Hey, that's an Aston Martin DB5. Wait. Wait. No. It isn't. It looks like one, but it also looks like it's kind of scared, or maybe confused. And that's because it isn't a DB5, it's the David Brown Automotive Speedback.
The David Brown of this new company is not related to the David Brown who used to own Aston Martin and lent his initials to all of the cars, which is a good thing because the aesthetic taste isn't quite up to the same level.
DBA bases the Speedback on the Jaguar XKR, which means there's a 510 horsepower supercharged V8 under the hood and a six-speed automatic sending power out back. But instead of the lovely Ian Callum-penned bodyshell, we have this modern interpretation of the DB5.
But what you end up with is basically one of those 1953 Corvette recreations on a C5 chassis. It's not as special to drive as the original and it certainly doesn't look nearly as good either. I mean, look at those wheels. Can they be real? The body is supposed to look old, but it just doesn't. People try and make cars like this all of the time — modern underpinnings, classic design — and it's rare that it works. Really rare.
The interior does look fantastic though, old school polished metals and woods. And then you see the wheel, which is just an XK wheel.
Designers say that they pulled inspiration for this car from a number of cars of the era. I'm guessing they just looked at many Aston DB5s, because that's really all I can see.
What it does have is a seat in the trunk that can be used for picnics or just a nice relaxing makeout session overlooking the French Riviera. This is a feature that Bond would have really loved. Too bad he probably would have asked Q to redesign the rest of the car.