When it comes to the autoTRADER.ca Find of the Week, we don't often pick new cars. And we don't often pick cars that cost more than a million dollars. But, like every good rule, there are occasional exceptions. This is one of them. A car so stunning and so rare that we can't help but highlight it to you. It's an Aston Martin Zagato Shooting Brake, one of just 99 ever built.
Aston Martin and Italian coachbuilder Zagato have a long and storied history. While Aston Martin was busy building struggling to build sports cars, Zagato was putting stunning sheet metal on Alfa Romeos and other models.
Then, in 1960, the two joined forces. Aston's DB4 was already an extremely handsome car. Zagato, and designer Ercole Spada, transformed the model, making it lighter by replacing steel parts with aluminum. Making it more aerodynamic by removing bumpers and re-sculpting lines. Yet just 20 were built of the even more stunning DB4 GT Zagato.
It was the start of a beautiful, if infrequent, relationship. Over the years, Zagato would rebody a handful of Astons, including the V8 in 1986 and DB7 in 2002, as well as a handful through the 2010s.
None were common, all were beautiful.
One of the latest and best was this. The Aston Martin Zagato Shooting Brake. Part of a series of modern Aston Zagatos, all built on the chassis of the Vanquish S.
The Shooting Brake took the Vanquish body and utterly transformed it. Completely different from the car underneath and unmistakably Zagato. Even before you see the eight thousand Z logos spattered around and throughout the car. That's right, this might be a million dollar ultra-rare exotic, but we're still going to call it out for being a little heavy on the zeds.
Overly-logoed aside, the car is one of the all-time most beautiful. The hood that looks like it's about to jump out and bite you. Just the right amount of scalloping in the doors. The bulging rear fenders. And that roofline.
Oh, what a roofline. The laid back rear glass of the Vanquish coupe is gone. Replaced with the long roof of the shooting brake. The not-quite wagon, not-quite coupe, all stunning style.
That's before you even walk around the back. Once you arrive at the tail, the hatchback – and yes this is truly a hatch – reveals itself. With multi-element turbine-style tail lights, a big roof spoiler, even bigger rear diffuser, and that knife-edge line running from side to side. The bodywork is entirely carbon fibre.
Underneath, the Zagato Shooting Brake is powered by a 5.9L V12, Aston's naturally aspirated 12 making 580 hp and paired with an eight-speed automatic gearbox.
This is a two-seater, but Aston Martin says that it's practical as a GT car. Well, as practical as any one of 99, V12-powered and all-carbon bodied two-door super hot hatch can be. Look in the back and there's a surprisingly large load area. In carbon, of course, with plenty of room for Aston's tailored luggage set. Or any other cargo you might want to place back there. You know, for those times that you need to make a Costco trip, but the S600 and the Range Rover are in the shop.
The rest of the interior is equally unmistakably Zagato. Though not because it's been restyled completely. In front of the seats, it's largely still Vanquish. But with new trimmings like new leather. And more of those million zeds covering the seats.
This car, for sale in Calgary, is painted in the same stunning red as Aston's show car. It's number 41 of the 99 cars the two companies built. And, according to the seller it's one of just two in Canada. Frankly, we're surprised that two of this ultra-limited car ever made it here.
It's one of the coolest hatchbacks ever made, and certainly one of the rarest. It's an Aston Martin Zagato Shooting Brake, and it's the autoTRADER.ca Find of the Week.
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