Anyone who has watched the James Bond franchise is familiar with the Aston Martin DB5. It is the only car with a recurring role and special modifications, like the passenger ejection seat, bulletproof rear shield, and retractable machine guns, made quite an impression during the car’s film debut in Goldfinger.
Long hoping for a new Aston Martin DB4 or DB5 kit, I was excited to hear about the Revell 1/24 scale Aston Martin DB5 James Bond 007 Goldfinger plastic model car kit. I was hoping for a stock version without all the spy stuff, but I will take what I can get. Some of the parts hint that a stock version with left-hand drive parts and maybe a full engine could be coming.
The kit includes a nicely proportioned body molded in a silvery gray, a chassis with adequate detail, steerable wheels, and of course, all the special features of the movie car. The molded wire wheels are good but would probably be the first thing I’d replace. The rubber tires have good tread but plain sidewalls.
Construction starts with the chassis, and, although somewhat simplified, it looks the part. All the components are separate, so detail painting is a breeze with good callouts in the instructions. The parts fit together well, but “easy click” may not be the most accurate description. They attach like more of a press-fit, with some requiring a decent amount of force to get them into position. A few parts needed a touch of glue to ensure a secure join.
Since I planned to build a stock version, which the kit offers, I omitted the spy gizmos inside. The most difficult part here was filling the holes for the console between the seats since most photos I found didn’t show one. There is also a set of holes for the pedals in the left-hand footwell that need filling. Decals are provided for the instruments and even the top of the shift knob.
The body required the most work to build as a stock version. First, I glued in the roof panel, bulletproof shield, and lower front fascia and filled and sanded the seams. The front bumper has the big box section in the middle to house the rotating license plate, so it isn’t accurate for stock. I chose to do a quasi-lightweight bumper-less version and filled those holes. There are some mold lines to address, but most were easily cleaned up. When painting, be cautious of build-up here that will make fitting the glass difficult.
Adding the front fascia made fitting the chassis a tight squeeze, but I was able to sneak it in. The rest of the parts — door handles, wipers, etc. — went on without issue. The clear parts are thin but uneven, so there is some distortion when looking through them, and my windshield came loose in the bag and had some light scuff marks. The window glass is tight, and one side window shows a slight stress mark from the installation. The instructions show the taillights as red on top with the two lower in orange, but my reference shows them as orange on top, red in the middle, and clear on the bottom.
I’m probably not the target audience for the Revell 1/24 scale Aston Martin DB5 James Bond 007 Goldfinger Easy Click plastic model car kit. It may not be what I was ultimately hoping for, but it does build up into a nice-looking model of the car. All the important parts are covered, the proportions look good, the stance is right, and the build is trouble-free. Whether you’re a movie buff or just like classic British GTs, check this one out!