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Aston Martin brings impressive lineup of metal to Monterey

Aston Martin wins the manufacturer's round of Show and Tell on Thursday at Pebble Beach, bringing six cars to the collectors' bacchanalia with four North American debuts among them. The 540-horsepower Aston Martin DB9 GT said hello to US crowds for the first time, likely the beginning of a goodbye tour while it prepares to give way to the coming DB11. Having finished its work in Rome and other points distant filming Spectre, slotting in between DBs 9 and 11 comes the DB10 making its global public debut. The latest Bond car might look better sitting still in the Aston Martin pavilion than it does in the movie trailers. The Middle-East-and-Europe only Aston Martin Lagonda has never been to the US either, nor has the DBX electric crossover concept, and the utility vehicle got a coat of Mako Blue paint to make its introduction. The Vulcan racer got re-hued as well, in a coat of Saffron Orange. Finally, there's an Aston Martin Q Vanquish Volante built specifically for Pebble. Combining an "adventurous sport theme" and "deep teal colors of Arctic sea ice," Silver Fox paint is accented with Q Tomales Red and Ocellus Teal, Baltic Blue leather inside, and teal-tinted carbon fiber throughout. It's the most vibrant and fastest chunk of iceberg on the peninsula, certainly. Check out the entire range in the galleries above and below. Related Video:

1965 Aston Martin James Bond DB5 nets record $6.4 million at auction

Remember we told you how an original James Bond-spec Aston Martin DB5, used as a promotional vehicle for the 1965 Bond film “Thunderball,” was headed to auction? The one equipped with gadgets including a bulletproof rear glass shield, smoke screen and so forth? Well, the car just sold at RM SothebyÂ’s “Evening with Aston Martin” sale at Monterey for a final, record-shattering price of $6.385 million. ThatÂ’s after receiving an initial estimate of $4 million to $6 million. 1965 Aston Martin DB5 'Goldfinger'-spec View 30 Photos Also at Monterey, a DB5 Shooting Brake from the same model year, though not equipped with James Bond gadgetry, auctioned for a cool $1.765 million. It was one of just 12 ever built, and among only four built with a left-hand drive. It was expected to fetch $1 million to $1.4 million, so it was a good week for Aston, old chap. The Bond car was one of two 1965 DB5s commissioned by Eon Productions, the British film company, and used as promotions for “Thunderball.” Neither were used on screen, but they received all the gadgets from the film, installed by Aston Martin and built to actually be used and be reliable. In addition to the gadgets mentioned above, there are bumper overriders, front guns (!) and an oil slick dispenser, plus toggle switches, weapon drawer and tracking screen. 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Shooting Brake View 20 Photos RM SothebyÂ’s had previously sold the car in 2006 for $2.09 milling, but it then went through a complete restoration, including the gadgets, that was completed in 2012. Aston Martin last year announced it would be building continuation versions of the Bond 1965 DB5.  

Here's Aston Martin's DP-100 racer for Gran Turismo in all its virtual glory [w/video]

After a little bit of teasing, Aston Martin is finally unveiling its Design Prototype 100 Vision Gran Turismo Concept at the Goodwood Festival of Speed that makes it into Gran Turismo 6 in July. With the DP-100, the company's designers have gotten a chance to shrug off the shackles of realism and create the first-ever Aston Martin "road car" with the engine mounted behind the driver. Designed and engineered over the course of six months by the Aston Martin Design team, the crew started from a clean sheet of paper and were allowed to design whatever they liked with no concerns about production feasibility. At the front, there's the brand's classic grille shape, but otherwise the concept is completely original. The shape of the DP-100 is beautifully simple, looking like a collection of intersecting arches in profile. Of course, in Gran Turismo 6, gamers are going to want to race the car more than look at it. The DP-100 employs Aston Martin's famous V12 engine coupled with two turbochargers to produce 800 horsepower. Active aerodynamic aids keep it planted during cornering, as well. Aston Martin previously hinted that it might show off a physical version of the concept at this year's Goodwood Festival. Although, we haven't seen it yet, the concept would fit perfectly next to Nissan's own Vision Gran Turismo design at the celebration of all things automotive. Scroll down to watch a video of the DP-100's designers talking about the car and read the official release. ASTON MARTIN UNVEILS VIRTUAL DP-100 RACER FOR GRAN TURISMO®6 Design Prototype 100 joins stable of Vision Gran Turismo racers in popular racing game for PlayStation®3 Designed and engineered over six months by Aston Martin Design team Downloadable for in-game play in July 2014 Aston Martin is unveiling an exceptional new addition to the hugely popular PlayStation®3 exclusive racing game Gran Turismo®6 (GT6™) in the shape of the stunning Design Prototype 100 – DP-100 Vision Gran Turismo. Developed in-house by the Design team at Aston Martin, led by Design Director Marek Reichman, DP-100 Vision Gran Turismo is a new, virtual-only GT racer that will be available for Gran Turismo®6 (GT6™) owners to download in July 2014, following the global launch at Goodwood Festival of Speed. Starting with nothing but the traditional 'blank sheet of paper' the design team and design engineers worked for six months to create the new addition to the Vision Gran Turismo stable of race cars.