With the Aston Martin DBS on the scene, luxury car hire will never be the same again. Bond is most decidedly back in action with ‘Quantum of Solace’, the 22nd [believe it or not] Bond film in the 007 series. This stunning car has shattered both world records and film budgets in order to deliver the most exciting driving experience in a Bond film yet. When you dream of cruising down the open road in a luxury car hire, what do you imagine yourself driving? A chrome red Porsche? A Lamborghini Murcielago? Or the exclusive, distinctly English styling’s of an Aston Martin? If the DBS is good enough for the man with the golden gun, it is more than likely to be good enough for you. A truly great luxury sports car is a rarity, what with hybrid cars squeezing their way into the top-end market. This, on the other hand, is a car with no equal.

A History:

Before we delve into the specifics of the car itself, some background on Aston Martin and the James Bond franchise is in order. The very first Bond film to include the legendary Aston Martin was ‘Goldfinger’ [1959] and the model in question was the DB 5. This classic beauty had a top speed of 227 km/h and had the distinct advantage of being an extremely rare model. The car used in ‘Goldfinger’ was the prototype model and was auctioned off for a record-breaking $2,090,000 after filming. If you consider that it initially sold for £5000, this is quite the mark-up, but an amount that any Bond enthusiast would spend in a heartbeat. An updated model of the DB 5 was used yet again in ‘Thunderball’ [1965].

The 80’s brought us a totally revamped Aston Martin, the DBS. This model looks completely unlike its 2008 counterpart and the 1969 version from ‘On Her Majesty's Secret Service’, yet still manages to reaches top speeds in excess of 274 km/h. The DBS and the beefy V8 Vantage were two models that were used in the 1987 Bond film, ‘The Living Daylights’.

The next time we would see an Aston Martin in a Bond film would be in the 1997 blockbuster, ‘Die Another Day’. The lusciously gorgeous Aston Martin Vanquish was used in plenty of eye-popping film sequences and still remains a sought-after luxury car ‘till this day. Initially recalled due to a malfunctioning gearbox, the original Vanquish is an exceedingly rare beauty and the next model will only be available in late 2010. The Last Bond Film to use the Aston Martin was ‘Casino Royal’, the revamp of the series which introduced us to the DBS V12. This classy number is famous for flipping seven times in a stunt sequence, earning it a place in the Guinness World Book of Records.

The Car:

The official website elegantly states the 2008 DBS’s three main attributes as: ‘power, beauty and soul’. Each V12 engine is hand-built for unprecedented power and control. The car is described as being both tight on the corners, yet always able to create a monumentally fast driving experience. The powerfully built body exudes a dynamic of strength through its less-than-functional design. The DBS is crafted from honed aluminium and carbon-fibre. Every inch of this beast has been designed with care and performance in mind. The car can be likened to the body of an athlete, as the whole shape is like that of a steel muscle, flexing around every hairpin corner. The DBS was created for the open road. Sitting in traffic, the engine purrs uncomfortably and waits for the opportune moment to release its full power. The sporty two-seat design of the DBS is considered the benchmark for any luxury vehicle and offers the driver a unique insight into what real comfort is.

What are you waiting for then? The latest Bond film, ‘Quantum of Solace’, uses the DBS I have described, but in new and exciting ways. I can tell you are searching for ‘Aston Martin car rental’ on Google, aren’t you? The DBS is not as yet available for rental [can you imagine the prices?], however there are other varieties of Aston Martins which can be rented throughout South Africa. Rent a car in Cape Town, Johannesburg or Durban, I’ll make mine Aston Martin any day.