Daniels Craig's Aston Martin Vanquish Sold For Less Than We Expected

The James Bond star even helped work the phones to entice bidders.

In February we learned that current James Bond star Daniel Craig planned to auction his bespoke Aston Martin Vanquish, with all proceeds going to charity. The Christie’s auction in New York took place late last week and that stunning V12-powered coupe was sold for $468,500. It was originally estimated to bring in between $400,000 to $600,000, so the estimate turned out to be pretty spot-on, but it’s still definitely at the lower end of the spectrum.

Daniel Craig himself, who sits on the board of The Opportunity Network, the recipient of the proceeds, made a surprise appearance at the auction to help bring in the bids. He even worked the phones and spoke to bidders encouraging them to, of course, place even higher bids. The 2014 model year Vanquish itself is called the “Centenary Vanquish,” numbered 007. Makes sense. Craig teamed up with Aston Martin Chief Creative Officer Marek Reichman for the bespoke effort, which resulted in a left-hand drive, 6.0-liter V12-powered exotic. A six-speed automatic transmission directs power to the rear wheels. Painted midnight-blue, the interior also boasts a similar color.

Only 100 examples of the Centenary Blue Edition Vanquish were made, but only one belonged to agent 007 himself. And now it’s moved on to its second owner, who we doubt has any secret agent fighting skills. They will, however, soon be on their way to Aston Martin's headquarters in Gaydon, UK for a full factory tour, another benefit of placing the winning bid.

Like A Bond: Daniel Craig's 2014 Aston Martin Vanquish Up For Grabs

Proceeds from its sale will benefit The Opportunity Network.

The vast majority of us haven’t been gifted with the many talents required to be a secret agent. But, for enough dough, you can at least drive in the style of the world's most-popular spy thanks to this: a 2014 Aston Martin Vanquish to be offered at auction by Christie’s in New York on April 20th (via Uncrate). It's no normal Aston Martin, if there is such a thing. The midnight-blue Centenary Edition Vanquish is owned by James Bond’s most recent portrayer, Daniel Craig, and it’s numbered 007 for that extra bit of spooktacular provenance.

As with all Vanquishes, this one is powered by the firm’s 6.0-liter V-12, which is paired to a six-speed automatic transmission. Craig, in partnership Aston Martin Chief Creative Officer Marek Reichman, further customized the left-hand drive, street-legal car with a deep-blue leather interior before its initial delivery. Christie’s estimates the Vanquish will fetch between $400,000–600,000. That’s a lot of coin to shell out just to play a make-believe Bond, but the car is rare in its own right. Aston Martin built just 100 examples of the 183-mph Centenary Edition Vanquish. The winning bidder will also receive an invitation to visit Aston Martin’s headquarters in Gaydon, UK.

All proceeds from the car’s sale will benefit The Opportunity Network, a charity that aids the career development of youth. “This Aston Martin Vanquish is a tour de force of automobile engineering and a distinct pleasure to drive,” said Craig in a release from Christie’s. “While I will miss it, I am keen to further the very important work of The Opportunity Network with its sale.” Christie’s is no stranger to James Bond-related automotive memorabilia. It sold the Aston Martin DB10 used in the Bond flick “Spectre” for ￡2.4 million ($3.37 million) in 2016 as part of “James Bond Spectre – the auction,” which featured 24 individual lots from the film.

(As the images provided of the Vanquish by Christie’s were limited, only the top two photos are of the car going up for sale. The remaining photos are from Aston Martin and depict a similarly colored Vanquish S.)