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Can James Bond's Aston Martin DB5 Drift? The Stig Investigates

The Stig just managed to get a sample of the James Bond lifestyle, at least for a few corners in a row. As insane as it may sound, the producers have handed him the keys to an Aston Martin DB5, the actual car from the upcoming James Bond movie, "No Time to Die."
Stig Drifts Aston Martin DB5 16 photos
Photo: Top Gear
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Now, we did expect to see some special cars featured in the new Stig Drifts series, and we've already seen the anonymous driver swerve around in a BMW M3 E92 GTS, a Mercedes-AMG C63 Black Series, and a Caterham 620R of all cars!

But this time, he's really stepped things up a notch, and not by looking at horsepower figures, but by acknowledging the history behind this vehicle. A car most James Bond fans will remember seeing in the third installment of the series, Goldfinger, back in 1964!

Now, the legendary British luxury GT is back in the spotlight, and quite fitting to have this happen, considering the recent passing of Sir Sean Connery, who also drove a DB5 back when he portrayed James Bond. The DB5 The Stig abused in this video will be featured in the new movie, alongside a V8 Vantage, a DBS Superleggera, and even the Aston Martin Valhalla.

Now, you'd expect drifting an actual DB5 would be a bit more difficult than it looks in this clip, and by noticing the weight figures and the half roll cage in the back, it's obvious that this is no longer a bone stock DB5. Or perhaps even a DB5 at all.

It looks like horsepower figures have gone up just by a bit, with 340 bhp on tap as compared to the standard 325 bhp in the DB5 Vantage. By listening to the sound of the engine, and the hints left by the producer, it's quickly obvious that there's a BMW engine under the hood.

The car has gone through a serious diet, now weighing only 2,198 lbs (997 kg), as opposed to the 3,311 lbs (1,502kg) when it came out of the factory. But we guess that it helps when the starting point is a DB5 replica on a custom built frame chassis, rather than an actual DB5.

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About the author: Dragos Chitulescu
Dragos Chitulescu profile photo

The things Dragos enjoys the most in life are, in no particular order: cars, motorcycles, diecast cars, and drifting. He's seen (and driven) many vehicles since he started his writing career back in 2009, but his garage currently houses a 1991 Mazda RX-7 FC3S Turbo II and a 1999 Suzuki SV650-S.
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