James Bond's Aston DB5 sells for £2.9 million.
The seven-figure sum Drive Cult predicted was realised when the Aston Martin DB5 used in the James Bond films Goldfinger and Thunderball sold for a buyers premium inclusive sum of £2,912,000, or $4,608,500 as its new American owner is more likely to say.
The final figure, while impressive, is well short of the $10,000,000 that some of the non-motoring press had bandied around beforehand. What was perhaps more surprising is that even after the car's promotional world tour, and probably extensive behind-the-scenes marketing to wealthy clients, the car garnered just two bids. Maybe the allure of the James Bond Aston, with its limited usability, has less appeal to most wealthy car collectors than a Ferrari or Jaguar D-Type, both of which would be eligible for the best car events.
Of the other cars we previewed, the Ferrari 365 Berlinetta Boxer failed to sell with a high bid of £70,000 (reports that my colleague Martin Spain is negotiating with the vendor to trade his right arm for this car proved unfounded). Considering its close proximity to the estimate I'm surprised that the hammer did not go down on this one, and it wouldn't surprise me if this car is sold in post-sale trading.
The Daytona sold for £128,800 inclusive of premium. Comments from several sources say that this was not a very good car and in need of major mechanical recommissioning to make it usable. On the basis that it can cost £20,000 or more to get a Daytona gearbox sorted this one was probably priced correctly.
The Corvette racing car sold for £50,400, something of a bargain at little more than half of the low estimate. With a limited number of suitable racing series in the UK and Europe for the car, the vendor may have been better served seeking to sell this car in the United States.
The Islero hammered at £95,000 (£106,000 with buyers premium), spot on the lower end of the estimate. At that price it compares favourably with the equivalent GTC Ferraris, and still would have been my pick from the auction.
Overall, RM are likely to declare the event a major success with the majority of lots selling. However, many of these sold for less than their estimates, with the Pagani Zonda R and Lamborghini Miura SVJ notably being well under expectations.
RM also took the opportunity to announce a new auction at the Villa D'Este concours next May, where no doubt there will be another collection of jaw-dropping cars going under the hammer.
The full list of prices can be found here.