At first glance, it may not have much in common with James Bond’s famous Aston Martin.
But this rusty old stunner has one key feature in common with 007’s most celebrated car: it was also driven by Sir Sean Connery.
A white Mercedes saloon previously owned by the star is now up for sale – already attracting worldwide interest from fans of the legendary Scot.
Euphemistically described as a “restoration project”, the 45-year-old vehicle currently has little of the glamor associated with a Bond car – the paint is battered and grubby, there is rust along the wheel arches and roof, the upholstery is stained and the rear bumper is hanging off.
Likewise, it doesn’t have any of the ejection seats, rocket launchers, or other high-tech gadgets that come with the superspy – though it does have an automatic gearbox, climate control, and a radio-cassette player.
Old stunner: Paul Wiggington with the white Mercedes sedan formerly owned by Connery
Sean Connery, left, with Ursula Andress, gave the car to his brother
The main attraction of the vehicle, however, is its impeccably documented link to one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
By the late 1970s Connery, from Edinburgh, had become one of the world’s most famous actors having starred in six Bond films – Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice and Diamonds Are Forever -. like other blockbusters, including Murder On The Orient Express, The Man Who Would Be King and A Bridge Too Far.
A letter addressed to the Scotsman, who lived in Malaga in Spain at the time, shows that he bought the 300SD model directly from the manufacturer in 1978.
Donna Noble, the company’s global sales coordinator, wrote to him: “We appreciate this opportunity to serve you and thank you for supporting Mercedes-Benz.”
The registration papers confirm that in 1983 – the same year he reprized the role of Bond in Never Say Never Again – Connery, giving his address as Montpelier St in London, registered the car with the DVLA for use in the UK.
In 1988, the actor then donated the second-hand vehicle to his brother. A letter signed by the Scot dated October 1988 confirms that the ‘white Mercedes 300 Saloon number BRK 862Y’ is a ‘gift to my brother Neil’.
Neil drove around Edinburgh by car for years – drawing admiration from neighbors who knew its showbiz heritage.
In 2013, one of Neil’s friends, Kevin Wiggington, bought the car from him after noticing it sitting unused in his driveway.
At this point the car was no longer running and was placed in a garage for storage – where it remained for the next decade.
After Mr Wiggington’s death, the car is now being marketed by his son Paul, an airline pilot who lives in Cramond on the outskirts of Edinburgh.
Document from the late Sir Sean Connery showing that he gifted a white Mercedes to his brother Neil
The car has an automatic gearbox, climate control and a radio-cassette player
The 45-year-old vehicle currently has little of the glamor of a Bond car
Mr Wiggington, 34, said: ‘In 1978 this was a very nice car indeed, with a powerful engine and a luxurious interior – just what you would expect from a movie star like Sir Sean.
“By the time my dad bought it, it wasn’t walking. Dad put it in a garage for safekeeping and planned to restore it, but it was a huge project and he never got a chance to finish it.
‘I have no idea what it’s worth… But it’s not really about making money, more about doing something with the car.
It’s a piece of history, a collector’s item. It’s a car only a Connery has driven—Sir Sean or his brother Neil.”
Although only recently listed on the Ebay trading site, the car has already attracted Bond fan response and interest from around the world.
In his role as Bond, Connery rumbled around some of the world’s most exotic locations in a range of glamorous cars.
In the first 007 movie, Dr No, he raced across Jamaica behind the wheel of a blue Sunbeam Alpine convertible.
In Diamonds Are Forever, the spy was chased through the streets of Las Vegas in a bright red Mustang Mach I.
However, Bond’s most instantly recognizable vehicles remain the gadget-laden Aston Martin DB5s he drove in Goldfinger and Thunderball – complete with
rotating license plate, bulletproof windshield, machine guns, oil slick and smoke screens, plus passenger ejection seat.