Aston Martin

Five great cars in five great movies

Cars are movies stars. Who can forget the Aston Martin DB5 in Goldfinger? How about the 2003 remake of the Italian Job with the three Mini Coopers bouncing up and down all those Italian streets during the heist scenes? Cars scenes are seemingly part of nearly every fantasy movie or a film with a love story theme. A 1962 Volkswagen Bug was the lead character in the Love Bug. A Ford Futura concept was made into the Batmobile in Batman. There are too many great and not-so great cars in movies to count. But here are five famous cars in five famous movies, beginning with TheWeeklyDriver’s favorite. French Connection (1971) The film includes arguably the most intense car chase in

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PREVIEW: 2015 Aston Martin Vantage S Roadster

Aston Martin will globally debut its 2015 V12 Vantage S Roadster and the carmaker’s Design Prototype 100 (DP-100) will make its North American debut during the Pebble Beach Automotive Week beginning August 14. The V12 Vantage S Roadster is equipped with the latest 565 horsepower Aston Martin AM28 6.0-liter V12 engine. It features state-of-the-art Bosch engine management, which allows the car to reach 201 mph and accelerate 0-60 mph in 3.9 seconds. When it arrives in markets around the world later this year the new sports car will become the luxury British marque’s most potent, fastest and fastest-accelerating series production roadster to date. Developed in-house by the Design team at Aston Martin, DP-100 Vision Gran Turismo is a new, virtual-only

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PREVIEW: 2015 Aston Martin, more power, more luxury

Aston Martin, the luxurious British sports car manufacturer  long associated with James Bond films, has unveiled the 2015 V12 Vantage S Roadster. The new sports car, available globally at dealerships later this year, will become the luxury British marque’s most potent, fastest and fastest-accelerating series production roadster. Equipped with the latest 565 horsepower Aston Martin AM28 6.0-liter V12 engine, featuring state-of-the-art Bosch engine management, the car is capable of reaching 201 mph and sprinting from rest to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds. The car’s new car’s gearbox, the Sportshift™III ASM (auto-shift manual) transmission, is engineered to exploit the full sporting potential of the V12 engine, the latest generation Sportshift™III hydraulically actuated automated manual transmission provides motorsport-style paddle shift changes for

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Aston Martin nirvana? New festival for James Bond cars

Aston Martin and James Bond are nearly synonymous. The Monterey Peninsula wants to be part of the lore, too. And it will likely make a keen impression when the North American Aston Martin Festival debuts Aug. 30-31 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California. The festival will be open to all owners, racers, and enthusiasts. And if will offer the opportunity to see road and race cars in close action while also enjoying live entertainment and a gala dinner. The festival concept has been designed to attract a wide and international audience including current and historic Aston Martin owners, Aston Martin dealer partners, owner and enthusiast clubs, as well as sponsors and corporate partners. TRG-AMR will showcase the current

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History of the LA Auto Show: Pretty Girls to Aston Martin

New and shimmering, value priced to vastly expensive, the auto industry shines when its machines are showcased on the yearly auto show circuit, particularly at the LA Auto Show. Under bright lights and spinning platforms, cars and trucks just don’t get any more awe-inspiring — unless it’s from behind the wheel. Nearly every carmaker, Audi to Volkswagen and Bentley to Volvo, displays its lineups at auto shows. Electric vehicles, family sedans, performance sports cars and futuristic concepts all have their place in auto shows from Los Angeles to Tokyo. It’s as if the vehicles are presented to the media and public for at least a week by one giant indoor dealership representing all manufacturers. Held throughout the year in major

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LA Auto Show: James Bond, DB5 returns in Aston Martin showcase

With this year’s release of Skyfall and the 50th anniversary of the iconic James Bond movie series, Aston Martin has received increased exposure. The original 1964 DB5 returned from its heyday in Goldfinger and was featured and subsequently destroyed in the current film starring Daniel Craig. Of course, it was a specially made, one-third scale DB5 that was destroyed in one of the movie’s climatic scenes. The original Aston Martin was displayed as part of the Aston Martin showcase at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Because of its status in Goldfinger, the Aston Martin DB5 became one most famous cars in the world. According to Bond film lore, book author Ian Fleming had placed Bond in a DB Mark III

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Pontiac Aztek (again), Ferrari, Aston Martin Among 100 Worst Cars In History

It's not often a Ferrari 612 Scaglietti and Pontiac Aztec get mentioned in the same review. Or, when was the last time you've read a comparison between a Hyundai Excel and a Rolls Royce? How about when all the above are named to the list of 100 worst cars in history? Good or bad, cheap or pricey, fast or slow, underpowered or unsafe, car lists are subjective and fun. Which is why InsideLine.com, the sibling site of Edmunds.com, recently published its choices for the 100 best and worst cars is history. In reverse order on the all-time worst list, the 2006 Pontiac Solstice claimed No. 100 position, the 1955 Dodge La Femme claimed the 50th position and the 2001 Pontiac

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Dodge Charger, Aston Martin battle: Best car in a movie

Top-10 convertibles. Top-10 Green Cars. Top-10 sedans, coupes and luxury cars. They're all worthwhile lists and fun to agree with or make fun of as worthless. But for a car list to be pertinent it has to include passion, and thus Edmunds.com, site InsideLine took on the task of creating the most important list of cars — in movies. Cars old and new are in most movies, sometimes witth subtle but important roles like the gangster cars in The Godfather trilogy. And cars are importnat in small films, too, like in the art house film of a few years ago, Frozen River. In reverse order, and subjectively chosen, a 1969 Dodge Charger wins out over a 1963 Aston Martin DB5

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James Bond and his cars: Aston Martin to Turbo Espirit

Paul Newman and Steve McQueen have plenty of inspiring car movie scenes. But neither has anything on the actors who played James Bond the cars the characters drove — Aston Martin to the Lotus Turbo Espirit. In one website description, the TurboEsprit is described: “As it took every single teenage and pre-pubescent boy’s inspiration and gave it a good shake. It spawned school-ground talk, made young men believe underwater driving was possible and let a new generation discover just how good the Bond films were.” But it was Sean Connery, the original James Bond in film, who started the coolness — weaponry, inventions, smoothness with women — and he drove a 1964 Aston Martin D85 One auto web site wrote

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New royal couple take dad’s vintage Aston-Martin for a spin

In addition to inheriting his father’s appreciation for captivating women, Prince William also apparently shares family’s interest in vintage automobiles, like the Aston Martin DB6 his father owns. After his pending bride Kate Middleton arrived for the Royal Wedding in her future grandmother’s 1977 Rolls-Royce, her husband took her for a spin after the couple’s wedding reception and to the greetings of well-wishers in a pristine Aston Martin Volante DB6 MKII. The Seychelles blue convertible has been owned by his father, HRH The Prince of Wales, since 1969. The pictures included in this post don’t represent the Royal Family’s car, but are the same vintage, with the exception left versus right-hand drive. Reuters, the international news service, has posted a

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Aston Martin Rapide gets Design of the Year honors

The Aston Martin Rapide has joined a diverse group, including the Fiat 500 and Chevrolet Camaro, and has been honored with the 2011 World Car Design of the Year award at the New York International Auto Show. “Like a race horse standing still, you can see its power and elegance, the shape of Rapide’s rear haunches are muscular conveying the power that lies beneath while its low stance produces a powerful look,” said Aston Martin’s Director of Design, Marek Reichman. “There is a real sense of proportion with this car, akin to a tailored suit; the new double grill gives more presence on the road while the iconic signature side strake has been lengthened through to the rear doors to

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Aston Martin DB4 (James Bond's car, sort of) 1958-63 review

James Bond drove a 1964-65 Aston Martin DB5 in the first Bond movies and acquainted most Americans with England’s Aston Martin. But the 1958-63 Aston DB4, which the DB5 strongly resembled, was the first all-new Aston since industrialist David Brown bought and saved the revered automaker in 1947. Ian Fleming, author of the James Bond novels, never owned an Aston Martin, but he sure knew about classy cars. He owned a mid-1950s Ford Thunderbird two-seater and a rakish, early 1960s Studebaker Avanti, which he shipped to various countries to drive whenever he left England. Fleming’s wife was so jealous of his affection for the Avanti that she reportedly put sugar in its gas tank to gum up its engine. But

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Aston Martin Vantage S 2011 debuts

Bridging the gap between road car and race car, the 2011 Aston Martin Vantage S is influenced by the 2011 Vantage GT4 race car. The GT4 takes advantage of the Vantage’s immensely rigid bonded aluminium chassis, providing the ideal platform for a race car. Minor racing safety modifications including an FIA approved roll cage and racing ‘bag’ petrol tank along with weight saving measures are made to the standard road car to convert it into a class winning race car. In 2010, it won its class at the Dubai 24 Hours following this up with further endurance race wins at the Nürburgring 24 Hours, Silverstone 24 Hours and Spa 24 Hours. It also won its first major international championship victory

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Ferrari, Aston Martin, VW top NY Times' 2010 best cars

Ferrari, Aston Martin and the Volkswagen GTI top the New York Times automotive critics’ 2010 top-10 Cars of the Year list. Lawrence Ulrich, one several journalists who regularly report on the automotive industry for the newspaper, was direct in his top pick for the year, the Ferrari 458 Italia. “The world’s best sports car, a racing video game come to life in three gorgeous, thrilling dimensions. This is the car I would buy tomorrow if I inherited $250,000 today.” Jerry Garrett selected the Aston Martin Rapide: “The exquisitely executed Rapide is, like the sleek Jaguar XJ, a product of Ian Callum, designer extraordinaire. A sedan is a new offering for Aston, a tiny builder of British sports cars, as is

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Ferrari tops list of most expensive car auction buys in 2010

The most coveted vintage cars sold at auction in 2010 didn’t command the sky-high, record-setting prices of last year. But there were still collectors’ stunning rare purchases this year — Aston Martin to Talbot, BMW to Mercerdes Benz. Six of the most expensive cars sold at auction during 2010 occurred during Monterey Auto Week, the now nearly two-week festival of new and vintage cars scattered throughout the Monterey Peninsula. The most expensive auctioned car in 2010 was a 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider Competizione. It sold for $7.26 million at the Gooding & Co. auction at Pebble Beach in August. According to the web site, Luxist.com, the Ferrari 250: “Is the only LWB California to feature an alloy

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GM, Tesla, Aston Martin announce recalls for potential fire hazards

Tesla Motors is recalling 439 of its electric sports cars because of a possible fire hazard involving the 12-volt electrical system is its 2010 Roadster 2.0 and Roadster 2.5 with “a 12-volt auxiliary cable.” AUTOMOTIVE RESOURCES AND INFORMATION Auto Shipping Quote–Car Financing–Car Insurance Quotes–Car Loans–Online Car Insurance–Rental Cars–Used Cars Tesla discovered the 12-volt cable may have been improperly routed, allowing it to be pinched or abraded. One Tesla customer reported a complained of smoke and fire in the auxiliary system but the problem was resolved without injury. And Aston Martin is recalling almost 1,100 of its 2007 and 2008 DB9, DBS and V8 advantage models because a suspension failure could cause steering problems and increase the chance of a crash,

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