2002 Aston Martin Db7 Vantage Volante Convertible 2-door 6.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

World's Largest Collection Of James Bond Cars On Sale

A Miami real estate developer is selling his entire massive collection of James Bond memorabilia. Valued at $33.25 million, the collection is considered the largest in the world, and will only be sold to a buyer willing to take the whole thing. Michael Dezer began buying Bond cars in 2011, when he snatched up dozens of the super spy's on-screen rides from the James Bond Museum in Keswick, England, Autoblog reports. Since then, Dezer has amassed 59 cars, the rides coming from movies like Goldeneye, Skyfall and The Spy Who Loved Me. The ensemble also includes boats, tanks, jet skis, motorcycles and thousands of other pieces of memorabilia. The lucky buyer of this collection would even get the yacht used in From Russia With Love. An agency in the United Kingdom is handling the sale of the collection. Related Gallery Editors' Picks: The Most Beautiful Cars On The Road View 10 Photos Aston Martin Automotive History Ownership selling famous cars

2019 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera First Drive Review | Nowhere I'd rather be

BERCHTESGADEN, Germany — The mountains at the border of Austria and Germany are full of rolling green fields bookended by tree-capped mountains. The roads that run along the mountainsides and valleys, despite being packed with tractors and a seemingly endless line of vacation travelers, are ripe with corners just waiting to be strung together. I'm standing on a hillside staring at the new Aston Martin DBS Superleggera when I realize there are few things I've ever wanted more than a V12-powered GT and a ribbon of clean pavement. The DBS Superleggera is the third new Aston Martin revealed this year, following the Vantage and DB11 AMR. It's based on the DB11 and serves as a replacement for the Vanquish S. In place of the old, naturally-aspirated 6.0-liter V12 is an upgraded version of the 5.2-liter engine found in the DB11 AMR. In the DBS, the engine makes 715 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque, up 85 horses and a gut-punching 148 pound-feet over the DB11. The extra power comes mostly from an increase in boost from the two turbos. The other big changes to the DBS come in the way of the relatively lightweight carbon-fiber bodywork. Every panel save for the doors and roof has been re-sculpted. The new panels are carbon fiber, and — with options such as carbon-fiber trim and a lightweight exhaust — the DBS weighs about 160 pounds less than a DB11. The styling is different, too, thanks to a massive grill and lower intakes that make up most of the front fascia. Aston Martin says the extra area is needed to cool the V12. It reminds me a bit of the wide-mouth Aston grilles from the '50s and '60s. The straked "curlicue" fender vents, F1-style double diffuser, and reworked Aeroblade increase downforce to nearly 400 pounds at the car's top speed of 211 mph without any major drag penalties. The Aeroblade pulls in air from behind the rear windows, moving it through the bodywork and over the rear wing. Rather than using an active wing like on the DB11, the DBS uses a fixed Gurney flap. The Aeroblade and Gurney flap give the DBS downforce while keeping the overall design relatively clean. The new DBS is handsome and purposeful, if not exactly beautiful. Sitting behind the wheel, you'd be forgiven for thinking you were in another DB11. The seats are the most notable and obvious change in the DBS, offering slightly more bolstering than what you get on the DB11 (though they lack fine-tuned adjustments). The rest of the interior simply looks like a reskinned DB11.

Tesla Model S squares off against Aston Martin Rapide S

Can the Tesla Model S electric motor's 443 pound-feet of torque from zero rpm and equivalent of 416 horsepower trump the Aston Martin Rapide S V12's 457 lb-ft from 5500 rpm and 550 hp? Autocar attempts to answer that question by drag racing them - which only leads us to ask more questions. Which is the fastest around a race track? Is the Tesla's relatively low top speed of 130 miles per hour (the Rapide S can reach 190 mph) forgivable in light of its astounding torque? Does that even matter?
We hope Autocar's Steve Sutcliffe will pit the Tesla and the Aston Martin against each other again in the near future to answer those questions, and pick once and for all which one is the preferred luxury sedan. But until then he entertains us in the video below by raving about the Model S's attributes, pitching it into medium-speed sweepers and getting it a bit sideways with nothing but road and tire noise permeating the cabin - something people in the UK can experience for themselves once right-hand-drive cars go on sale there this spring.