For Sale: Ex-Works Aston Martin AMR1 Group C racer

Images and information thanks to Sam Hancock unless otherwise mentioned

By Marcel Hundscheid / Speed-O-Graphica

This Group C Aston Martin AMR1, chassis AMR1 05, is the fifth of just five Aston Martin works Group C cars from 1989 and is up for sale by Sam Hancock.

Sam Hancock is a professional racing driver, coach and advisor to private clients on classic car transactions and historic racing programmes. Besides this, he sells exceptional vehicles for private collectors.

The Aston Martin AMR1 was the result of a project aimed at bringing Aston Martin back into the world of international sports car racing. The car debuted during the World Sportscar Championship of 1989, which coincided with the 30th anniversary of Aston Martin’s outright victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the DBR1.

Reeves Callaway from the United States developed the production-based V8 engine, which produced 570 hp – nearly double that of the production engine. The six-litre version was capable of 700 hp and led to a further upgraded version known as the 6.3 litre Version II and which was capable of producing 740 hp.

Besides the three rounds of the World Championship mentioned above, Aston Martin fielded a pair of AMR1s in the 24 Hours of  Le Mans. One of the two cars managed to reach the finish line, finishing in eleventh place overall.

Unfortunately, the development program that was started after Le Mans for the AMR2 was not continued. The takeover of Aston Martin by Ford and drastic changes in the regulations, in which only 3.5-litre engines were allowed, were reasons for Ford to focus solely on the development of the Jaguar. During that period, Ford already took part in the World Cup for Sports Cars with Jaguar.

Aston Martin AMR1 captured at the Le Mans Classic in 2023

This particular car was produced for the 1989 World Sportscar Championship and is offered by Sam Hancock accompanied by an extraordinary spares package. This particular car differs along with another one from the three other cars in having a 100 kg lighter weight. In this it is one of the two produced lightweights and was equipped with an upgraded version of the Aston Martin RDP87 6.3-litre engine.

Chassis AMR1 05 debuted at the Wheatcroft Gold Up, the Donington round of the World Sportscar Championship. Although David Sears and Brian Redman qualified the car in 20th position, they worked their way up in the ranking and finished in 7th position overall.

Redman shared the car with Stanley Dickens at the race in Spa, scoring another 7th place in the rankings. Chassis 05 was used for the last time in the season finale at Mexico, driven by Brian Redman and David Leslie and finishing in 8th place.

More information and history about this unique car can be found here.