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James Bond is a man of many W's. War. Wine. Work. Wisdom.
Wealth. Women.
 ...via Mid Atlantic Nostalgia Convention
But most iconic: wheels.
007's liaison to the British Secret Service's technology-Q-supplies
Bond with some slick cars that have advanced gadgetry. Ejector seats, caltrops,
oil slicks, missiles, submarine conversion, and even an invisibility cloak.
Yes, that's right. James Bond had the original Transformer and Harry Potter invisibility
cloak.
So in an effort completely based in fiction,
let's say Q will give us any Bond car we desire-gadgets and all. And for
simplicity's sake, the cars under examination can only be driven by one of the
official CR4-recognized James Bonds--Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Pierce Brosnan, Daniel Craig. Absolutely
NO Timothy
Dalton or George Lazenby. Capisce?
 They're just too tall to be a believable 007...via The World is Never Enough
Just two more stipulations: the car has to have been owned
by Bond. It can't be something he commandeered in the field. The car also must
appear in a movie-novels are great and all, but let's stick with the films. Just kidding, reading sucks!
And now that I've whittled the list to a manageable size…
The Aston Martins
 DB5...via DuPont Registry
Bond has driven the idolized car brand more than any other
manufacturer. The most recognized of the Bond cars would be the Aston Martin
DB5 (above), first appearing in Goldfinger
and later six more films. The car featured a 3.7 liter, inline six cylinder
engine which produced 282 bhp at 5,500 rpm. Top speed of the car was 149 mph,
but acceleration suffered from curb weight (0-60 mph in 8 seconds). Later in
GoldenEye, the DB5 was shown formidably racing a Ferrari. Notable
gadgets on the car included extendable machine guns, a rear-facing bullet
shield, and a rotating license plate.
 Vanquish...via Aston Martin W
The Aston Martin V12 Vanquish (above) is a 21st Century
007 design, and is a significant performance upgrade in relation to the DB5.
Driven by Bond in Die
Another Day, the 12(!) cylinder, 5.93 L engine produced over 450 hp and 400
lb. of torque. With a top speed just
below 190 mph, and a 0-60 time of 4.8 seconds, the V12 Vanquish is the second
fastest car of this HUSH-approved list. It is also one of the most heavily
armed Bond cars, with front-firing rockets and guns (both machine and shot
guns), spiked tires, and ejector seats. The car also features an active camouflage
that makes the car nearly invisible via mimicry.
 DBS...via Aston Martin W
The last Aston Martin to closely examine is the DBS V12 (above),
appearing in Daniel Craig's first appearance as 007 in 2006's Casino Royale. A 5.9 L 48-valve V12 powers the newest DBS to
510 hp with 420 lb. of torque, with a top speed of 193 mph and a 0-60 time of
4.3 seconds. While it performs the best of any Bond car, it appears to have no
tactical modifications apart from additional storage compartments and a medical
kit. Boooooo!
BMW
BMW is the second-most prominent auto manufacturer used by
MI5 and James Bond. The German car brand supplies Bond with its Z3, Z8, and 750iL. While BMW puts governor
plates on all of its vehicles, they are relatively easy to bypass. The Z3 (below),
a.k.a. Landshark, was given a small engine with poor performance for a European
roadster. So for the sake of argument, let's say that the Z3 was given a stark
upgrade. The Hartge Z3 MQP 5.0 L V8
engine modification has a maximum torque of 420 horsepower and a top speed of
186 mph. This Bond vehicle is equipped with surface-to-air missiles, though
they're never witnessed in action. A parachute does deploy however.
 Z3...via Auto Moto Portal
The Z8 (below) has a top speed of 170 mph and a 0-60 time of 4.2
seconds, all powered by a terrific 4.9 L 32V 8 cylinder engine. 400 hp and 370 lb.
of torque assist James Bond…well, drive properly, of course--he is British after all.
The Z8 is destroyed by a large saw rather early in the film The World is Not Enough,
and its armament is never fully revealed.
 Z8...via Ride Lust
The 750i-iL shown in Tomorrow Never Dies is perhaps the best
equipped of all 007's cars. Missile launchers and caltrops were made available
for James Bond, while bulletproof armor and run-flat tires are optional
consumer packages on this model. Notably, this 750 is also remote control. The
M73 5.4 L, V 12 engine offers 320 hp and 360 lb. of torque, providing 155 mph
of top speed and a 0-60 acceleration time of 9.3 seconds. Sloowwwwwww!
 750i...via Car Update
Lotus
 What car where? ...via Lotus Espirit Turbo
Sean Connery drove a Lotus
Espirit S1 (above) in The Spy Who Loved Me. Most notably, this car converts into a submarine during a chase. It also has a surface-to-air rocket launcher and a reverse-spray car mace. A top
speed of 133 mph, and a 0-6 time of more than 8 seconds makes this car an
afterthought of the Bond arsenal. It was powered by an inline, 2.0 L 4 cylinder
engine.
I know what you're thinking CR4er: there are some missing Bond
cars here. Remember, No Tim Dalton or George Lazenby. And it has to be a
vehicle equipped by MI5. I may have missed one or two, and if so feel free call me stupid
in the comments below. I know you have no problem with that.
 ...via Soda Head
As far as my choice, it seems pretty simple. The V12
Vanquish is as versatile and deadly as any Bond car. I don't care if I get 10
mpg! It's a free Aston Martin from MI5! I'd be hanging with Rick Ross baby!
Rick Ross - Aston Martin Music
Finally, this blog wasn't created to provoke an argument about which actor portrayed the best James Bond, BUT I feel like that discussion would be very much on-topic. *cough* Brosnan *cough*
Resources
Wikipedia - List of James Bond Vehicles; List of James Bond Gadgets
BMT 216A: The James Bond Vehicle Library
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