1998 Aston Martin Db7 Volante on 2040-cars

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Final Spectre trailer drops, still looks awesome

Well, here we are. After all the teasers, behind-the-scenes photos and videos, and wrecked Aston Martins, we have the final trailer for the newest James Bond flick, Spectre. Through all the leaks and other trailers, we've got a pretty good idea as to how many vehicular set pieces there will be when Spectre hits trailers. Obviously, the premiere spot will be the chase between 007's Aston Martin DB10 and the Jaguar C-X75 of baddy Mr. Hinx, while there looks to be a wintry exchange featuring a Range Rover Sport SVR, some Defenders, and a plane. This trailer also shows some kind of pickup truck – we're guessing it's a Toyota Hilux – t-boning an older Jaguar XJ, which we think is new footage. Of course, there's a lot more action beyond the automotive variety. There's a helicopter sequence, gunfights, a building collapse, and we get our very best look at the film's main villain, played by a Max von Sydow/Blofeld-channeling Christoph Waltz. Check out the trailer, available at the top of the page. Spectre hits US theaters on November 6.

Red Bull and Aston Martin are working together on a supercar

Ever since Adrian Newey stepped back from the day-to-day at Red Bull Racing last year, we've been wondering what he would do next. And here we very well may have the answer. According to Autocar, the legendary F1 engineer is working on a hardcore, track-focused supercar for Aston Martin. Details are few and far between, but it is believed that the project could make use of a Mercedes engine and take aim at the likes of the Ferrari FXX K and McLaren P1 GTR. That's more or less the same territory Aston is already going after with the Vulcan (pictured), but just how closely aligned the two vehicles would be remains unclear. Newey is said to be keen on making the vehicle road-legal, however – something which the FXX K, P1 GTR, and Vulcan are not. The news comes hot on the heels of an earlier report that indicated Aston Martin and Red Bull were in discussions over a potential partnership in F1 (together with Mercedes). Both developments appear to be stemming from the same rapprochement between the two outfits, but are said to be independent of one another in that one could go ahead without the other. It is just one of several projects, however, that Newey is said to be evaluating in his capacity as head of Red Bull Technologies. It would not be the first time we would see a high-end automaker team up with an F1 team to create a supercar, after all. McLaren built the SLR for Mercedes before going it alone, and Jaguar more recently collaborated closely with Williams Advanced Engineering on the C-X75 concept, an experimental supercar project that was unfortunately aborted prior to reaching production. We'll be watching and hoping to see how the Aston Martin/Red Bull partnership pans out.

Aston Martin testing modified Vantage at the 'Ring

Aston Martin is on the verge of a renaissance that stands to be the biggest shift for the British automaker since it went independent in 2007 – if not since Ford took it over in the early 1990s. It's got a new chief executive, a new engine deal in place with Mercedes-AMG, a new platform under development and – if the new Lagonda sedan is anything to go by – maybe a new design direction in the works. And what do we have here? A test mule that could foreshadow one of the first new models of this new era. Spied undergoing testing at the Nurburgring (where else), this prototype looks for the most part like the existing V12 Vantage S, but with what look to be even wider wheel arches. The question, then, is what those widened wells are there to accommodate, and the most likely conclusion would be that new Mercedes engine. Aside from the lack of grille slats inside that trademark opening in the nose and the competition-spec alloys inset in those arches, there's not much else to go on. But that Aston is testing such a prototype at all is evidence enough that work is under way on something exciting, so watch this space.