James Bond's Next Ride - Aston Martin, Again

DETROIT Jan 18, 2006; Reuters reported that he has a license to kill -- and a license to drive.

In the course of his career, James Bond has driven a Lotus Esprit Turbo that could self-destruct, a machine-gun equipped BMW 750 iL and even a three-wheeled Honda rickshaw.

But the next time out, 007 is going back to Aston Martin, the British luxury automaker that provided his first ride in 1964's "Goldfinger."

An Aston Martin DBS will be James Bond's car of choice in the upcoming film, "Casino Royale," scheduled for release later this year, the car maker said on Wednesday.

English actor Daniel Craig, who will play Bond, visited the Aston Martin headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire, last week to check out his new ride, according to the automaker, which is owned by Ford Motor Co.

Details of the car used in the film were being kept secret.

"It is great news that Bond will drive an Aston Martin again and we have built him something special to enable him to do his job in style," said Aston Martin's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Ulrich Bez.

Aston Martin first featured in a 007 film in 1964 when Sean Connery as Bond drove a DB5 in "Goldfinger." That car was tricked out with a bulletproof windshield, an oil sprayer, front-wing machine guns, tire-slashing blades and an ejector seat.

The last Bond film, 2002's "Die Another Day," included Aston Martin's flagship model, the Vanquish.