This Aston Martin V8 Is a Shared Experience for Father and Son

“I’ve fallen in love. I don’t have any desire to drive another car. The smell of the leather, the feel of the steering wheel…it’s art,” says Paul Kitchen, half owner of this beautiful 1977 Aston Martin V8 Series 3.

The other owner of the car is Paul’s gearhead dad, Jonathan. When a teenage Paul mentioned he’d like to buy a Chevrolet Chevelle, his dad suggested he instead look for a vintage Aston Martin.

“I wasn’t convinced,” Paul says, until he saw an example in silver with a red leather interior at a dealership—an example sadly out of his price range.

They got the bug, however, and kept looking—finally finding this once-sad example: it was found in a barn, with purple paint! Their first test drive of the car nearly ended in disaster: the brakes weren’t quite as functional as they’d hoped.

For Jonathan, the condition of the car presented an ideal platform for a young driver: at the time, Paul was a teenager and he was going to break things. To fix them, they could work on the car together. He was able to save up enough money to buy the car, only to learn that the person who’d be driving it the most over the next few years would be the tow truck driver.

And this is before Paul mentions that the car, at one point, caught on fire…







Drive Tastefully®

[ozzstars_cars]

thats something my dad never said to me 'don't buy a chevelle son, get an aston martin'

[emailgen]

Great story. When you are comparing these Astons to American V8s you have to remember that Aston Martins back in 1977 were handmade - like Saville Row suits. The engines were assembled by one man who put his name on a brass plate on the engine. The bodywork was formed by men with hammers banging aluminum over wooden bucks. The leather for the seats was cut and stitched by hand. No wonder they are unreliable but are any cars made like this nowadays? Very special indeed!

[LamarFaciane]

What a beautiful thing, a father and his son sharing their love of cars.

[VolkswagenGamer]

I want to buy a '70 Chevelle. No son your going to buy an Aston and your going to like it! XD

[NortonNice]

I love the fact that they never gave up on the car, but instead father and son worked to see it through.

[ConservativeGangstR]

Why on earth am I just seeing this car? I'm 48 years old, a car lover, and this is the very first time laying eyes on this beauty. And what a beauty she is. WOW!

P.S. THANK YOU, PETROLICIOUS FOR INTRODUCING ME TO A CAR I'D NEVER SEEN

[porscheCarreraRSR]

This is like a mustang with an Ivy league education.

[jonw]

Great car -- love the quote from Paul. You know it when you've found the right "forever" car.

[chrisparmentier]

My Dad died when I was 4... Finally in the process of getting his old Cobra back on the road (Aurora GRX). Watching this kills me because I know he'd be losing his mind over channels like this and especially the cars we have nowadays.

[dimik]

I have the exact same car ('77 series 3, five speed). Thanks for doing this video. I describe this car as a refined beast. It's every bit as exotic as a Ferrari, but for a lot less money. I believe only two or three entered Canada in '77. New Astons don't have the same cache like these older models.

[velocita]

A beautiful car and a beautiful father and son
relationship. These Petrolicious videos are the best of all car videos !

[xtype]

There's just something about Aston Martin's.... Utterly gorgeous cars.

[echosf]

What a wonderful video of father & son bonding. I can relate as my son looks to be about Paul's age and I've passed on my love of German cars, especially Porsches.

[Z-Twinturbo]

my favorite Aston. I don't know why, maybe because it's got a lot of muscle car vibes, but I absolutely love it

[chriswest]

That’s a car and a story with real soul. Thank you for sharing it. Beautiful and heart warming

[FRC]

These might be the most feel-good videos on YouTube. Great car, great story!

[xxdriftkingxx]

absolutely gorgeous car, its not even my car but i feel in love as soon as i saw the thumbnail for this video.  Definitely a double thumbs for me

[recklesslyarrogant]

Seriously best video so far. It's great knowing that a normal guy like that can find himself a fixer upper and turn it into beauty. Love it.

Damn rich kids, yes I'm jealous.

[Ladco]

The best memories of my childhood happened under the hood of a car with my dad.