Bentley
4¼ Litre Three-Position Drophead Coupé by Gurney Nutting, chassis B129JY (Never Say Never Again film car)

Why it matters

Never Say Never Again gave Sean Connery's Bond a vintage Bentley, echoing Fleming's novels, and this is the car used. It is also a significant coachbuilt car in its own right: one of a handful of Derby Bentleys with Gurney Nutting's three-position drophead body, each unique, and an early design by John Blatchley.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

The chassis was tested at Gurney Nutting on 15 July 1937 and sold new through H R Owen to an owner in Havana, Cuba, being shipped to France that November. It later spent decades in Scotland and England before moving abroad.

In Never Say Never Again (1983) Bond drives it to the Shrublands health clinic; the same car then appeared in Magnum, P.I. (season 6, 1985) and the film Déjà Vu (1985). After a ground-up restoration costing over $450,000 it was shown at Pebble Beach in 2003, and Bonhams sold it at the Goodwood Revival on 3 September 2004 for £188,500. It was sold again by Bonhams in July 2010 and is in a private collection.

Technical specifications

Engine

Transmission & drivetrain

Chassis, body & dimensions

Performance

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

1. 1
   Bonhams Goodwood Revival 2004, lot 191 (archived catalogue text on LotSearch) Level C

   • 1 Bentley used on screen as Bond's car in Never Say Never Again (this car)

   Accessed 2026-11-12
2. 2
   The ex-James Bond '007' 1937 Bentley 4¼ Litre Drophead Coupé, coachwork by Gurney Nutting (Bonhams, Goodwood Revival, lot 191) Level C Bonhams (archived on LotSearch) · 2004-09-03

   • 4,257cc, increased from 3,669cc
   • Synchromesh four-speed gearbox
   • servo-assisted brakes

   Accessed 2026-11-12