1979 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Db8 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Final Spectre trailer drops, still looks awesome

Well, here we are. After all the teasers, behind-the-scenes photos and videos, and wrecked Aston Martins, we have the final trailer for the newest James Bond flick, Spectre. Through all the leaks and other trailers, we've got a pretty good idea as to how many vehicular set pieces there will be when Spectre hits trailers. Obviously, the premiere spot will be the chase between 007's Aston Martin DB10 and the Jaguar C-X75 of baddy Mr. Hinx, while there looks to be a wintry exchange featuring a Range Rover Sport SVR, some Defenders, and a plane. This trailer also shows some kind of pickup truck – we're guessing it's a Toyota Hilux – t-boning an older Jaguar XJ, which we think is new footage. Of course, there's a lot more action beyond the automotive variety. There's a helicopter sequence, gunfights, a building collapse, and we get our very best look at the film's main villain, played by a Max von Sydow/Blofeld-channeling Christoph Waltz. Check out the trailer, available at the top of the page. Spectre hits US theaters on November 6.

Aston Martin sold its old Vanquish tooling, but to whom?

Where do car models go when they become old? In some cases, they go to developing markets to be reborn again: Nissan built the Sentra in Mexico for ages, and old Peugeot saloons have been made in Iran for decades. Sometimes a separate company buys the tooling, which has been the case for Saab, for instance: the 9-3 and 9-5 sedans found a new life in China, albeit with new sheetmetal. These scenarios usually play out with passenger cars and trucks, and more rarely with sports cars. But for the Aston Martin Vanquish, there might be plans afoot. Aston Martin was revealed to have sold the second-generation Vanquish tooling and design drawings in June, for around $26 million. Aston didn't disclose the name of the buyer, so speculation quickly rose. Who wants to start building the V12 range-topper originally launched in 2012? Automotive News suggests the buyer could be a boutique European tuner such as Mansory, who would expand from converting cars into having bespoke products of its own. Jalopnik mentions Zagato, who has already partnered with Aston Martin and helped create the exclusive Zagato Vanquish. Whoever the buyer turns out to be, they will get 18 months of assistance from Aston Martin Consulting, as dictated in the deal. An interesting development would be if the Vanquish would be recreated as an electric supercar, if the anonymous buyer chooses not to fit their creations with Aston's V12 engines. Still, Aston won't be the first British sportscar maker to sell its tooling to another company: surely everybody remembers the time the front-wheel-drive Lotus Elan reappeared in Korea, as the Kia Elan/Vigato? Related Video:

Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato Shooting Brake finishes a quartet Q would envy

From A to Z in four steps - that being Aston Martin and Zagato, connected by carbon fiber links known as the Vanquish Zagato Coupe, Volante, Speedster, and the now-official Shooting Brake. When the automaker revealed the Zagato Speedster at Pebble Beach in August, the Shooting Brake remained a sketch. Today we get honest, photographic proof of what 99 future owners will soon park in their climate-controlled display spaces. Were it not for the objet d'art reverence paid to a Zagato and the bitsy production run, we'd expect to see the shooting brake frolicking through expensive enclaves just as often as a Ferrari GT4 Lusso. Aston Martin's 580-horsepower V12 provides useful intent up front, a "luxuriously trimmed rear cabin area with tailored luggage" carries its weight in back. In between, driver and passenger revel in a herringbone carbon fiber fascia, anodized bronze dials, quilted leather, and glass-inlay for the double-bubble roof inviting lots of light. The Shooting Brake goes into production next year, alongside the Speedster. As with the first three bijoux, every Shooting Brake has already found a home. When Aston Martin hands the last set of keys to the final buyer, these 325 special editions will mark the close of another chapter in an Anglo-Italian cooperation begun with the 1960 DB4 Zagato. Related Video: