The Little Car Company’s No Time to Die Aston Martin DB5 Junior

Another chapter in the James Bond franchise is about to draw to a close, with the final outing as 007 for Daniel Craig. While the public might be fickle regarding who plays Bond -Craig’s granting of a Licence to Kill was met with as much criticism as there was delight, yet now there’s nobody who wants to see him go… the consensus towards the James Bond Aston Martin leans towards almost universal love. But they are very expensive; so what if there was another option?

Most of us who loved cars can trace our first fascinations back to our childhood favourites (mine was Corgi’s Green Hornet ‘Black Beauty’). One of the big sellers in the diecast market, despite it originally being gold and not silver, was the Corgi James Bond Aston Martin DB5. So, for all those who are now getting pangs of nostalgia, this one is for you.

The Little Car Company always manages to put a smile on my face; their creations bridge the gap between those gadget-filled Corgi toys, a go-kart and the real thing – three things that can span a lifetime. With excitement building for the release of the last Daniel Craig outing as Bond, No Time to Die, it’s perfect timing to look at the Bicester-based Little Car Company’s fantastic two-thirds scale Aston Martin DB5 from the same movie.

The Aston No Time to Die electricDB5 Junior is official too, having been created in collaboration with EON Productions and Aston Martin with input from Chris Corbould, who has been the special effects advisor on 15 Bond movies so far. The car itself is simply a work of art – it looks quite stunning. It’s no toddler-toy mind, with a top speed of around 45mph and an improved range over the company’s existing DB5 giving a range of 80 miles from four 1.8kWh batteries. It also manages to pump out 21.5bhp – that’s not much less than a full-size road going classic Beetle 1200. Obviously, this isn’t your 1970s toy go-kart either, so The Little Car Company has specified Brembo brakes with regenerative braking to pull the DB5 Junior to a halt and Bilstein dampers to smooth out the handling. Inside, the retro-style gauges are made by the famous clockmaker Smiths, and smartly now show motor temp and battery life rather than fuel or oil temperature.

One of the things that made that Corgi model such a huge seller was the gadgets (you probably remember the pop-up bullet shield at the rear), and as a small boy in a pre-high-tech world, life didn’t get much better. The Little Car Co has tapped into this and made sure that the DB5 Junior special edition isn’t just great to look at, but that it has most of the No Time to Die gadgetry as well. Yes, it’s got old-style machine guns that pop out from the headlights, but it also has a smoke screen that can be switched on to pump fake ‘smoke’ out of the rear exhaust. It also has the ability to switch number plates (handy for an alibi if your garden is only a 30mph zone). The machine guns, well they are wonderful though and guaranteed to put a smile on every face that sees them appear.

I mentioned earlier that this was an official car, so of course it comes with joint entry into both The Little Car Club and more importantly, the Aston Martin Owners Club. Via your LCC membership, you can gain access to special track days designed to showcase the joys of the Little Car Company’s various Junior models.

You will note that the Aston Martin DB5 Junior is a convertible, and this throws it firmly into the realm of the class of big boy’s toys – yes, a salivating dad or mum can, depending on girth, squeeze into the little car and relive those childhood Corgi memories all over again.

Now it won’t come as too much of a surprise to know that the Aston Martin No Time to Die DB5 Junior special edition comes at quite a hefty price. Depending on extras, you will need to stump up at least £90,000 to become a lucky owner. That’s a lot for a non-road legal, two-thirds scale car – but it is classed as a genuine Aston Martin – and there is always the Little Car Company’s basic DB5 to consider if the price is too eye watering.

Images: driving.co.uk