During its production from 1958 to 1963, the DB4 model firmly established Aston Martin in the sports coupe segment and set the iconic look that would define the brand for decades to come. Even today, modern Aston Martin models still incorporate styling cues from this classic car.

Built to last, the DB4 boasts an undeniably overbuilt, heavy, and sturdy combo chassis/body that makes it a reliable and elegant coupe for the streets. However, its weight also made it less suitable for the race track.

To address this issue, Carrozzeria Touring of Milan was enlisted by Aston Martin to transform the heavy DB4 into a race track beast. They accomplished this by applying the Superleggera bodywork, consisting of lightweight sheet metal made of aluminum and magnesium alloy supported by a series of interconnected steel tubes. The wheelbase was also reduced, resulting in many cars not being fitted with rear seats.

Under the hood, the DB4 featured an impressive inline 6-cylinder engine, available in two sizes: 3.7L (3670cc/223in³) and 3.8L (3750cc/228in³). Both versions were equipped with two sparkplugs per cylinder, two distributors, and modifications to the aluminum cylinder head that increased compression to 9.0:1. To complete the high-performance package, the DB4 was fitted with a trio of side-draft Weber carbs.

The result was a very capable engine which can produce 302 hp with a maximum speed of 151 mph (243 km/h) for the GT model, and a 0 to 60 mph (97 km/h) time of just 6.1 seconds. In fact, it was the fastest road-legal production car of its time.