James Bond: Classic Cars That Sean Connery Made Famous
James Bond made these classic cars even more famous than before just by driving the vehicles in movies. There was a car for every scene with options from Bentley, Toyota, and the obvious Aston Martin. The 007 actor was stylish, and these vehicles assisted in that perception.
The classic cars James Bond and Sean Connery made famous
Here is a list of some of the classic cars that James Bond made famous:
- 1964 Aston Martin DB5
- 1961 Sunbeam Alpine
- 1937 Bentley 4¼ liter Drophead Coupé
- 1967 Toyota 2000GT
- 1971 Mustang Mach 1
- 1970 Triumph Stag
1. The 1964 Aston Martin DB5 is a classic car
According to Robb Report, Sean Connery drove the 1964 Aston Martin DB5 in a few movies. The DB5 was in Goldfinger and Thunderball and is arguably the most famous car from the James Bond series. Goldfinger went on to win Academy Awards, and Aston Martin rose to stardom along with Connery.
The Aston Martin DB5 was a classic car that got 282 hp from the four-liter engine. It had a top speed of 145 mph and went 0-60 mph in eight seconds. Driving this particular vehicle also came with a bulletproof windshield, machine guns, and a revolving license plate.
2. James Bond made the 1961 Sunbeam Alpine famous
The 1961 Sunbeam Alpine was featured in the first James Bond movie, Dr. No, in 1962. The one in the film was baby-blue and had white-walled tires. Bond rented the classic car in Jamaica, and it looked like a ton of fun. The first film had such a small budget that production borrowed the Alpine from a local Jamaican family.
3. The pinacle of classic cars, a 1937 Bentley 4¼ liter Drophead Coupé
The 1937 Bentley 4¼ liter Drophead Coupé needs no introduction. Never Say Never Again featured this classic Bentley in 1983. The Drophead Coupé had custom bodywork from England’s Gurney Nutting coachbuilders. It isn’t featured too much in the film, but people still took notice. The classic car was eventually restored and sold for $286,599 more than 10 years ago.
4. Another option, the 1967 Toyota 2000GT
A Toyota on a list of classic cars? You read that right. The 1967 Toyota 2000GT was featured in You Only Live Twice back in 1967. Toyota only made two of these convertible Toyota 2000GTs, and one was in the movie. Connery was too tall for the hardtop version, and Toyota had to act quickly. The brand whipped up a convertible version of the car for the film, and the rest is history. Current James Bond star, Daniel Craig, notes this was his favorite car from the movies.
5. Don’t overlook the classic 1971 Mustang Mach 1
Diamonds are Forever, and so is the 1971 Mustang Mach 1. The Mach 1 was known for the impossible stunts pulled off in the movie. While your everyday Mustang probably won’t be able to stunt like this one, it’s still a pretty popular classic car. This 1971 Mustang Mach 1 had 370 hp and a Cobra Jet V8 under the hood.
6. James Bond made the 1970 Triumph Stag cool
The 1970 Triumph Stag was also in Diamonds are Forever back in 1971. It isn’t in the movie for very long, but Connery drives it around Amsterdam for a bit. In the film, diamond-smuggling Peter Franks owns the yellow Stag. It sold at auction back in 1998 for just over $33,000.
While some of these classic cars didn’t see much fame after the movies, each one impacted audiences. James Bond kept the attention of filmgoers for more than a decade, and these classic cars helped do that.
