The thunderous sound of highly tuned engines came to Exmouth when 16 classic Aston Martin sports cars visited A la Ronde.

The cars’ owners were from the Hampshire branch of the Aston Martin Owners Club, which organised a weekend visit to East Devon.

Their high-performance convoy was parked outside the house for visitors to look at, while the drivers were shown around the historic home.

The cars covered more than 50 years of motoring history, from two 1959 DB4s to a 2010 DBS worth more than �170,000.

Also on display was a 1965 DB5 – perhaps the most famous Aston model due to its starring role in numerous James Bond films.

However, the star of the show at A la Ronde was a Virage Volante Special from 1995, one of only two of its kind in the world.

The car was custom-made by Aston Martin’s works factory, and is fitted with a 6.3-litre V8 engine which produces 550bhp – enough to propel it to a top speed of 180mph, and to consume fuel at a rate of 8mpg.

The car is owned by Peter Chapman-Rapkins, who organised the trip having regularly holidayed in the area with his wife.

He said: “We had a pleasant visit to A la Ronde, having a look around the house and having tea and cake.

“There was a lot of interest in the cars from other members of the public, who asked lots of ‘gee-whiz’ questions about how fast they could go.”