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Ian Fleming's Bentley R-Type rediscovered in an L.A. garage

James Bond creator Ian Fleming commissioned a left-hand-drive 1953 Bentley R-Type Continental Fastback in Deep Grey with black Connolly leather as a gift for his American friend Ivar Felix Bryce. Fleming's choice of that car was probably no accident: Bond drove an R-Type Continental in the book Thunderball – one he bought as a wreck and restored, and he had it done up in gray with black leather. In Skyfall, this is the car that would have been behind that garage door. Gullwing Motor Cars recently discovered the real-life car wasting away in a garage in Hancock Park, Los Angeles for nearly 30 years. Bryce was Fleming's inspiration for CIA agent Felix Leiter in the Bond books. The US agent showed up in six installments in the series starting with Casino Royale, bowing out in The Man with the Golden Gun. Just as cool as the Fleming/Bond connection is this car's connection to the Bentleys of today. This was the "Speed" of its time, and like Continental GT Speed of one today, it was the fastest production four-seater in the world. A review of the time said, "it is difficult to put into words the gulf that separates a Continental from the average car in all the qualities that have a bearing on safety at speed." And you can see where those outboard lights on today's Bentleys come from. The Continental designation signified a power upgrade over the standard R-Type, and Fleming built it up with extras like rear spats, lightweight seats, fitted luggage, and a racehorse mascot. The Bryces flew their gift around the world to their various homes in England, Nassau, New York, and Vermont. After they sold it the coupe had several owners, ending up in the hands of a Beverly Hills surgeon in 1978, and according to Gullwing it's been sitting in a garage almost since that time. It has matching numbers and the original interior, and Gullwing says, putting it mildly, it is "an ideal restoration candidate." The asking price is $1,495,000, which is quite the premium for pedigree. Hagerty values a pristine example at $1.4 million, and two recent pristine examples have been sold by RM Auctions for $1.2M and Bonham's for $822,000. This Fleming car one went to auction at Pebble this year with an estimate of $1.4M - $1.8M but didn't sell, so don't be afraid to ask a few hard MI6-like questions about it if you're interested.

Editors' Picks April 2021 | Honda Accord, Mercedes-Benz E-Class and more

The month of April saw us award Editors' Picks status to a couple mega-luxury vehicles and a couple long-time standbys that recently went through mid-cycle refreshes. We drove plenty of other cars that didn't quite reach the bar for Editors' Picks status — BMW 4 Series, Infiniti QX55 and the Mitsubishi Outlander among others — but the four you'll see below stood out as the best this month. In case you missed our previous couple Editors' Picks posts, hereÂ’s a quick refresher on whatÂ’s going on here. We rate all the new cars we drive with a 1-10 score. Cars that are exemplary in their respective segments get EditorsÂ’ Pick status. Those are the ones weÂ’d recommend to our friends, family and anybody whoÂ’s curious and asks the question. The list that youÂ’ll find below consists of every car we rated in April that earned the honor of being an EditorsÂ’ Pick. 2021 Aston Martin DBX 2021 Aston Martin DBX View 16 Photos Quick take: With attractive styling and a gorgeous yet functional interior, the V8-powered DBX is a legitimate crossover worthy of the Aston badge. Score: 8 What it competes with: Bentley Bentayga, Lamborghini Urus, Rolls-Royce Cullinan, Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 Pros: Mega style, fantastic driving dynamics, a true and faithful Aston Martin Cons: Very expensive, only average infotainment From the editors: Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore — “The DBX captures the spirit of Aston Martin in a modern crossover. That's not an easy thing to do. I expected the DBX might look the part, but lack functionality. Or it would be a decent crossover, but fall short of my idea of an Aston. The DBX did neither. It exceeded my expectations and is an entertaining vehicle to drive. The styling is interesting and evocative, and the AMG-sourced powertrain delivers proper performance. I also loaded it up with groceries and a carseat fits pretty well. Mission accomplished for Aston." In-depth analysis: 2021 Aston Martin DBX First Drive Review | A crossover that makes you forget itÂ’s a crossover   2021 Bentley Flying Spur 2021 Bentley Flying Spur V8 View 20 Photos Quick take: There are technically competitors to the Flying Spur, but nothing matches it stride-for-stride in every category. ItÂ’s the Bentley flagship product now, and it flies the brandÂ’s flag with both gusto and excellence. You can't go wrong whether you spec the W12 or V8 either.

New Bentley Continental GT3 race car looks beautiful and brutal

Bentley has been building and racing GT3-class versions of the Continental GT since about 2013. As such, it's really no surprise that Bentley would create one based on the newest Continental GT, as seen above. Still, we're glad to see it, especially because it looks really mean, and better than the outgoing racer. Part of the design improvements are due simply to the new road car's looks. The lower, wider grille, and tidier, less bulbous tail do a lot to make the race car look much lower and more aggressive than the old car. But the racing-specific bodywork is cleaner and more aggressive, too. Large overfenders are fitted both front and rear, and they each have integrated intake vents at the leading and trailing edges. The openings at the front of the front fenders are curved such that they look a bit like angry eyebrows. The rear diffuser looks better integrated with the body now, rather than simply lurking behind a cut-down rear bumper. The big wing with outboard supports is also impressive. Performance-wise, there likely won't be a major difference between this and the outgoing car. It seems power is down a bit to over 550 horsepower rather than over 600 horsepower. Curb weight is estimated to be under 1,300 kg, which is about 2,866 pounds. That's also similar to the old car. Power also continues to come from a twin-turbocharged V8 sending power to the rear wheels. This is a sharp contrast to the road car's twin-turbocharged W12 sending power to all four wheels. For any enterprising racers looking to trade to a new car or get into a GT3, Bentley will begin selling the new Continental GT3 next June. Pricing has not been announced. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2018 Bentley Continental GT3 race car Image Credit: Bentley Motorsports Bentley Coupe Racing Vehicles bentley continental gt3