James Bond 007 Goldfinger Aston Martin DB5 – No Time To Die Weekend – Retromobile 2017
This weekend, the James Bond 007 film No Time To Die should have been in the cinema, so I thought I’d share the time I got close to the Goldfinger Aston Martin DB5 at Retromobile 2017 (click here for that show report).
The Classic Car Trust had somehow secured an amazing set of Aston Martins, including this as their centrepiece. I was one of the lucky few to be invited onto the stand and given the press briefing and promotinal material about the car. Apparently a kind owner allowed them to bring the car with them, of course who and where from they wouldn’t say. But when you’re in the business of dealing with collectors and old cars opportunities will arise.
Based in Lichtenstein the Classic Car trust provide a wealth of services to those with the means to purchase and own some of the most valuable of collectors cars. Historic collectors cars at that, the sort of car that’s coachbuilt or made in extremely limited numbers. They also had a stunning DB4 GT nearby too, itself a highly desirable car.
How do you value a piece such as the Goldfinger DB5. It certainly isn’t like valuing a regular DB5, the provenance and the non standard nature of the car making it unique. EON Productions comissioned two to be used in the film, but this was the special one. Built in 1964 it’s an earlier car and predates the sales boom of the model. It really did put Aston as the maker of the worlds most desirable cars.
The following film Thunderball used two more Aston DB5s built to Goldfinger specification, but with more reliable gadgetary done in house by Aston themselves. Of course these are 1965 cars, and are visually identical to the first. Aston sold the first two cars quietly, if only they knew to hold on to them.
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See the No Time To Die Trailer Below
There have been more Aston martin DB5s appearing in Bond films, Goldeneye using three more. Tomorrow Never Dies with a return of a Goldeneye car. Casino Royale, with a left hand drive model. Skyfall featured another and thankfully, CGI was cleverly used to destroy the car, it didn’t really happen. Sadly though a Porsche 928 bodyshell was though. amazingly the size and proportions were a good match to map the computer special effects to. The rebuilt car in Spectre, maybe it was Q branch piecing together the remains from Skyfall. It must have been a serious job, it’s taken a few years…
Then we have the new film, No time To Die. James Bond returns as 007 just as in Goldfinger driving an Aston Martin DB5. But apart from the stunning highly valuable real thing, there are some specials. No real Astons were destroyed in the filming, but beautifully made space frame stunt cars with carbon fibre bodies and more modern suspesion and straight six engines. The Aston works outdid themselves again and I am looking forward to seeing the film when it is relased. I must remember when watching it not to wince as the Aston is taking a beating. It’s a marvel of modern technology, modern materials and 3D printing.
Simon
