Thursday 28th October 2010

Beyond The Multi-Million DB5: Bond's Other Cars

If you missed out on the classic DB5, we check out your other options (and they cost less than £2.9m)

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Not a budget Bond car

Mr Bond's Aston Martin DB5 - complete with machine guns, revolving number plates and ejector seat - has just been sold to Ohio-based Harry Yeaggy for £2.9 million. And that got us thinking: just how much do you have to pay to play at being James Bond?

After all, Britain's most famous MI6 operative has driven plenty of less-than-glamorous cars, so you don't have to part with Aston money to bag a Bond-style ride.

Most obvious of the non-Astons is perhaps an early Lotus Esprit - as featured in The Spy Who Loved Me or, in turbo form, in For Your Eyes Only, but that'll still set you back around £12k (like this 1982 Esprit Turbo).

Bond's 1990s BMW phase offers a little more in the way of affordable fantasy, although his most exotic BMW steed - the Z8 from The World Is Not Enough - is now fetching more than it cost when new, as this 2002 Z8 with 15k miles, up for almost £90k proves.

Much more sensibly priced Bond BMWs include the Z3 1.9 from Goldeneye that (if you can bear the hairdresser jokes) can be had in decent nick for little more than £3000 (such as this blue Z3), or a BMW 750iL like this one, driven remotely in Tomorrow Never Dies, yours with 90k miles on the clock fro just £2.5k.

At the more esoteric end of Bond's chariots is the Citroen 2CV, which featured in a memorable chase sequence in For Your Eyes Only and even spawned a special edition (see pic). Mind you, it's no longer the budget car it once was, with well-preserved examples such as this 1988 2CV fetching a couple of grand.

If a Tin Snail is a bit slow for you, then how about a Maserati Biturbo (seen in Licence to Kill, though we don't think Bond drove it) for £4750?

At the more mundane end of things, an Audi 200 (The Living Daylights) in good condition could be yours for around £3800, or how about Bond's 'rep' period, when he drove the current-shape Ford Mondeo (Casino Royale)? This can now be had for less than six grand (we know you're tempted).

Of course, if you really wanted to be obscure you could delve into the series of Bond novels by John Gardner - which could mean a Saab 900 Turbo for £1500 or even a Bentley Mulsanne for just £11k. But then nobody would know they were Bond cars, would they?

[tgx4776]

In one of the Books didn't he drive a Saab C900 Turbo?

[Lawrence5]

Wouldn't have been my choice last night..... Zonda for £725k or the enzo for £525k seemed good value. But £450k for the 275GTB/4

Yapped to the guy who bought the Zonda has his own race track in Finland

Few rubbish iphone pics

Edited by Lawrence5 on Thursday 28th October 12:14

[TTwiggy]

Not forgetting the Blower Bentley that he drove in the novels. What would one of those cost I wonder?

[KIG1971]

I'm a saddo for knowing but, a few more for the pot:

Aston Martin DBS - On her majesty's secret service
Triumph Stag - Diamonds are forever
Mach 1 Mustang - Diamonds are forever
Alfa GTV6 - Octopussy

or a favourite
3 Door Range Rover (with seriously dodgy horse box) - Octopussy

With the exception of the DBS all should be affordable.

Of the baddies cars

Fatima Blushes Gordini Turbo Renualt 5 - Never say Never again.

Please forgive my sadness!

[Caruso]

Can't believe they missed the Renault 11 Taxi in View to a Kill.

[Luca Brasi]

God, that E38 is tempting.

[Zippee]

A friend of mine was there last night with her Dad who was the seller of the original revolving number plate from the DB5, he fished it from a skip years ago when he worked for Aston in N/Pagnell. Sold for 11k IIRC.

[TheRoadWarrior]

Can someone explain why the Z8 is appreciating? I realise they were made in limited numbers, but it was widely regarded as not being very good to drive and frankly looks like the ugly big brother of the Z3.

[GTRene]

it seems that in Holland we have the same car in the Louwman collection...look @ picture 24 and 25

http://members.home.nl/eddyhogendijk/louwmancollec...


http://www.louwmanmuseum.nl/asp/appmain.asp?appact...

Edited by GTRene on Thursday 28th October 12:46

[vetteheadracer]

Full list of JB's cars.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_James_Bond_ve...

[thiscocks]

The Biturbo on Licence to Kill was a 4 door 430 model not the 3 door as shown. I know this as I saw it the other day on TV and thought the car was very cool.

[astrsxi77]

There's nothing "mundane" about the Audi 200 Quattro in which Bond and Saunders stealthily shuttle Koskov around Prague [Living Daylights]

It oozes discreet menace, low on its BBS wheels.

[Snoggledog]

Not forgetting the Alfa Romeo GTV6 from Octopussy.

[Riggers]

Caruso said:

Can't believe they missed the Renault 11 Taxi in View to a Kill.

Not missed - just couldn't find one in the classifieds (though admittedly I didn't trawl eBay). I think most of them might be dead...

I do have a Majorette die cast toy one, though - complete with working sunroof and tow hitch...

[C.A.R.]

TheRoadWarrior said:

Can someone explain why the Z8 is appreciating? I realise they were made in limited numbers, but it was widely regarded as not being very good to drive and frankly looks like the ugly big brother of the Z3.

When was the last time you saw one on the road?....

Personally I think the Z8 looks pretty gorgeous, certainly isn't looking its age either.

What about the V8 Vantage from The Living Daylights? Loved that car.

[r11co]

GTRene said:

it seems that in Holland we have the same car in the Louwman collection

The Dutch museum car is a (albeit official) recreation used to promote the films. It is one of a pair made after the original cars had the props removed and were sold off. It never appeared 'on screen'.

[rubystone]

KIG1971 said:

Triumph Stag - Diamonds are forever

I bid on that car at Bonhams 2001 (from memory). Thought I had it bought at £6k and in fact it only fetched about £12k. At the time that was top money for a Slag though.

[Wammer]

KIG1971 said:

Fatima Blushes Gordini Turbo Renualt 5 - Never say Never again.

Please forgive my sadness!

Call your self a James Bond Fan Never say Never again is not an official James Bond film it was writen because Sean Connery had given up James Bond and regretted it hence 'never say never again' and why it was st.

[Mafioso]

Regarding the 750 from Tomorrow Never Dies, does anyone remember the part where he's driving on the phone to Carver, hangs up then puts his foot down and the faint sounds of wheelspin as it kicks down? Would that actually happen?

[soad]

Nice read, Esprit and Z8 i do like the most.
That yellow 2CV would be scary to drive today- like a tin can compare to modern cars.