosed sum for it.
At the end of 2019, he had the car transported over to Britain where Aston Service Dorset has carried out a painstaking three-year restoration costing £250,000.
It completely stripped back the car to a bare chassis and converted it into a left-hand side drive for the French roads.
Its bodypaint has been changed from red to mink (beige), a traditional Aston Martin colour, with a navy leather interior.
The rebuilt and upgraded 4.2-litre engine is capable of 150mph.
The car is believed to now be worth half a million pounds.
Antony Forshaw of Aston Service Dorset near Ferndown, a family-run business set up in 1934, said: “I believe our client, a French property developer, heard about the car through word of mouth.
“It would be one of those conversations in a pub where a friend of a friend says there is an Aston Martin sitting in a garage.
“It captured his interest and he went along to see it then bought it, before contacting us as we have restored Astons for him in the past.
“When we got the Aston it was so corroded and had so many holes in it, it looked like Swiss cheese.
“We changed the colour from scarlet red to mink and converted it to a left wheel drive.
“I believe the client initially planned to sell it, but he is so happy with the result I'm not so sure what his plans are now.
“Prices do fluctuate but I would say it is worth about £500,000 now.”
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