A 1954 Aston Martin DB 2/4, which is believed to have been the inspiration for James Bond’s Aston Martin, was unveiled by international auctioneers Coys, at London’s Old Admiralty Building, where Ian Fleming had his office. The car, which will be auctioned at Coys’ traditional Blenheim Palace sale on July 12, is believed to have been the inspiration for the Aston Martin featured in the original novel Goldfinger.
This example is a Vantage specification 1954 DB 2/4 Mk I, bearing the registration JBW 974. For many years it sat idle, collecting dust and rust, until a father and son purchased it for restoration. During the restoration a set of unique special modifications came to light, along with the car’s connections to the British Intelligence Service and the creator of Bond himself, Ian Fleming.
These one-off features seem to be the same as the fictional Bond car in Goldfinger, including reinforced steel bumpers, concealed lockers, heavy-duty anti-interference ignition system, driver’s seat connections for two-way radio and/or a homing device, and a Halda Speed Pilot device, which accurately computes time and distance in relation to a pre-selected average speed.
Chris Routledge, Managing Partner of the auction house, said: “The story around this car and its discovery is phenomenal. It was supplied new on July 4, 1955 to the Honourable Sqdr. Ldr. Phillip Ingram Cunliffe-Lister DSO, whose father was Lord Swinton, a close confidant of Winston Churchill and head of MI5 and the Security Executive during WWII. Moreover, the vehicle was regularly at Ian Fleming’s direct next-door neighbor in Kent, and indeed it was the next-door neighbor’s house that was also used as inspiration in the Bond novels, this time as Sir Hugo Drax’s residence in the novel Moonraker.
He added: “This could be one of the most important discoveries of all time, confirming the link between the undoubtedly most famous spy in history and possibly the world’s most iconic sports car marque.”
