In Goldfinger, James Bond drove as Aston Martin DB5. Want to buy one? Well, there were only about 1,000 made and they’re rather expensive. The Automotive Traveler Web site suggests a more affordable alternative. An excerpt:

On a list of cars that most auto enthusiasts would want to own some day, Aston Martins usually rank high on the wish list. Obviously the connection to the James Bond film series is one of the primary reasons why. What can possibly be more iconic than driving a Silver Birch DB5 being driven through the mountain passes of Switzerland? Starting with “Goldfinger” in 1964 and being connected to the series many times right up until the present day, 007 and Aston Martin are forever linked together. But with the prices of DB5 now in the stratosphere–especially those finished in Silver Birch–is there an alternative for those who want a dash of Bond, at a more affordable price. Here’s one such choice; a 73,000-mile 1967 Aston Martin DB6 Mark 1 offered for sale in Southern California.

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Aside from their great looks, style and music, the Beatles are also known for their collection of sweet cars. AskMen.com listed some of Beatles’ head-turning street machines.

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There’s no need for us to use this space to tell you about the Beatles. These four men from Liverpool have been a worldwide cultural institution for over 40 years. To this day, nothing has been able match the Beatles’ body of work, cultural impact or their lasting legacy. Trying to encapsulate what made them so great in 100 words or less is impossible; lucky for us you already know what makes Paul, Ringo, George and John so special.

While the Beatles may be known and loved for a great many things, only a select few — car guys, mainly — know that the Beatles have always liked to ride in style. These men have owned some great machines, and we sure as hell aren’t talking about the Yellow Submarine. Click on ahead to see our top 10 favorite Beatles’ rides.

No.10 – Paul McCartney Edition Lexus RX400h

The cute Beatle is as known today for his activist work as he is for is musical output. However, perhaps it is his music that makes his activist work seem that much more important. Anyway, a few years back, Macca teamed up with Lexus to create a one-off custom RX400h. Designed to commemorate Lexus giving money to McCartney to tour, this hybrid soft-roader boasted a custom wood grain paint job inspired by the ex-Beatle’s 1962 Hofner Bass. This one of a kind ride also came with a reissue of the 1962 Hofner Bass, a VOX amplifier and a collection of McCartney’s music. The vehicle was auctioned off, with the proceeds going to the Adopt-A-Minefield charity.

No.9 – George Harrsion’s Aston Martin DB5

Who knew that the “quiet” Beatle was a massive petrol-head? George Harrison was an avid car nut who was privileged enough to own some of the world’s most desirable automobiles. We could do an entire top 10 list based on George’s car collection alone. The first Harrison-mobile we got our minds set on is his classic 1964 Aston Martin DB5. Harrison took delivery of his silver DB5 in 1965, and likely spent his time with the car enjoying its niceties including the Connolly leather interior, Motorola radio and power antenna. This Aston traveled to a museum in Tokyo, then Germany, before being sold at a public auction in England for almost half a million dollars.

No.8 – Ringo Starr’s Radford Mini de Ville

Ringo Starr bought a very clean two-tone Radford Mini de Ville from Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein on June 15, 1967. Radford Minis were custom cars built by Harold Radford Coachbuilders, LTD, from 1963 to 1971. Radford transformed standard Minis into luxury vehicles, adding things like leather seating surfaces, wood trim, revised gauges, Rolls-Royce-inspired two-tone paint schemes, and other luxuries. Ringo’s particular Mini was a hatchback, and it is said that he transported his drums in this tiny machine. This car didn’t stay with Ringo for long; he sold it after just two years.

No.7 – George Harrison’s Light Car Company Rocket

The Light Car Company’s Rocket is not a well-known vehicle. It was an F1-inspired street-legal car, powered by a 1,000cc Yamaha motorcycle engine that is the spiritual successor to extreme lightweight machines like the Ariel Atom. Oh yes, we should also mention that it was designed by famed Formula 1 car designer Gordon Murray, and built by former racing driver Chris Craft. Harrison was one of the many celebrities who owned and loved this early hyper car.

No.6 - Paul McCartney’s Lexus LS600h L

Paul McCartney’s Lexus LS600hL is the eco car that caused a ruckus as it was flown from Japan to England just for Sir Paul. The car should have been shipped by conventional means, but Toyota thought it would be a good idea to fly just the one car to McCartney. Obviously, this method of transport was incredibly wasteful of fuel, kind of negating the point of buying a hybrid in the first place. It is said that Macca was “horrified” by the whole ordeal.

No.5 - Ringo Starr’s Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3 AMG

Forget Thomas the Train, the sweetest ride owned by the former Mr. Conductor is the blacked-out 1984 Mercedes-Benz 190E sedan tuned by AMG. It looks badass, but it packs only a tuned 2.3-liter four-banger under the hood. Though weak by today’s standards, this motor was able to rocket the car to a top speed of over 130 mph. This is definitely the toughest-looking car of the bunch, and it’s definitely one of our personal favorites. You can currently see this ride at the Mercedes-Benz museum in Germany.

No.4 – George Harrison’s McLaren F1

Designed by renowned Formula 1 car designer Gordan Murray, the McLaren F1 is one of the most exclusive cars in the world. It was, for a while, the world’s fastest production car, cost over $1 million new, and only 100 were built. George Harrison owned one of these limited-edition machines; chassis No. 25, to be exact. Harrison’s McLaren F1 is painted Dark Purple Pearl, though many people confuse it for the aubergine (eggplant)-colored chassis No. 16 car. Though it was rumored Eric Clapton wanted to buy this car, it remains within the Harrison family.

No.3 – The Beatles’ 1965 Austin Princess Limo

Everywhere the Beatles went at the height of Beatlmania, their ‘65 Austin Princess went with them. Used as their personal limousine, there wasn’t anything particularly extraordinary about the vehicle, just that it was and is synonymously “Beatles” through and through. After the Beatles’ ownership, a man named Rod Pitman, in Portland, Oregon  took possession of the vehicle and proceeded to “lose” it somewhere in Arizona. That was nearly 23 years ago. The search is on to help Rod find his lost Beatles’ ride — and if you want to help the search head to

No.2 – George Harrison’s Mini Cooper from Magical Mystery Tour

While car guys will likely drool over Harrison’s DB5, McLaren F1 or Rocket, most Beatles fans would want to get their hands on his old Mini Cooper. But this isn’t just any Mini, Harrison owned the psychedelic Mini made famous in the Beatles’ film Magical Mystery Tour. BMW-owned MINI built a one-off modern interpretation of Harrison’s classic magical and mysterious Mini Cooper. It was auctioned off, with the proceeds going to the Material World Charitable Foundation.

No.1 – John Lennon’s Rolls-Royce

Lennon bought his Rolls-Royce Phantom V new in 1965. Lennon modified the Rolls heavily, adding things like a fridge and a rear bench that could turn into a bed. Lennon also had the entire car painted matte black — odd in 1965, currently all the rage at shows like SEMA. The story goes that while filming “Sgt. Pepper,” Lennon grew bored of the flat-black color scheme and gave it the psychedelic paint scheme it still has today. Though thought of as an eyesore in the ‘60s, it eventually fetched almost $2.3 million at an auction in 1985. It now resides in Canada and does the North American museum circuit.

What is your favourite car of all time? Is it an aston martin? Please leave a comment below.

Aston Martin

This is one of many illustrated classic car guides I’ve created for the eBay community. I hope you enjoy it and if you would like to find out more about the classic Aston Martin car art featured in this guide please click here.

This guide includes several classic Aston Martin car models.

DB2/4

Introduced to the public at the London Motor Show of 1953, the DB 2/4 was a continuation of the DB2 theme. The 4 designation denoted four seats and to provide extra room the model was given an extended roofline and much larger rear windows. The longer rear fender development gave the DB2/4 a sense of bulk not found in the DB2. Originally fitted with a 2.6 litre engine, this was enlarged to 2,922cc (140bhp) in April 1954, which improved the top speed to an impressive 118mph and 0-60mph in around 10.5 seconds. Both closed and drophead versions of the car were offered from the beginning of production. Total production for the DB2/4 Mk1, DB2/4 Mk2, and DB Mk3 was 565, 199 and 551 vehicles respectively.

DB4

Aston Martin chose the London Motor Show of 1958 to launch the new DB4, although the DB2/4 Mk 3 was not discontinued at that time and production of the two models overlapped until July of 1959. The DB4 featured a new aluminium twin cam 3.7 litre engine designed by Tadek Marek and superb new body by Touring of Milan, making it a truly handsome sports car. The DB4’s stunning top speed of 140mph and 0-60 in 9 seconds was matched by precise handling and excellent four-wheel brakes. Numerous production changes in both body (such as enclosed headlights on late DB4s) and mechanical details resulted in five distinct series with production ending June of 1963 and totalling only 1,113 cars.

DB5

Compact and purposeful, the Aston Martin DB5 was produced between July 1963 and September 1965. Rounded front fenders immediately distinguish the model from the early DB4s but the car does share its design with the late Series IV and V DB4. The advantage of the DB5, which represents for many, the best of the post-war production Astons, is the extra performance provided by the powerful 3,995cc engine. In standard tune the six cylinder three SU unit produced 282BHP @ 5,500rpm (Vantage up-rated to 325bhp) and maximum speed had increased to 145mph. In addition to 886 standard Aston Martin DB5s, 123 convertibles were produced together with 12 shooting brakes by coachbuilders Harold Radford.

DB6

Announced at the 1965 London Motor Show and an obvious development of the DB5, the DB6 marked the increasing trend away from the sporting side of the early Aston Martins. Clearly bigger and different, the DB6’s roofline was some 2 inches higher and the rear window no longer faded away to a point as on the DB5. At a glance the most distinguishing feature was the upswept tail of the DB6. The basic 3,995cc dohc engine was retained but power steering was offered, along with a limited slip differential and also air conditioning. Automatic transmission was a no-extra-cost option and creature comforts were greatly improved over the DB5. A total 1,782 (including Volante) cars were built between October 1965 and November 1970.

DBS

Styled by William Towns, the DBS was introduced in September 1967 as a ‘next generation’ replacement for DB6. Despite a new body, the mechanicals were basically the same as the DB6 MkII since Tadek Marek’s new V8 engine, for which the DBS was prepared, was not ready in time. Some 200lbs heavier than a DB 6 Mk II, performance of the DBS inevitably suffered. Nevertheless the 140mph top speed and 0-60 in under 8 seconds could hardly be considered inadequate. Among the plus points for the DB S were a larger interior and a generally higher level of refinement. DBS production amounted to 790 cars built between October 1967 and May 1972 before being replaced by the DBS V8.

AM V8

The new Aston Martin was announced on April 24th 1972 with a revised front. The outline of the grill was now more in the David Brown tradition and the two headlamps also chose to pick up on the earlier styling themes. Maintaining the usual high standards that had come to be expected of the Aston Martin, it was the AM V8’s performance that was particularly impressive. Zero-to-sixty times hovered around 6 seconds with high maximum speeds now in the 150mph-160mph range. Continual refinement lead to five distinct series being produced and in 1978, the Volante convertible was added to the Aston Martin AM V8 range. The Volante, built on the AM V8 platform, was a very handsome and desirable option.

Thank you for reading my guide and I hope you found it interesting!

Top 10 Most Memorable Movie Cars

When we came up with our list of Top 10 Movie Cars last summer, we had no idea our readers would be so passionate about their favorite films and the automotive characters in them. With “Transformers” coming soon, we revisited our list, listening to last year’s reader feedback and arguing — once again — over which cars deserved to make the top 10. Some cars were able to hold on to their spots, while others were shuffled around to make room for more worthy contenders. With “Speed Racer” coming next year, expect another round of arguing.

No. 10: 2003 Mini Cooper S, “The Italian Job”

Drivetrain: 163-hp, supercharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine with six-speed manual transmission; front-wheel drive
Notable Features: 200 pounds lighter than stock Cooper S; painted red, white or blue

Larger cars would have rubbed fenders with light poles and tunnel walls, but thanks to a nimble fleet of Mini Coopers, a band of conspirators manages to escape captors down congested streets, parks and subway tunnels. (Parks? Mass transit? In Los Angeles?) Computer-rigged signals aid the getaway, stopping cross traffic at red lights. Sounds like California dreaming for drivers.

No. 9: 1959 Cadillac Ambulance, “Ghostbusters”

Drivetrain: 325-hp, 6.4-liter V-8; rear-wheel drive
Notable Features: Tailfins, flashing lights, sirens, attached ladder

Though it plays a relatively small part in its film, the Ectomobile is the finest medical movie car to date. What it lacks in brute force it makes up in style, with red tailfins, strobe lights and more roof gear than a fire truck. Should there ever be a remake, our pick for the new Ectomobile would be the Dodge Magnum. Right, Egon?

No. 8: 1974 Dodge Monaco, “The Blues Brothers”

Drivetrain: 275-hp, 7.1-liter V-8 with three-speed automatic transmission; rear-wheel drive
Notable Features: Cop motor, cop tires, cop suspension, cop shocks

You usually don’t come out ahead when swapping a Caddy for a Dodge — unless the Dodge has a 440-cubic-inch V-8. The Bluesmobile would be our pick if we had to outrun the better half of Illinois police, not to mention a neo-Nazi outfit and a country-and-western band. The car totally falls apart in the end, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a vehicle that could do better on “a mission from God.”

No. 7: 1932 Ford coupe, “American Graffiti”

Drivetrain: 60-hp, 3.6-liter V-8 with three-speed manual transmission
Notable Features: Bright yellow paint job bound to be noticed by bored teens in Modesto, Calif.

Nicknamed the “Deuce,” this five-window ‘32 Ford coupe is the quintessential American hot rod. As built, it came with the engine mentioned above, but in the movie, it’s clear the coupe has been souped up. It was the car’s awesome growl and the cool drag race at the end of the movie that lodged this hot rod into the hearts of American teens for a decade.

No. 6: 1976 AMC Pacer, “Wayne’s World”

Drivetrain: 100-hp inline-six with three-speed automatic transmission; rear-wheel drive
Notable Features: Flame decal, licorice dispenser, “Bohemian Rhapsody” on continuous playback

Although this movie may not have driven thousands of people to track down a baby blue Mirth Mobile of their own, it did inspire a number of in-car, head-banging singalongs by fans of the film.

No. 5: 1968 Ford Mustang GT 390, “Bullitt”

Drivetrain: 325-hp, 6.4-liter V-8 with four-speed manual transmission; rear-wheel drive
Notable Features: Fastback roof, higher engine note than the Charger

Never mind the continuity mishaps; just tell yourself there were a lot of green Volkswagen Beetles in San Francisco that day. The seven-minute chase scene between Frank Bullitt’s Mustang GT 390 and a hit man’s 1968 Dodge Charger is among the best of its kind. Voters gave Bullitt’s car the edge because, in the end, you have to root for the good guy.

No. 4: 1964 Aston Martin DB5, “Goldfinger”

Drivetrain: 282-hp, 4.0-liter six-cylinder with four-speed manual transmission; rear-wheel drive
Notable Features: Bulletproof glass, machine guns, incessantly beeping radar screen

Save for the anemic BMW Z3 1.9 in “GoldenEye,” Bond cars are top-notch — the list includes Aston Martins, Bentleys and Lotuses — but voters agreed the champ is the Aston Martin DB5 in “Goldfinger.” Not only is it gorgeous, it outruns and out-gadgets all of its competitors. Plus it gets plenty of screen time with the best Bond, Sean Connery. Any dissenters, of course, are welcome to ride in the “power” passenger seat.

No. 3: 1961 Ferrari 250 GT, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”

Drivetrain: 280-hp, 3.0-liter V-12 with four-speed manual transmission; rear-wheel drive
Notable Features: Cherry-red exterior, wire grille, Cameron-sized tonneau compartment

This movie is probably responsible for thousands of teens cutting class to joyride in their father’s car. Of course, none hold a candle to Mr. Frye’s convertible Ferrari. It won votes for all the obvious reasons: It’s red, Italian and bloody fast. If our fathers owned something like this, we’d ditch Econ 101 in a heartbeat to take a spin — especially if Dad didn’t lock the garage. (And yes, we know this was a kit car.)

No. 2: 1977 Pontiac Trans Am, “Smokey and the Bandit”

Drivetrain: 200-hp, 6.6-liter V-8 with three-speed automatic
Notable Features: T-top, CB radio, runaway bride in the passenger seat

The mission seemed simple enough: Get a truckload of bootleg beer from Texarkana, Texas, to Atlanta while Bo “Bandit” Darville runs interference in his Trans Am. The combination of the comical car chases and Burt Reynolds’ mustache sold more than a few black and gold versions of Bandit’s car.

No. 1: 1981 DeLorean DMC-12, “Back to the Future”

Drivetrain: 1.21-gigawatt nuclear/electric hybrid with five-speed manual transmission; rear-wheel drive
Notable Features: Gull-wing doors, 16-port twin exhaust boxes, flux capacitor

This was an overwhelming choice for voters, and why not? Doc Brown’s smoke-spewing DeLorean achieves time travel at 88 mph thanks to a plutonium-powered nuclear reactor and onboard flux capacitor. By the end of the first movie, it runs solely on trash — and it can fly. That’s still futuristic two decades after the movie debuted. Sure, the ignition seems to have some reliability issues, but this car easily won our hearts.

Honorable Mentions:

• 1958 Plymouth Fury, “Christine”
• 1973 Ford Falcon, “The Road Warrior”
• 1975 Lotus Esprit, “The Spy Who Loved Me”

James Bond 007 cars’ collection are very beautiful.

I have all of the James Bond’s cars.

There are 2 Aston Martins, 1 Lotus Esprit, 1 Sunbeam Alpine 5 and 1 BMW Z3 Roadster.

James Bond used Aston Martin DBS in QUANTUM OF SOLACE.

James Bond used Aston Martin DB5 in GOLDFINGER.

James Bond used Lotus Esprit in THE SPY WHO LOVED ME.

James Bond used Sunbeam Alpine 5 in DR. NO.

James Bond used BMW Z3 Roadster in  GOLDENEYE.

I love to play with the James Bond’s cars.

The best is the Lotus Esprit because it can float on water.

But I have never watched the James Bond 007 movies.

My father watched some of them.

I think in Terengganu James Bond is Jeng Bong.

I went to Atuk Man’s Shell Station in Kuala Terengganu to buy the cars.

Atuk Man is my mother’s father’s cousin.

Atuk Man is Dato’ Amar’s son.

Dato’ Amar was Terengganu’s Chief Minister long, long, long time ago.

The third James Bond film, which certainly does hold up as well as it’s predecessors did. However, “Goldfinger” makes for a good, fun, spy adventure.

While “Dr. No” and “From Russia With Love” left us with some great villains, I don’t believe that “Goldfinger” topped them. However, Oddjob was a memorable henchman- not as superior as Grant was, but still a very intimidating man. “Goldfinger” seemed like a more laid-back and jokey villain. Perhaps this was because he had nothing to do with SPECTRE.

The film strayed from the first two Bond films in the aspect of equipment too. This is when Bond really gets a hold of some rather unrealistic gadgets- a car with an ejector seat, oil slicks, machine guns, and a GPS system. Though, the GPS seemed to prove how far Bond was ahead of his time, since we’ve just seen these appearing in cars rather recently. Of course though, these gadgets are pretty fun. I love the DB5- gorgeous vehicle, and after it’s used, we don’t really see much use of any other gadgets. Therefore, I think the presence of gadgets in the film weren’t too overbearing.

Goldfinger’s plot is rather grand and unrealistic. This is definitely the film in which the producers moved far from simple, intelligent, and realistic plots, to more unrealistic and massive plots. Though, I’ve always loved the idea of Goldfinger’s plot, no matter how impossible it seemed. The idea of tainting the gold supply at Knox, forcing people to buy from him, was quite smart.

The locations were interesting. Nothing too vibrant like Crab Key in “Dr. No”, but they were interesting. We saw some beautiful country land as Bond trailed Goldfinger, and we got a taste of some rural American locations- the “ranch” in Kentucky.

Barry’s score was excellent- nothing out of the ordinary. He captured the feeling of the film very well, and the use of the Bond theme mixed with the “Goldfinger” theme was great music to hear through out the score. My favorite piece of music is during the PTS, which includes the gunbarrel, and the espionage music for the scene following it.

Though Connery seemed like a natural Bond in the previous films, I could still sense it here- though he did seemed a bit laid back, in my opinion. He just didn’t seem to have as much of that energy and excitement as he did in the past films, for some reason.

Leiter was a disappointment. Alright- he seemed like a really nice guy in the film, but that actor was a bad choice. He seemed more like Bond’s American uncle than Leiter. It’s a real shame Lord wasn’t used again.

Pussy Galore was a decent Bond girl. Not anything really special, in my opinion, but decent. She had a certain attractiveness about her. She wasn’t drop-dead gorgeous like Andress, but there was something. And the chest of hers! Woooah!

The best scenes for me include the PTS and the finale. The PTS seemed so Bondian, with some classic spying, fighting, cigarette smoking, and romance. Not much more you can ask for in a Bond PTS. Then, the finale in the vault was great- the fight with Oddjob was pretty fun to watch.

My biggest problems with this film are Leiter and the gangsters. Actually, if they were modified in a way, I’d find this film a lot more enjoyable. Leiter should have been played by Jack Lord, as I mentioned- plain and simple. It would have kept the continuity, also. Then, the gangsters were just played by terrible actors. The only one who did an okay job was Solo. What a terribly written scene, in Goldfinger’s billiard room. “What’s with that trick pool table!?”… “I want my money Goldfinger!”… “So, PAY!”… Are you joking me?

Terrible. Actually, embarrassing to a certain extent. If I were showing a person their first Bond film, and chose “Goldfinger”- I’d probably fast forward through the gangster scene.

In summary, this film was rather disappointing when compared to “Dr. No” and “From Russia With Love”. However, it’s not terrible. I just found it a little too unrealistic, and there were a few bits (like the gangsters and Leiter) that I just plain-old didn’t care for. That’s not to say that this isn’t classic Connery Bond, though- because it surely is. I think the good over-powers the bad in this film.

8.0 / 10

Acabo de veure per TV3 GOLDFINGER. És la tercera de la sèrie JAMES BOND protagonitzada per SEAN CONNERY.

M’agrada James Bond i en especial quan el protagonista és en Sean Connery. Són pel·lícules fantasioses amb un cert grau de glamour, ironia, masclisme (censurable) , aventures, humor i un pèl de sexe atrevit tenint en compte els anys inicials de la sèrie.

El creador del personatge va ser en IAN FLEMMING que durant la Segona Guerra Mundial va arribar a ser Comandant del Departament de la Intel·ligència Naval de la ROYAL NAVY. Durant aquest temps es va empapar en l’ambient dels serveis secrets ja que estava al corrent de moltes de les operacions més increïbles que es van portar a terme en aquest lamentable període del segle XX.

L’agent Ian Fleming va intervenir en territori espanyol amb la operació Goldeneye que era el nom en clau d’una de les missions que va tenir i que més li va agradar, impedir l’entrada de Espanya en l’Eix i una possible invasió de Gibraltar per part de l’exercit espanyol.

Curiosament la pel·lícula GOLDENEYE comença a Gibraltar però aquesta vegada en l’actualitat del any 1995.

La sèrie consta fins a l’actualitat de 22 lliuraments que han estat interpretats per George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan i Daniel Craig.

Per suposat en Sean Connery per tothom (suposo) és l’autèntic James Bond. No em desagraden en Pierce Brosnan pel glamour que li dona al personatge, ni Daniel Craig per l’acció. Roger Moore va ser un accident i Timothy Dalton era massa bona persona per interpretar aquest personatge. No dubto de la qualitat dels actors sinó més be del carisme que donaven al protagonista.

I de les dones què? Doncs totes molt maques i espectaculars. Algunes bones actrius, altres solament pel físic que tenien. No m’atreveixo a opinar més profundament per no semblar un masclista, però les dones que apareixen són realment bellíssimes, però no totes.

I dels errors o curiositats de les pel·lícules què? Doncs si cliqueu AQUÍ us portaré a una pàgina a on expliquen coses interessants i de vegades sorprenents.

Excepte les estrenes recents que és millor anar-les a veure al cinema, les més antigues m’agraden veure-les quan les passen per televisió durant els caps de setmana.

Avui he vist un munt d’errors però això no evitarà que continuï gaudint d’un personatge de ficció que va crear un autèntic agent secret.

Que passeu un bon dia.