The spy who loved 'e': Bond's car to go green

NEW DELHI: Next year's 25th Bond film looks set to have Ian Fleming's hero make his first concession to climate change, by driving an electric Aston Martin. The Rapid E is also the first move towards electrification by the iconic British sports carmaker (who's developing it in collaboration with Williams Advanced Engineering) and will now join a long pedigree of Aston Martin cars to star in Bond films since 1964, including the DB5, DBS, V8 Vantage Volante and the V12 Vanquish.

But unlike its predecessors, the Rapide E will have a zero emissions electric drivetrain, thanks to director (and "tree-hugger") Cary Joji Fukunaga, who was reported to be the driving force behind the inclusion of the e-car. Worth up to £250,000 (Rs 2.3 crore at today's rates), and sporting a 64 kWh battery, two rear-mounted motors for 454 kW power output and 950 Nm torque, there will only be 155 copies of the car made in total.

Besides the luxury price tag, the vehicle is projected to go 0-60 mph in less than 4 seconds, with a top speed of 155 mph, according to Aston Martin, with all the high-tech gadgets, reportedly, in place.

After many delays, the movie is finally expected to begin production next month. This will be Daniel Craig's final outing as 007 and the majority of the principal cast from the previous movies during his tenure are expected to return. Rami Malek (of Bohemian Rhapsody fame) is set to play the main villain. James Bond 25 is currently set to hit theatres on April 8, 2020. Q, you've got work to do!