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Aston Martin DB5 stunt doubles in Skyfall created by 3D printers

Jonathon Ramsey — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 17:31:00 EST

Filed under: Classics, Coupe, Technology, Aston Martin, Celebrities, TV/Movies

This is a spoiler alert: stop reading now if you haven't seen Skyfall and don't want to know anything about it.

There are five major stars in Skyfall, only four of them human. The fifth is the Aston Martin DB5 that makes a return to the series as a gadget car for the first time since Thunderball. The plot calls on bad things to happen to the 1964 platinum coupe, but seeing as it's worth $4.6 million, producers figured it would be better if something happened to a facsimile of the 1964 platinum coupe.

Enter Voxeljet, an Augsburg, Germany company specializing in 3D printing. The production team commissioned three one-third scale models of the DB5, and Voxeljet's industrial-sized printers layered up the 18 plastic parts that compose the unfinished model. The models were then sent to Propshop Makers in the UK for finishing work like paint and bullet holes. And then one of them was blown up...

Showing just how much the Bond provenance can do for the worth of an object, one of the remaining printed Astons was auctioned by Christie's and fetched £61,250 ($99,041 US), beating its pre-sale estimate by more than 50 percent.

Aston Martin DB5 stunt doubles in Skyfall created by 3D printers originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 15 Nov 2012 17:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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George Harrison's Aston Martin DB5 sells for over half a million

Noah Joseph — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 12:02:00 EST

Filed under: Classics, Auctions, Aston Martin, UK, Celebrities

Spell it with two Es and the name Beetle is intrinsically linked to Volkswagen. Drop that second E for an A, though, and you're looking at another 60s icon altogether. While the VW might not hold much sway for music buffs, the Beatles and its individual members hold plenty of interest for car fans.

If it's not John Lennon's '65 Ferrari 330 GT going up for auction, it's a special one-off Mini painted by George Harrison. This time around, though, it's Harrison's Aston Martin that's garnered our attention.

This 1964 DB5 belonged to Harrison back in the 60s and was just sold at auction for well above its estimated value. After a fierce bidding war under the auspices of Coys in London, the classic Aston went to an unnamed collector from Houston, Texas for £350,000 (equivalent to $547k at today's exchange rates) - a good £150k ($235k) more than expected.

At those prices, the new owner may be whistling "baby you can drive my car", but is more likely to hide his love away in a climate-controlled garage somewhere. Follow the jump for the full press release.

Continue reading George Harrison's Aston Martin DB5 sells for over half a million

George Harrison's Aston Martin DB5 sells for over half a million originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 11 Dec 2011 12:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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James Bond's 1964 Aston Martin DB5 expected to top $5 Million at auction

Noah Joseph — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 14:56:00 EST

Filed under: Classics, Auctions, Aston Martin

James Bond's 1964 Aston Martin DB5 - Click above for high-res image mega gallery

The mantle of "world's most famous car" is a heavy one indeed. But if any single automobile ever created deserved the honorific, surely it's the 1964 Aston Martin DB5 used on-screen in the production of the iconic 007 films Goldfinger and Thunderball. And in case you were disappointed at having missed the opportunity to get your hands on one of the stunt cars, the real thing is now up for grabs in London, where RM and Sotheby's will be auctioning it off to the highest bidder.

The car in question was prepared by Aston Martin for use in the Bond films. After that it went back to the manufacturer, which then sold it to radio host and philanthropist Jerry Lee, who's been holding onto it for the past 40+ years. In pursuit of his charitable work, Lee is finally putting the car up for sale, with bids expecting to top $5 million when it goes under the hammer on October 27.

One of only two made and the only one still in existence, the custom DB5 comes packed with all the extras the Q-Branch installed for Bond's use, from the revolving license plates and tracking device to the oil slick dispenser and smoke screen. You can check out all the details in the press release after the jump, along with the 100+ high-resolution image gallery that very well might be the largest we've ever compiled. Oh, and do be careful, Bond.

Gallery: James Bond's 1964 Aston Martin DB5

[Source: RM Auctions]

Continue reading James Bond's 1964 Aston Martin DB5 expected to top $5 Million at auction

James Bond's 1964 Aston Martin DB5 expected to top $5 Million at auction originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 14:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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