Sir Sean Connery's Aston Martin DB5 makes 1.9m at US auction REX/Shutterstock
Sir Sean Connery’s beloved Aston Martin DB5 makes £1.9m at US auction (Picture: REX/Shutterstock)

The Aston Martin DB5 owned and loved by Sir Sean Connery has fetched a whopping $2.2 million dollars (£1.9 million) at auction.

The family of the late James Bond star said they put the 1964 classic car up for bid to raise money for a philanthropy fund set up in his name.

UK-based Dan Carter, co-founder of the Showpiece platform, a site where people can buy and sell collectable items, tried to win the auction, which was held in California, in hopes of returning the car to the UK.

However, he was unwilling to increase his already high bid of $2 million US dollars (£1.8 million).

He said: ‘Sadly, we missed out on a chance to bring Sir Sean Connery’s personal Aston Martin DB5 back to Britain.

‘Yet if a new chance comes to buy this unique vehicle we’ll never say never again.’

Sales of Aston Martin went through the roof following its appearance in 1964's Goldfinger as Sir Sean's OO7's vehicle of choice (Picture: Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)
Sales of Aston Martin went through the roof following its appearance in 1964’s Goldfinger as Sir Sean’s OO7’s vehicle of choice (Picture: Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)
Sean Connery in Goldfinger
The actor poses as James Bond next to his Aston Martin DB5 in a scene from Goldfinger in 1964(Picture: Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Before the bidding, auctioneers Broad Arrow had expected it to sell for between $1.4 million and $1.8 million US dollars (£1.1 to £1.4 million)

The model of the Aston Martin, synonymous with the spy thriller franchise, was listed as a ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ as it is the only DB5 personally owned by Sir Sean.

After a long search, the actor, who died in October 2020 aged 90, bought the car from a specialist and had it repainted in the traditional Bond colour of snow shadow grey.

The family of the James Bond actor, who died in October 2020 aged 90, say they sold his classic car to raise money for a philanthropy fund set up in his name (Credits: PA)
The family of the James Bond actor, who died in October 2020 aged 90, say they sold his classic car to raise money for a philanthropy fund set up in his name (Credits: PA)
The late actor's role as Bond is still one of the most celebrated of the franchise (Picture: Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)
The late actor’s role as Bond is still one of the most celebrated of the franchise (Picture: Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)

He also had the wing mirrors removed as he felt it made the car look ‘cleaner’.

Edinburgh-born Sir Sean, who is still considered one of the franchise’s most legendary and popular actors to have taken on the role, bought the five-speed car because he wanted to drive it without the heavy gadgets used in the film – but would have kept the ejector seat if he could, according to his son.

Jason Connery continued: ‘Dad did tell me that driving the movie cars, all laden down with the gadgets, especially the machine guns in the front, made the car really front-heavy and turning at slow speed was a Herculean task, so driving without gadgets was a joy.

‘He loved how well balanced it was.

In the 1964 Bond film Goldfinger, Sir Sean’s Bond had a DB5 fitted with an array of gadgets including a 30 calibre machine gun in each front wheel arch and hub-mounted tyre slashers.

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Following the film’s release, there was a surge in sales for Aston Martin.

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