Throughout the course of the James Bond film franchise, Rolls-Royce automobiles have been featured in twelve of the films. Nonetheless, the marque's most iconic and long-lasting performance comes in the 007 movie Goldfinger.

The design, locales, gadgets, and the quirky enemy are all hallmarks of a James Bond film, and this one helped define them all. Rolls-Royce delves into Goldfinger's tale and the Rolls-Royce Phantom, a British classic that starred in the film, on September 17, 1964, the film's premiere anniversary.

The movie follows the titular antagonist Auric Goldfinger as he travels around Europe in a magnificent 1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III Sedanca de Ville, escorted by his goon Oddjob. The coachwork of this stately automobile conceals a secret: Goldfinger is smuggling two tonnes of solid 18-carat gold from England into Switzerland across the treacherous Furka Pass and across the continent. After being securely situated in Auric Enterprises, he disassembles his Rolls-Royce using his Alpine Smelting Plant and turns the body panels into bars of gold. Restoring the original coachwork, he drives his automobile back to England and carries out this evil crossing once again.

Goldfinger © 1964 Danjaq, LLC and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. All Rights Reserved

Goldfinger has a far more grandiose master plan called "Operation Grand Slam." He intends to use an atomic bomb to irradiate the gold kept in the Fort Knox Bullion Depository, making it useless and skyrocketing the value of his own stockpiles.

Goldfinger's decision to smuggle gold using a Phantom III is just as clever as the precious metal driving him. Large amounts of contraband may be hidden thanks to its ample proportions, and even on the tough mountain routes, the gold's "divine weight" would not significantly impair the performance of this powerful vehicle. Phantom III was the first Rolls-Royce to use a V12 engine; its 7.3-litre engine produced 165 bhp, which was a 37.5% increase over Phantom II's 120 bhp.

The Phantom III was also the final automobile that Henry Royce personally designed before his passing in 1933. It has several advancements that would have made Goldfinger's smuggling runs much better. Its suspension system has hydraulic shock absorbers that are fully adjustable, and Oddjob may alter the ride quality from the driver's seat based on whether the car is loaded or not.

The particular vehicle that Goldfinger uses has an enclosed back and an open front body designed by coachbuilders Barker as a "Sedanca de Ville," or Town Car. Because of its strong presence, Bond says to himself, "She's a beauty." As Oddjob stuffs Goldfinger's trademark gold golf club and harlequin umbrella into the boot outside Stoke Park, the exclusive sports complex where Bond first encounters them, he asks, "Phantom III '37, isn't she?"

The numberplate "AU 1" on Goldfinger's Phantom III alludes to the chemical symbol for gold in the periodic table of elements. Though the filmmakers made a clear decision in this regard, the roots of its appellation are simpler. The first British numberplate code to indicate that an automobile had been registered in Nottingham was AU, and AU 1 was assigned to one of the earliest cars in the city in 1901. It was first utilised in the movie and then later added to other Rolls-Royce vehicles after making its big-screen debut.

This Phantom III was first commissioned for American-born Huttleston Rogers Broughton, who moved to England and rose to become the first Lord Fairhaven of Anglesey Abbey, before it was shown in the movie. It defied the prevailing standards of the period by having nearly every part of it painted black, including the surround of the rearview mirror, bumpers, wheel discs, and light housings. The chrome radiator shutters were sandblasted for a more muted appearance, and the white coachline emphasised the top and sides of the bonnet. Since Lord Fairhaven intended to deploy the instruments on roadways in Britain and Continental Europe, they featured both imperial and metric measurements. After then, the vehicle's distinctive two-tone black and yellow paint job was added for Goldfinger.Throughout the course of the James Bond film franchise, Rolls-Royce automobiles have been featured in twelve of the films. Nonetheless, the marque's most iconic and long-lasting performance comes in the 007 movie Goldfinger.

The design, locales, gadgets, and the quirky enemy are all hallmarks of a James Bond film, and this one helped define them all. Rolls-Royce delves into Goldfinger's tale and the Rolls-Royce Phantom, a British classic that starred in the film, on September 17, 1964, the film's premiere anniversary.

The movie follows the titular antagonist Auric Goldfinger as he travels around Europe in a magnificent 1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III Sedanca de Ville, escorted by his goon Oddjob. The coachwork of this stately automobile conceals a secret: Goldfinger is smuggling two tonnes of solid 18-carat gold from England into Switzerland across the treacherous Furka Pass and across the continent. After being securely situated in Auric Enterprises, he disassembles his Rolls-Royce using his Alpine Smelting Plant and turns the body panels into bars of gold. Restoring the original coachwork, he drives his automobile back to England and carries out this evil crossing once again.

Goldfinger has a far more grandiose master plan called "Operation Grand Slam." He intends to use an atomic bomb to irradiate the gold kept in the Fort Knox Bullion Depository, making it useless and skyrocketing the value of his own stockpiles.

Goldfinger's decision to smuggle gold using a Phantom III is just as clever as the precious metal driving him. Large amounts of contraband may be hidden thanks to its ample proportions, and even on the tough mountain routes, the gold's "divine weight" would not significantly impair the performance of this powerful vehicle. Phantom III was the first Rolls-Royce to use a V12 engine; its 7.3-litre engine produced 165 bhp, which was a 37.5% increase over Phantom II's 120 bhp.

The Phantom III was also the final automobile that Henry Royce personally designed before his passing in 1933. It has several advancements that would have made Goldfinger's smuggling runs much better. Its suspension system has hydraulic shock absorbers that are fully adjustable, and Oddjob may alter the ride quality from the driver's seat based on whether the car is loaded or not.

The particular vehicle that Goldfinger uses has an enclosed back and an open front body designed by coachbuilders Barker as a "Sedanca de Ville," or Town Car. Because of its strong presence, Bond says to himself, "She's a beauty." As Oddjob stuffs Goldfinger's trademark gold golf club and harlequin umbrella into the boot outside Stoke Park, the exclusive sports complex where Bond first encounters them, he asks, "Phantom III '37, isn't she?"

The numberplate "AU 1" on Goldfinger's Phantom III alludes to the chemical symbol for gold in the periodic table of elements. Though the filmmakers made a clear decision in this regard, the roots of its appellation are simpler. The first British numberplate code to indicate that an automobile had been registered in Nottingham was AU, and AU 1 was assigned to one of the earliest cars in the city in 1901. It was first utilised in the movie and then later added to other Rolls-Royce vehicles after making its big-screen debut.

This Phantom III was first commissioned for American-born Huttleston Rogers Broughton, who moved to England and rose to become the first Lord Fairhaven of Anglesey Abbey, before it was shown in the movie. It defied the prevailing standards of the period by having nearly every part of it painted black, including the surround of the rearview mirror, bumpers, wheel discs, and light housings. The chrome radiator shutters were sandblasted for a more muted appearance, and the white coachline emphasised the top and sides of the bonnet. Since Lord Fairhaven intended to deploy the instruments on roadways in Britain and Continental Europe, they featured both imperial and metric measurements. After then, the vehicle's distinctive two-tone black and yellow paint job was added for Goldfinger.