This is a big year for James Bond fans and car enthusiasts. It marks the 60th anniversary of the release of “Goldfinger,” which featured two significant British cars: the Rolls-Royce Phantom III that the title villain used in his gold smuggling scheme and 007’s Aston Martin DB5, which went on to become one of the most famous cars in the world. No one is more aware of this milestone than Aston Martin, which is commemorating it with a 60-unit run of the DB12 Goldfinger Edition.
Like its DB5 ancestor, the DB12 Goldfinger Edition is finished in Silver Birch. Of course, gold is also a part of the color palette and used on the side strakes and various interior parts (more on those further down).
Aston Martin didn’t go as far as opting for gold wheels; instead, it gave the 21-inch rollers a silver-plated, multi-spoke design (but no tire shredders) to visually connect them to the DB5’s wheels. Even more subtle are the “enamelled script badges that pay homage to the original badging on the Goldfinger DB5.”
The cockpit holds a combination of low-key and overt references to “Goldfinger.” The unique treadplates honor the 60th anniversary of the hit film and feature a Prince of Wales pattern – just like the gray three-piece suit Sean Connery wore in it. That same design is perforated into the seats, which are fluted like the ones in the DB5, door panels, and headliner.
Aston Martin went super deep with one particular reference to the movie by embroidering the eight of hearts into the driver’s sun visor. If it’s been a while since you’ve watched “Goldfinger,” that was one of the cards the eponymous villain’s opponent drew in a game of gin rummy – information that was relayed to Goldfinger by his assistant Jill Masterson, who was spying on the game with binoculars.
More gold appears in various spots around the cabin. It’s woven into the 2×2 Twill Carbon Fibre trim and covers the roller controllers for various functions and the drive mode rotary dial. It also adorns the etched gear lever for the ZF eight-speed automatic that’s connected to the DB12’s 670-horsepower 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8. Once again, Aston Martin went obscure here: The lever was designed to look like the magnetized tracking device 007 attached to Goldfinger’s Rolls-Royce.
For the most diehard fans, Aston Martin also offers “a rare piece of Goldfinger celluloid film, a specially designed car cover, a luxury key box with Silver Birch Speed Form and 1 of 60 golden limited-edition magazines,” as well as a Silver Birch bespoke Globetrotter GT suitcase with a Prince of Wales check fabric interior that contains a gift-wrapped limited-edition bottle of Bollinger Champagne. No word on whether or not Aston Martin will equip the DB12 Goldfinger Edition with a functional ejector seat for an extra charge, but we’re going to guess they won’t. If they decide to, that will be “shocking. Positively shocking.”
Source: www.classiccars.com