Then buy! This James Bond car is perfect for winter sports

James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5 by Goldfinger has become a cliché. We get a lot warmer with this beautiful Aston Martin V8, even if it is intended for use in the freezing cold when there is a thick layer of snow outside.

Enthusiasts will recognize the car. This Aston Martin V8 starred in the 1987 James Bond film The Living Daylights, in which our own Jeroen Krabbe played the villain.

Fifteenth James Bond film “The Living Daylights”.

The Living Daylights is the fifteenth Bond film and the first (and penultimate) from actor Timothy Dalton, who took the role far more seriously than Roger Moore, the previous 007.

In the film – which was a huge box office success – we see two Aston Martin V8s drive by: a convertible and a coupe. The viewer has to think that it is one and the same car, because after Q equips the open Aston with a hardtop, James Bond suddenly drives a coupé.

Of course, the V8 comes loaded with all sorts of Q gadgets, like rocket launchers, knobby tires, a rotating license plate, a rear jet engine, and the folding skis seen in the photos.

Four real Aston Martin V8s and seven dummies

For The Living Daylights, the filmmakers used four real Aston Martin V8s and seven fiberglass models. The real cars didn’t come from Aston Martin themselves (the waiting list for a V8 was eighteen months), but were bought used and cosmetically modified.

The V8 in these photos was originally green and was repainted for filming. Being an older model, it also received a different hood and rear end, as well as a new wheelset.

To ensure the safety of the stunt drivers, the entire underside of the Aston is reinforced with steel plates. There is also a roll cage in the interior. The open roof is fake and is for continuity. The three other V8s had one, only this one didn’t.

Engine and gearbox recently restored

For this V8’s final stunt – descending a ski slope and hitting a snowdrift – the engine and automatic were removed. For around 35 years, the Aston Martin has stood still as an exhibit without a drive.

The current owner wanted to get it running again and went in search of an eight-cylinder with Vantage upgrades and a ZF five-speed manual gearbox. The Aston has been thoroughly restored and now features a ‘working’ rocket booster at the rear.

In mid-August it will go under the hammer at RM Sotheby’s in Monterey, California. The expected return is not sold out: between 1.4 and 1.8 million dollars (converted: 1.25 to 1.6 million euros).