The 10 Best James Bond Cars Ranked

As far as iconic film franchises go, few do it better than the British super-spy James Bond. For over 60 years, the espionage series has followed the exploits of Bond, the ultimate gentleman spy, with a keen taste for sophistication. That stylish detail carries over to Bond's choice in automobiles, both used practically to get around his globe-hopping destinations and often fully stocked with lethal extras installed. Just like the many memorable women that Bond has romantic dalliances with, Agent 007 is rarely seen with the same car in more than one movie.

From the fully submersible to the reliable set of wheels to get through windy roads in the middle of a high-speed chase, Bond has an extensive array of cars. Though many of the makes and models gradually change over time, that classic sense of distinction never diminishes. 

Here are the 10 best James Bond cars ranked.

The very first car Bond has in the film series, not counting a Chevrolet Bel Air that he briefly commandeers, is a Sunbeam Alpine Series II. Seen in 1962's "Dr. No, the movie that kicked off the enduring franchise, the Alpine is Bond's go-to car while working in Jamaica. Though the car lacks any discernible gadgets, Bond is able to outmaneuver a trio of hitmen trying to run him off the road. This chase culminates in the enemy car tumbling off the dusty cliff and immediately combusting into flames as Bond watches impassively from above.

The Sunbeam Alpine reflects the film franchise's more modest origins, rather than the flashier cars that it would become long-associated with. The chase footage itself is done through rear projection when featuring shots of Connery, another lo-fi sign of the times. Sean Connery's Bond even makes an offhand comment about his car being a rental since arriving in Jamaica. Though a far cry from what would come later in the series, the Alpine certainly gets the job done.

The Lotus is a car that's so good that James Bond gets to drive two of them over the course of a single movie. 1981's "For Your Eyes Only" puts Bond (Roger Moore) back behind the wheel of a Lotus, this time the Esprit Turbo. Bond drives a white Lotus Esprit Turbo through Spain early in the movie, only for it self-destruct through its automated safety protocol when someone breaches a window while he's away. Later in the film, when Bond travels to Cortina in Northern Italy, he has replaced his fallen white car with a dark red Lotus Esprit Turbo.

The Lotus fits the overall tone of "For Your Eyes Only," trading out the flash for something more utilitarian, yet with a quiet sense of elegance. The only major gadget seen equipped in the Esprit Turbo is the self-destruct function, used more as a gag and setup for a stripped-down car chase in Spain. The red Esprit Turbo contrasts well with the snowy road of Cortina, while subtly useful as Bond stores his skis on its roof. "For Your Eyes Only" was an effort to bring Bond back to Earth after the over-the-top "Moonraker," and that's well-reflected in his choice of car.

After a seven-year absence, Bond resumed driving the Aston Martin in 2002's "Die Another Day," only for the widely maligned Bond movie to turn it invisible with haphazard cloaking technology. The following movie, 2006's "Casino Royale," featured both the classic Aston Martin DB5 and the modern Aston Martin DBS V12. This time around, both cars were kept decidedly visible, with Bond receiving the DBS V12 while on assignment in Montenegro. While chasing down the villainous Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen), Bond accidentally flips the car to avoid running down his love interest Vesper Lynd (Eva Green). Bond continues driving a V12 in the opening car chase of "Quantum of Solace."

Daniel Craig's inaugural turn as James Bond completely revitalized the franchise, and it's only fitting that rebirth comes with a new Aston Martin. Matching the movie's more grounded tone, the only features the DBS offers is a special compartment for Bond's gun and a portable defibrillator. Craig's Bond was a spy that was more brutal than his predecessors but definitely no less fashionable. That certainly is true of his cars in what is one of the best James Bond movies of all time.

1969's "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," the first Bond movie without Connery, is something of an anomaly in the franchise. This movie's James Bond, Australian actor George Lazenby, disappeared from Hollywood after his singular turn as the British spy. Bond is back to driving an Aston Martin, but instead of the silver DB5 that defined the Connery era, Lazenby's Bond drives a green Aston Martin DBS. The car's usage bookends the movie, in the opening scenes in coastal Portugal and the wedding gone wrong that closes out the film.

With its forest green paint job, the Aston Martin DBS is one of the more visually distinct cars in Bond's fleet. Like much of the movie's more grounded tone, the only visible gadget that the DBS possesses is a special compartment for Bond's gun attachments, including a telescopic sight. Shortly after revealing this feature, Bond takes the DBS off-road, racing down a beach to save Tracy Draco (Diana Rigg) from drowning. Understated and unique, like "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" itself, the Aston Martin DBS is an underrated Bond car.

The last movie to date where Bond's primary car of choice is a BMW, 1999's "The World Is Not Enough" features the BMW Z8. The car's introduction also marks the debut of John Cleese as Bond's new quartermaster for the remainder of the Pierce Brosnan era, bringing more humor to the proceedings. Bond takes the Z8 with him on his latest assignment in Azerbaijan, including a visit to a caviar factory by the Caspian Sea. Bond uses the Z8's hidden missiles to battle a group of attacking helicopters, only for his car to be cut in half by a lumber buzzsaw.

Brosnan's Bond era had a three-picture sponsorship deal with BMW, ending with "The World Is Not Enough." This association works for the mid to late '90s, with much of Brosnan's Bond era linked to missions at least partially set throughout Europe. These German-made cars are marginally smaller than the British-manufactured rides Bond was associated with before and after Brosnan's run. Small and sleek, the BMW Z8 made a splash but still couldn't elude destruction on-screen.

It feels like a bit of a cheat to include the Mercury Cougar XR-7 from "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," as Bond himself doesn't drive it in the movie. Instead, his main love interest and eventual wife Tracy drives the American-made automobile, rescuing Bond from Spectre agents in a snowy Swiss town. This leads to Bond and Tracy joining a stock car race to evade their pursuers, where Tracy outpaces most of the competitors, leaving Bond visibly impressed. The Cougar XR-7 is also seen early in the movie, driven by Tracy across various scenic locations in Portugal.

Any car appearing prominently in an explosive stock car race is going to warrant consideration for this list, regardless of who is driving it. The Mercury Cougar XR-7 also gives the Bond franchise a bonafide American muscle car in contrast to its usual array of European automobiles. The Cougar catches Bond's eye -– and ours — right from the moment it roars past his Aston Martin DBS at the beginning of the film. The Bond franchise was starting to take more chances, and that was reflected in its growing line of associated cars.

After an extended absence from the franchise, including the entirety of the Moore era, Bond began driving Aston Martins again in Timothy Dalton's inaugural film as 007, "The Living Daylights." The 1987 movie had Bond driving an Aston Martin V8 on a mission in Soviet-controlled Bratislava where he picked up Kara Milovy (Maryam d'Abo), a cellist of certain interest. With Kara under surveillance, she and Bond are pursued by the Soviet military across the wintry Czechoslovakian countryside. After expending the V8's arsenal of weapons and crashing into a snowbank, Bond sets his car to self-destruct as he and Kara continue their escape.

Like Dalton's tenure as Bond, his Aston Martin V8 is widely under-appreciated or overlooked in the pantheon of great Bond cars. The V8 has a more understated elegance than its flashier counterparts from the '60s or 21st century, which works to its advantage. Two different versions of the V8 actually appear in "The Living Daylights," with a convertible Bond briefly drives in England and a hardtop model he uses abroad. "No Time to Die" included the V8 as a subtle nod to the Dalton era, seen when Daniel Craig's Bond returns to duty from Jamaica.

Apart from a car chase with an Aston Martin DB5 in the beginning, 1995's "GoldenEye" didn't feature much by way of flashy modern cars, only briefly displaying a BMW Z3. This changed considerably with its 1997 follow-up, "Tomorrow Never Dies," continuing BMW's sponsorship of the franchise with the inclusion of BMW 750iL. Q (Desmond Llewelyn) gives Bond (Brosnan) his BMW after he arrives in Germany, revealing that it can be remotely driven on his cellphone. This feature comes in handy as Bond deals with several thugs in a crowded parking garage before sending the car crashing into a storefront below.

Looking at the full order of Brosnan Bond movies, "Tomorrow Never Dies" is the film where his era finds its formula, right down to its automobile usage. The BMW 750iL gets both a test drive in front of an exasperated Q and a major action set piece shortly thereafter. Brosnan visibly enjoys getting to play with his new car, including its magnificent aerial crash. Bond may have started driving BMWs with "GoldenEye," but it's the 750iL in "Tomorrow Never Dies" where the association sticks.

To date, Roger Moore is the only Bond actor never to drive any Aston Martins during his time as 007. Instead, the car most closely associated with the Moore era is the Lotus Esprit, which was introduced in 1977's "The Spy Who Loved Me." Given to Bond by Q while he and Soviet spy Anya Amasova (Barbara Bach) are in Sardinia, the Esprit S1 outpaces several enemy vehicles, including a helicopter. The S1 proves to be just as formidable underwater, where it quickly transforms into a fully functional submarine, complete with its own arsenal of aquatic weapons.

From its striking white color scheme to its distinctly shaped body, the Lotus Esprit S1 is a car that captures the Bond '70s aesthetic. Composer Marvin Hamlisch's disco-inspired arrangement of the Bond theme helps cement that association, moving and grooving as Bond plows through the opposition. The Lotus, mercifully, is one of the few Bond cars to survive its adventures, with Bond coolly taking a victory lap on a beach after fighting off the bad guys. "The Spy Who Loved Me" revived the Bond franchise during a period of uncertainty, and the Lotus was no small part of the movie's success.

When it comes to James Bond, there really is no other car more closely associated with the franchise than the Aston Martin DB5. The car made its debut in 1964's "Goldfinger," complete with gadgets like its passenger ejector seat, with Sean Connery's Bond driving it again in the following film, "Thunderball." Pierce Brosnan's Bond briefly drove a DB5 in the beginning of 1995's GoldenEye," heralding the franchise's return after nearly half a decade. Daniel Craig's Bond wins a DB5 in a high-stakes poker game in 2006's "Casino Royale," going on to drive it for the remainder of his run.

More than any other car, when that silver Aston Martin DB5 appears in the frame accompanied by the opening notes to the Bond theme, you know what you're in for. The DB5 is more consistent in its physical appearance than other famous movie cars like the Batmobile or any number of the cars used in the "Fast & Furious" franchise. Despite being over 60-years-old, the DB5 remains as effortlessly cool as it was when it was unveiled in "Goldfinger." The very definition of timeless, the Aston Martin DB5 remains the car that exemplifies the James Bond franchise, classic, stylish, and lethal all at once.