A 1939 Aston Martin Atom – the only one of its kind in existence – is set to be sold at Bonhams' Goodwood Festival of Speed sale on 27 June.
The 75-year-old Aston Martin is a streamlined prototype that has been hailed as one of the world's oldest fully operational concept cars, and features a raft of technological advancements. The lightweight aluminium bodywork clothes a tubular spaceframe chassis, while parallel-linkage coil-sprung independent front suspension ensures a smooth ride. It was also the first car in the UK to use a Salisbury back axle.
What makes the Atom's futuristic design so improbable is its gestation period; it was finished and registered just six weeks after the Dunkirk retreat, as the country was on the back foot politically and facing the fear of invasion. Only 750 private cars were registered during that year.
Former Aston Martin Managing Director Gordon Sutherland said: "The whole point of the Atom was to make the smallest and lightest enclosed saloon possible.”
