8 Special edition Bond cars you can buy to live out your 007 fantasy
Want to emulate the world's most well-known secret agent? Consider getting one of these Astons, Fords, or Citroens
Article content
Junior James Bonds the world over are no doubt thrilled with the recent announcement that a pint-size version of the original Aston Martin DB5 is now on sale to help promote the upcoming No Time To Die instalment of the 007 super-spy franchise . Recreated in two-thirds scale, the car is a replica, gadgets and all, of the original Goldfinger machine, and is fully driveable (provided you can fit into the cockpit).
Advertisement
Article content
With only 125 of these baby Bond cars being built, full-size adults might wonder where else they can get their own automotive 007 fix. We’ve put together this round-up of the options for agents who are estranged from Q division but still need a car that at the very least looks like it just rolled off the set of the world’s most famous secret agent series.
These movie tie-ins range from wonderful to weird, but they all have one thing in common: someone at the studio signed off on their production as official entries into the James Bond consumer universe.
Goldfinger: 2020 Aston Martin DB5 Goldfinger Continuation
The Aston Martin DB5 that would become a global espionage icon was first introduced in the James Bond franchise in 1964. The third entry in the 007 series, Goldfinger, put the car front and center, giving audiences an excellent look at its many gadgets and gizmos and sparking the public fascination with the Bond universe’s Q division.
Advertisement
Article content
Flash-forward to 2020 and Aston Martin has decided to make . No stranger to building ‘new’ versions of its classics through its various other continuation efforts, Aston Martin used digital scans of original DB5s and then produced 25 perfect replicas, right down to the bias-ply tires, adding in a few modern design improvements to the engine to ensure a longer and happier life on the road.
Of course, those weren’t the only modifications made to the Goldfinger cars—they also contain the full suite of defensive and offensive weapons seen on the movie screen. While the machine guns don’t actually fire, the ejector seat is stationary, and the oil slick has been replaced by a more ecologically-friendly water slick, the look and feel of the Aston Martin is a dead-ringer that should please even the most obsessive 007 fans (although the tire-slashing hub extensions are for static-display only). Just remember to bring $3.3 million with you when you go to pick up yours.
Advertisement
Article content
Live And Let Die: 007 San Monique Edition Moke
Do you remember the time James Bond drove a Mini Moke through the streets of ‘San Monique?’ Probably not, as the tiny, doorless runabout wasn’t exactly a star of the 1973 film Live And Let Die.
Still, the Moke has genuine Bond heritage, having also appeared in You Only Live Twice, The Spy Who Loved Me, and Moonraker, and that seems to have been enough to convince Moke America to make a special ‘007 San Monique Edition’ Moke that matches the styling of its second on-screen turn in the secret agent franchise.
With its blue-and-white tarp roof and ‘San Monique 1973’ spare tire cover on the back (not to mention its 007 badging just above the rear bumper), the new Moke certainly looks the part of the movie model it is paying tribute to. There’s one big difference between new and old, and that’s the fully-electric drivetrain that motivates the one that’s currently for sale. It takes about three months to get your Moke built once it’s been ordered, but with a price tag of US$27,000, it’s a lot more reasonable than a Goldfinger Continuation car.
Advertisement
Article content
For Your Eyes Only: 1981 Citroen 2CV 007 Edition
Sometimes, car companies took things a little too far in producing a tribute to one of their vehicles appearing in a James Bond film.
The Citroen 2CV seen in For Your Eyes Only went through one of the least-likely car chases captured on film, as the vehicle was never known for its performance prowess. In recognition of this fact, the official ‘007 Edition’ of the car made no effort to actually boost the power or handling of the classic commuter, but instead simply painted the model the same bright yellow used in the movie, plastered enormous “007” stickers across the doors, added some fake bullet holes, and called it a day.
GoldenEye: 1995 BMW Z3 007 Edition
As modest as the Moke and the 2CV are in the engine bay, it might surprise you to learn that when it comes to speed, they’re not the most disappointing James Bond tribute cars to have been sold.
Advertisement
Article content
In 1995, Neiman Marcus offered a ‘007 Edition’ of the BMW Z3 to mark the occasion of the German roadster taking over as Bond’s ride of choice in GoldenEye. Unfortunately, at the time the Z3 was exclusively available with a 138-horsepower 1.9-liter four-cylinder engine, which was dramatically outmatched by the car’s weight. You had to really, really be smitten by the BMW’s Atlanta Blue Metallic paint and small 007 plaque on the console to pay big money for the privilege of its cinematic affiliation.
Die Another Day: 2003 Ford Thunderbird Limited Edition 007
Not every James Bond tribute car was actually driven by 007 himself. In the early 2000s, Die Another Day spawned an unlikely tie-in with Ford, which had provided the production with an 11th-gen Thunderbird to be driven by Halle Berry in her role as ‘Jinx.’
Advertisement
Article content
Ford decided to capitalize on the film by building the 2003 Ford Thunderbird Limited Edition 007, which wore a Coral paint job and featured a white roof (even though the movie car’s roof was Coral, too). Efforts were made to link the car’s color to the shade seen on Berry ‘s bikini in the movie, but the only way you’d ID this as a Bond car is through the 007 badge on the dashboard. Ford built 700 of the cars, because that’s 007 backwards. Really.
No Time To Die: Aston Martin Vantage 007 Edition, Aston Martin DBS Superleggera 007 Edition, Land Rover Defender 110 V8 Bond Edition
The latest Bond film, No Time To Die, gets more than just a mini-DB5 to tempt would-be car collectors. Aston Martin has also kicked in two additional special models (the DBS Superleggera 007 Edition and the Vantage 007 Edition, pictured up top), with Land Rover contributing the Defender 110 V8 Bond Edition.
Advertisement
Article content
Aston Martin has tied the cars to its ‘Q by Aston Martin’ division, but that doesn’t mean you get guns and missiles: instead, for the Vantage, it’s mesh grilles, unique paint jobs, and the FM frequency ‘96.60’ etched into the sun visors as a reference to The Living Daylights (in which Bond drives an Aston Martin V8 while listening to the Russian police talk over that very station on the radio). There’s a plaque in the car that references the spy vehicle’s various gadgets, and crosshairs on the shift knob or paddles. If you’d like, you can also order a set of skis and a rack for the Vantage. The DBS Superleggera is slightly less specific in its Bond linkage, but the one-of-25 model does come with a 007 fender badge, along with similar references throughout the interior.
Land Rover’s Bond machine is an all-black affair that delivers a golden 007 badge at the rear, on the door sills, and coded into the infotainment system. There are no tuning upgrades made to its 518-horsepower supercharged V8.