James Bond’s cars are as iconic as the actors who have played him: Sean Connery piloting the Aston Martin DB5 — often called “the most famous car in the world.” Roger Moore’s Lotus Esprit-submarine hybrid. And Daniel Craig in the Aston Martin DB10, a car created for the newest Bond film, “Spectre,” opening Nov. 6. Below are some of the greatest, most important and, in more than a few cases, silliest cars in the canon.
Dr. No 1962
1961 Sunbeam Alpine Series II
Bond: Sean Connery
It wasn’t always Aston Martins and high-horsepower supercars for 007. In this, the first film in the series, the producers failed to obtain a free car from Sunbeam, so they had to rent the car from a local owner in Jamaica for about 15 shillings a day (about $2 in 1962 dollars).
Best scene: Driving to Miss Taro’s house in the mountains, Bond evades a hearse driven by the Three Blind Mice, assassins working for Dr. Julius No. The hearse plunges off a cliff and Bond quips: “I think they were on their way to a funeral.”
Average value now: $10,420
From Russia With Love 1963
1935 Bentley Drophead
Bond: Sean Connery
In Ian Fleming’s novels, Bond drove a supercharged 4.5-liter “Blower Bentley.” Here, though, he has a 3.5-liter 1935 Drophead model. This is the first Q Branch-issued Bond car in the films. Its lone gadget: a car phone.
Best scene: The car is seen only briefly with Bond and his recurring love interest, Sylvia Trench, on a picnic early in the film, before he is paged by Miss Moneypenny.
Average value now: $120,720
Goldfinger 1964
1963 Aston Martin DB5
Bond: Sean Connery
It’s hard to believe today, but the E-Type Jag could have been the iconic Bond car. Jaguar, however, passed. Aston Martin owner David Brown, who was initially hesitant, relented and provided two cars. One was fitted with Q’s gadgets. The automaker is now so closely associated with 007 that it has a division called “Q by Aston Martin.”
Best scene: Bond is chased through Auric Goldfinger’s Swiss factory. The sequence was shot at Pinewood Studios in England on a road now called Goldfinger Avenue.
Average value now: $826,250
Thunderball 1965
1963 Aston Martin DB5
Bond: Sean Connery
The DB5 was back and it had all the gadgets from “Goldfinger”: revolving license plates, machine guns, a smoke-screen unit, an oil-slick device, caltrops dispensed from behind the taillight, a hydraulic steel plate behind the rear window, bulletproof windows, radar, extendable rams in the front and rear bumpers, tire cutters in the wheels, a passenger ejection seat and a radiophone. Phew! Oh, and Q added two rear water cannons this time.
Best scene: Spectre henchman Count Lippe pursues Bond until Fiona Volpe — following on a motorcycle — fires two rockets into the count’s Ford Fairlane.
Average value now: $826,250
You Only Live Twice 1967
1967 Toyota 2000GT
Bond: Sean Connery
Bond is in Japan, so the film showcased the 2000GT, often cited as Japan’s first supercar. One problem: The car only came in a hardtop model. And, at 6-foot-2, Connery didn’t fit in the car. Toyota created two convertible versions for the film. The car’s lone gadget was an in-dash video communications unit.
Best scene: Aki, a Japanese secret agent, helps Bond escape from Osato Chemicals. She drives and he fires at the gunmen in pursuit. Then a helicopter arrives with a giant magnet, picking up the gunmen’s car and dropping it in the sea. “Just a drop in the ocean,” quips Bond.
Average value now: $862,300
On Her Majesty's Secret Service 1969
1968 Aston Martin DBS
Bond: George Lazenby
A new Bond gets a new Aston Martin. It was a one-time appearance for both the car and actor George Lazenby. This one was outfitted simply, with only a weapon compartment in the glove box.
Best scene: During the opening credits, Bond is passed by, and then follows, a mysterious woman in a Mercury Cougar convertible. He eventually finds her at a beach, where she appears to be attempting to drown herself. After Bond pulls her from the ocean, the pair are attacked by two armed men. Bond fights them off, but during the action the woman gets in Bond’s DBS and drives it back to her car. “This never happened to the other fellow,” says the new Bond.
Average value now: $75,190
Diamonds Are Forever 1971
1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1
Bond: Sean Connery
Ford had one stipulation for providing many of the film’s vehicles: Connery had to drive the Mustang Mach 1.
Best scene: During a chase through Las Vegas, Bond’s car enters an alley tilted on its right wheels. On exit, though, it’s tilted on its left wheels. In an interview with Richard Hammond of “Top Gear,” director Guy Hamilton said he filmed the car exiting the alley first, but then had to fly back to London. Producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli filmed the car going into the alley. The error wasn’t caught until it was too late to do anything about it.
Average value now: $41,490
Live and Let Die 1973
1947 AEC Regent III
Bond: Roger Moore
Before it became a film star, this bus spent 25 years in London as, well, a bus. It was bought for the movie for 500 pounds, or about $765 at current exchange rates, and it was prepared for its star turn by removing most of the windows and outfitting the top deck with rollers so that it would slide off cleanly.
Best scene: Bond steals a bus and drives away with Solitaire as Dr. Kananga’s men pursue them. Bond ditches the last of them by driving under a low bridge, shearing off the top of the bus, which lands on the pursuers’ car.
Average value now: $54,000
The Man With the Golden Gun 1974
1974 AMC Hornet X
Bond: Roger Moore
The car’s steering gear was mounted in the center to maintain its center of gravity, and unnecessary equipment was jettisoned to save weight for its big stunt.
Best scene: Bond, while chasing Francisco Scaramanga, does a 360-degree barrel roll over a river. The jump was actually performed by British stuntman Loren “Bumps” Willard, and it was the first computer-modeled stunt. There were ambulances, cranes and divers on hand in case anything went wrong. It was performed in one take.
Average value now: $8,280
The Spy Who Loved Me 1977
1976 Lotus Esprit S1
Bond: Roger Moore
This is probably the second-most-famous Bond car, after the DB5. Six versions of the car were made to encompass its transformation. Nicknamed “Wet Nellie,” it had other gadgets: a periscope, torpedoes, a surface-to-air missile, depth charges and a smoke-screen generator. Tesla chief executive Elon Musk bought the car that was driven in the film for nearly $1 million in 2013 and announced that he planned to make it actually transform.
Best scene: How could the filmmakers top their flying-car scene? By going underwater. Bond is pursued by a motorcycle, a car and a helicopter before driving his car into the ocean — and transforming it into a submarine.
Average value now: $18,660
Moonraker 1979
Chevrolet C10 ambulance
Bond: Roger Moore
A Brazilian Chevy C10 pickup truck converted to an ambulance. The C10 in Brazil got different sheet-metal for the exterior, but otherwise was the same truck sold in the United States.
Best scene: How could the filmmakers top a flying car and a submarine car? It turns out they couldn’t (though they did come up with a pretty sweet boat chase). Bond wasn’t even driving in this one’s best car scene, just getting into a fistfight in the back of the ambulance.
Average value now: $10,000
For Your Eyes Only 1981
1981 Citroën 2CV
Bond: Roger Moore
This is Roger Moore’s favorite Bond car. Seriously. He said so in an interview with “Top Gear.” Its chassis was lengthened to make room for a more powerful engine to do stunts.
Best scene: Bond’s Lotus self-destructs when a bad guy tries to break in, so Bond and Melina have to make their getaway in her Citroën.
Average value now: $16,500
Octopussy 1983
1981 Alfa Romeo GTV6
Bond: Roger Moore
Want a cool Bond car for less than $10,000? This is the one to get. “With vintage looks and a competent, sporty powerplant, the GTV6 is a daily-drivable classic,” Motor Trend wrote in 2012.
Best scene: Bond steals the car and busts into a U.S. military base at Feldstadt after a car chase with local police. He ditches the car and flees into a circus tent, where he dresses up as a clown (really) and defuses a bomb in the human cannonball’s cannon.
Average value now: $7,230
A View to a Kill 1985
1983 Renault 11 TXE
Bond: Roger Moore
We’ve seen Bond drive some truly amazing vehicles. This was not one of them (even when it was whole).
Best scene: So this isn’t a great car, but the scene is crazy. Bond careens through Paris in the Renault, a stolen taxicab. First the roof is taken off by a gate and then the back end is removed by another car, leaving Bond driving around on just the two front wheels. As we said, crazy.
Average value now: $2,100
The Living Daylights 1987
1985 Aston Martin V8 Vantage
Bond: Timothy Dalton
Aston Martin is back after an 18-year absence. The gadgets are back, too: missiles, laser-beam cutters in the hubcaps, tire spikes, rocket boosters, outrigger skis, a self-destruct button and bulletproof windows.
Best scene: After lasering a police car in half in the middle of a snowy, icy Czech road, Bond’s lady, Kara Milovy, asks, “What happened?” Bond answers, “Salt corrosion.”
Average value now: $126,360
Licence to Kill 1989
1987 Kenworth W900
Bond: Timothy Dalton
Several trucks were used, including three named Pamela One, Two and Three, after the character Pamela Bouvier.
Best scene: Bond hijacks an oil tanker truck and sideswipes a bad guy in another tanker. Another villain fires a missile at Bond. To avoid it, he tilts his truck on its left wheels (do not try this, ever). The missile passes under Bond’s truck and hits the bad guy’s tanker.
Average value now: $18,380
GoldenEye 1995
1963 Aston Martin DB5
Bond: Pierce Brosnan
Let’s get one thing straight: The DB5 is a classic, but there is no way it could compete with a more modern supercar such as the Ferrari F355 GTS. On the other hand, Bond’s car did have a champagne cooler between the seats. And a fax machine!
Best scene: Bond races with Xenia Onatopp and her Ferrari. His MI6 evaluator, Caroline, says: “I know what you’re doing. You’re just trying to show off the size of your ... ” Bond says, “Engine?” Caroline says, “Ego.”
Average value now: $826,250
Tomorrow Never Dies 1997
1997 BMW 750iL
Bond: Pierce Brosnan
The car sprays tear gas and delivers electric shocks, and it contains a fingerprint-ID-protected safe hidden behind the passenger air-bag compartment. A roof-mounted rocket launcher is also attached.
Best scene: Bond uses his phone to remotely retrieve his car and jumps through the rear window while it’s in motion. During the chase, Bond drives from the back seat, bailing before it flies off the rooftop.
Average value now: $8,500
The World Is Not Enough 1999
1999 BMW Z8
Bond: Pierce Brosnan
At the time of filming, BMW had only a prototype shell and a running test car ready, so replica kit cars were used. The car had surface-to-air missiles, a targeting display and a remote-control key chain. The car could drive itself to the remote control using sensors.
Best scene: Bond uses a surface-to-air missile to blow up a giant-buzz-saw-wielding helicopter, only to have his expensive roadster sliced in half by another giant-buzz-saw-wielding helicopter that somehow sneaked up behind him.
Average value now: $108,500
Die Another Day 2002
2002 Aston Martin V12 Vanquish
Bond: Pierce Brosnan
“Aston Martin calls it ‘The Vanquish’; we call it ‘The Vanish,’” Q tells Bond, explaining the car’s cloaking device. The normally rear-wheel-drive car was equipped with four-wheel drive to increase traction on the ice.
Best scene: On the frozen lakes of Iceland, a chase ensues with a Jaguar XKR in pursuit. Bond used the invisibility device to hide for a short time.
Average value now: $76,200
Casino Royale 2006
2006 Aston Martin DBS V12
Bond: Daniel Craig
With a new Bond, the filmmakers went back to basics with the car. Its only gadget: a sliding tray in the glove compartment that stores a spare gun and a defibrillator.
Best scene: Bond goes to chase British agent Vesper Lynd after she’s kidnapped in a car. He races along a winding road in Montenegro, only to slam on the brakes when he sees Vesper bound and prone in the roadway. The car rolls over seven times (a world record in 2006). Three cars — each a pre-production DB9 disguised as a DBS — were destroyed during the stunt.
Average value now: $138,600
Quantum of Solace 2008
2008 Range Rover Sport HSE
Bond: Daniel Craig
This was the last of Ford’s three-film deal (Ford sold Aston Martin in 2007 but still owned Land Rover at the time).
Best scene: If we’re honest, the coolest car scene is in the beginning, with the DBS, but it doesn’t appear again for the rest of the film. A more important scene is when Bond is pulled over and ordered to open the trunk of the Range Rover and finds his ally René Mathis in it, nearly dead after taking a beating from corrupt Bolivian police officers. Bond pulls Mathis from the trunk, and when the officers notice he’s still alive, they open fire on him.
Average value now: $21,480
Skyfall 2012
1963 Aston Martin DB5
Bond: Daniel Craig
Hey, look who’s back! The DB5 returns for its fourth starring role (and sixth appearance overall) in the series.
Best scene: Bond and M are riding in the DB5 after ditching the company car. M says it’s a bit uncomfortable. “You gonna complain the whole way?” Bond asks as he flicks open the ejector switch. “Oh, go on, eject me,” M says. “See if I care.” Touching moment.
Average value now: $826,250
Spectre 2015
Aston Martin DB10
Bond: Daniel Craig
Well, we haven’t seen the movie yet. But here’s what we think we know so far: Aston Martin created the car specifically for this film. Only 10 were made. The villain’s car is Jaguar’s hybrid supercar, the C-X75. And the filmmakers wrecked a lot of cars: $36 million worth (including seven DB10s), according to the Daily Mail.
Best scene: The big chase takes place in Rome and goes through the Vatican at top speeds of 110 mph.
Average value now: Not for sale, yet. The Daily Mirror reports that one will be auctioned for charity and is expected to sell for more than a million pounds.
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