Source: MSN

Christmas is just round the corner and that means one thing: James Bond season is nearly upon us. Fast cars and even faster car chases, preferably on hairy Alpine passes with sheer 10,000ft drops, mixed with escaping your Great Aunt Maud and her horrid mince pies.

Cars have always been a key ingredient of the James Bond recipe. And since the humble Sunbeam Alpine in 1962's Dr No the cars have become ever quicker and the car chases ever more insane.

We've taken a broad selection of cars that have featured in the films down the years, and show you how you can play secret agent for a lot less than you might think. And even if you aren't in the market - dreams are free.

Citroen 2CV

After Bond's Lotus Esprit self destructs the only way to escape his pursuers is in a bright yellow Citroën 2 CV. Four identical models of the cult car, all prepared by Citroën in Slough, were used for filming the scene which includes an airborne leap across a windy mountain road.


To deal with the demands of the scene the 2 CV had to be massively modified. This included a roll bar and a 54bhp Citroën GS engine, nearly twice as powerful as the standard powertrain. Despite Bond's (Roger Moore) "we're being out horsepowered" quip, this modified model managed a very impressive 164km/h top speed.

Lotus Esprit

Best known for its famous transformation into a submarine to escape a helicopter chase, the producers used two street legal versions of the Giugiaro-designed Esprit and six body shells (including a sealed one for the underwater sequences) and armed the car with a coloured smoke screen, torpedoes and mines.


Turning the Lotus into a submarine proved to be a challenging ordeal. In the end two models were used (one full-scale the other 1:4 scale) with a combination of remote control, battery-powered motors and tracks laid on the seabed to move it along. Three years later the Lotus was reprised with the Esprit Turbo in For Your Eyes Only.

Aston Martin DBS

The most expensive car ever trashed by the MI6 agent (Daniel Craig), also set a Guinness World Record even before the film was released by rolling seven times in a crash scene. In reality the car used was a specially modified and reinforced DB9 which could withstand the impact.


In the sequel two years later an identical DBS was torn to shreds in a chase scene set on the banks of Italy's Lake Garda. Powered by a mighty 6.0-litre 510bhp V12, used prices for the Aston Martin flagship start around £110,000 - a bargain for a bit of Bond's unflappable appeal.

BMW Z3

The first of three BMWs to star in Bond films and 007's first ever official German car used GoldenEye (starring Pierce Brosnan) as its international debut. Right up to the moment it tore across the screen it had never been seen in public - two handmade pre-production models were used for the film.


Compared to other Bond cars the Z3 was only treated to very limited screentime - and not a hint of any chases or wrecking. And even if most of its kit remained unused, Q made sure it had all the right toys including all-points radar, self-destruct system, "and naturally, all the usual refinements" (which one can assume included machine-guns, rockets, GPS tracking-system, and others), as well as a rear-deployed parachute, and stinger-missiles hidden behind the headlights. Just in case. (Although he did warn 007: "Need I remind you 007, that you have a license to kill, not to break the traffic laws.")

Ford Mondeo

Although never Bond's official car, the Ford was treated to a cameo appearance as current 007, Daniel Craig's, hire car. The MI6 agent is seen driving the Mondeo to a hotel after arriving in the Bahamas hot on the trail of a terrorist cell, nearly one year before the Ford's public launch.


The Mondeo seen in Casino Royale might look like any other Mondeo on the road but is actually a one-off pre-production model that was built by the Ford of Europe Design Studio in Cologne, Germany using clay, wood and fibreglass. At that time Ford still owned Aston Martin.

Toyota 2000GT

With just over 300 units of this sensational GT ever produced, it's the one model you are unlikely to find in the used market. Powered by a 2.0-litre 150bhp straight-six, and capable of a 136mph top speed, Toyota helpfully lopped the roofs off two 2000GT's to accommodate Sean Connery's tall frame.


Compared to other Bond cars the Toyota came relatively low specced in the Q department with only a CCTV system with cameras monitoring the front and rear, cordless telephone and miniature colour TV, which was probably revolutionary in 1967. Its Corgi model had rocket launchers added to up its 007 cred.

BMW 750iL

The 18th Bond film turned to BMW for the second time to provide the official 007 (Brosnan) car, and ensured it was loaded to the gunwales with special gear including: machine-guns, rockets (fired from a compartment located under the sunroof-area), GPS tracking-system, tear-gas emitting jets, re-inflating tires, a metal cutter hidden under the front-hood's BMW badge, and caltrops to shred pursuing villains' tires. An additional plus was the ability to drive the car via remote control, accessible by flipping open half of James Bond's Ericsson cellphone, to reveal a color LCD-screen to see what the car sees through front-mounted miniature-cameras integrated with the car, as well as a touch-sensitive circular pad to steer and drive the car, and various buttons (a total of 4, as shown in footage from the movie) to control various features of the BMW 750iL.


The most memorable scene featuring the Bavarian car is a chase in a multi-story car park, with Bond remotely steering the Beemer from a protected backseat position using his mobile phone. After endless tire-screeching sequences Bond jumps out just in time before sending the BMW 750iL flying into an Avis storefront.

Aston Martin V8 Vantage

After Thunderball, Aston Martin's played only minor roles in Bond movies, until the fourth 007 (Timothy Dalton) was reunited with the brand. Three vehicles were used for the filming, one soft top Volante version (owned by then Aston Martin MD Victor Gauntlett) and two hard top "winterised" cars.


Equipped with a rocket drive, an ice-cutting device and tires with retractable spikes, the V8 Vantage's moment of glory was using its wheel-mounted laser to cut a pursuing Police Lada loose from its chassis. First launched in 1977 the V8 Vantage, with its 170mph top speed, was hailed as Britain's first supercar.

BMW Z8

This retro-styled roadster was the final of three BMW/James Bond product placements. Although loaded with a hidden rocket-firing station in the car's side vents, titanium armor and remote control through 007's (Pierce Brosnan) car keys, the Z8 didn't see much action before being torn to shreds by a saw-wielding helicopter's blades.


Created primarily to celebrate the 1950's BMW 507 roadster, the Z8 was only built in very limited numbers (just over 5,000 units). The front-engine rear-wheel drive sports car (with an all-aluminum chassis and body) was powered by the same stonking 389bhp 5.0-liter V8 as the E39 M5 - dashing to 62mph in 4.2 seconds.

Aston Martin DB5

No other model is more synonymous with 007, and has appeared in more Bond movies, than the DB5. Always a bit of a Bentley man before Goldfinger, author Ian Fleming thought the Aston Martin a good fit for the agent with his "taste for the good, the fast things of life".


To deal with the car's demanding role, it was equipped with an array of toys and tools including army smoke canisters, machine guns, a moveable steel plate to protect Bond (Sean Connery) against a rain of bullets and even an actual jet fighter ejection seat to fire unwanted visitors through the roof.