1965 Aston Martin DB5 “Bond Car” (more photos 👇)
Eon Productions, the company behind the James Bond film series, ordered two special DB5s in 1965 for promotional appearances following the James Bond blockbuster Goldfinger and in support of Thunderball, after the silver Aston Martin became a cultural phenomenon.
This example (chassis DB5/2008/R) toured the United States, including appearances on the West Coast and serving as pace car at Laguna Seca, where it was driven by Jackie Stewart.
Unlike the original Goldfinger film cars, whose effects were not intended for continuous public use, Aston Martin engineered all 13 gadgets on this DB5 for reliable repeated demonstrations.
The modifications included hydraulic bumper rams, simulated fender-mounted Browning .30-caliber machine guns, hub-mounted tire slashers, a retractable rear bullet-resistant screen, revolving license plates, and the famous simulated passenger ejector seat.
Simulated oil-slick, caltrop, and smoke-screen dispensers completed the arsenal described by Q in the film. These features were purpose-built for promotional demonstrations rather than cinematic close-up work.
The DB5 subsequently spent approximately 35 years displayed at Tennessee’s Smoky Mountain Car Museum, protected inside a floor-bolted wire cage. A later restoration by Roos Engineering returned the functioning gadgetry to operating condition.
Of the four Goldfinger-specification DB5s originally built, three are known to survive today, making this factory-modified promotional car extraordinarily rare. This particular example sold for almost $6.4 million in 2019.
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