Want to give your kid the chance to learn driving in style from an early age? Nicolas Mee & Co, an Aston Martin Heritage Dealer from West London, is offering the perfect tool for that: a fully functioning, scaled-down, petrol-engined classic car for children of 10 years and over.

The DB Junior is inspired by the legendary Aston Martin DB models of the 1960s and has composite coachwork sitting on a sturdy steel box-section chassis, leather or vinyl seats, a wood-rimmed steering wheel and hydraulic disc brakes.

The car is about half the size of a normal car, measuring 2,500mm (98,4in) in length and 1,030mm (40.5in) in width. It is powered by a 110cc, four-stroke petrol engine with key-operated electric start, mated to a 3-speed semi-automatic gearbox. Top speed is 46 mph (74 km/h), but it can be restricted downwards. And even if it weren’t, the Brembo disc brakes provide enough stopping power to bring it safely to a halt.

On the inside, the driver has full use of indicators, lights and of course, the horn. The DB Junior is offered in a wide range of colors and trim that can even be matched to a full-size Aston Martin already in the family.

“You’d be surprised how well the DB Junior is engineered, and how much room there is in the cockpit. It’s big enough for an adult and the pedals can be adjusted so that the DB Junior will fit a wide range of drivers. Let’s say ‘junior drivers of all ages’,” says managing director Nicholas Mee.

There’s one “minor” detail though: the scaled-down classic Aston Martin convertible starts from £16,500 (€19,900). But if you already have a full-size Aston in your garage, the price of the toy version should be no problem.

By Dan Mihalascu

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