Paul McCartney's Aston Martin DB5 on auction

An Aston Martin DB5, purchased new by Paul McCartney in 1964, goes under the hammer at Bonham's on December 2nd 2017 during The Bond Street Sale.

Paul McCartney is a former member of The Beatles and wrote and performed the James Bond theme song for the Bond film Live And Let Die in 1973 with his band Wings.

Paul McCartney's Aston Martin DB5 "64 MAC" will be auctioned this December

The Aston Martin DB5 became world famous thanks to its appearance in the 1964 Bond film Goldfinger, the first movie that featured the DB5 as Bond’s car. Paul McCartney ordered the car in the summer of 1964, well before the movie came out, and he received the car on 22 September 1964, only five days after the Goldfinger World Premiere that was held at Leicester Square on September 17th 1964.

The purchase price of Paul's DB5 in 1964 was £3,800 plus purchase tax of £793.

Paul McCartney's Aston Martin DB5 "64 MAC" was originally blue, but after a restoration painted in silver grey

In a September 1967 profile of Paul McCartney, Time magazine wrote: 'Bachelor Paul, 25 (his favorite "bird" is 21-year old actress Jane Asher) is a movie addict, loves "the look of London" and tools around town in a spiffy blue Aston Martin DB5’.


The Aston was originally finished in Sierra Blue with black interior. Reportedly, the original interior leather also featured musical note-styled patterns in the stitching.

Paul McCartney's Aston Martin DB5 in 2012, before a RM Auctions sale, in the colour Sierra Blue (repainted but the same colour as Paul ordered it in 1964)
Photos © RM Auctions

Unusually, the car was also supplied with a Philips Auto-Mignon record player.

McCartney ordered a Philips record player with his DB5

McCartney owned the DB5 for six years, until 1970. Though Paul McCartney later owned a green Aston Martin DB6, which has been the subject of extensive media coverage, this lesser known DB5 is believed to be the first Aston owned by the musician.

He ordered it at a particularly important career juncture: just weeks after the Beatles' famous appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show and the completion of filming 'A Hard Day's Night', their first film. 


This DB5 also made an impression on Roger McGuinn, guitarist with the Californian rock band, The Byrds. McGuinn once recalled a concert that his band performed during their 1965 UK tour. Apparently the Beatles were in attendance and, following the show, the two bands spent some time socialising. 'The next night,' recalled Guinn, 'I went to Paul McCartney's club in St James's and he took me out for a drive around London in his Aston Martin DB5. It was a really amazing time.'

The original interior was black, but after the recent restoration it was fitted with a red interior

The interior now features references to Paul McCartney and The Beatles



In 1970, the odometer reading was 40,513 miles and it is believed that the car was sold to Truebell Stationers in Wandsworth, Southwest London. In the next decades, the car changed hands a few times.



The car was later acquired by broadcaster and motoring enthusiast, Chris Evans, who purchased the car's most appropriate '64 MAC' registration for it.

Former owner Chris Evans added the 64 MAC licence pate to the car

Again the car was sold a few times and only recently the car exterior was repainted in silver (instead of the original Sierra Blue) and the interior changed to red leather, instead of the original black.

The car has been completely restored and is currently in an immaculate condition.

In 2012, before the major restoration, the DB5 in its original Sierra Blue colour was sold for £344,400 ($550,282) at RM Auctions' in London. The estimated price for the now restored car at the upcoming auction is £1,250,000 - 1,500,000 ($1,650,000 - 2,000,000 / €1,400,000 - 1,700,000).

In the same auction, another Aston Martin DB5 will be auction. This Vantage Saloon is left-hand drive and has an expected price of £600,000 - 800,000 ($800,000 - 1,050,000 / €670,000 - 890,000), more info here. UPDATE 5 DEC: This car sold for £830,300 ($1.1m / €943,683) inc. premium

Another Aston Martin DB5, a right-hand drive Vantage, will also be offered during the same auction

The auction will take place on December 2nd 2017 at The Bond Street Sale in London. 

For the complete story of the car and recent restoration, visit Bonhams.com.

UPDATE: Paul McCartney's DB5 sold for £1,345,500 incl. premium

All photos © Bonham's unless noted otherwise