Diamonds Are Forever - James Bond Mach1

[Don65Stang]

Come to think of it, Boss 351's had 15's by default, right? Granted, no sense in a complete redress and reskin (not to mention the addition of moldings!) only to leave such an important detail such as the whitewalls out by virtue of a rim size.

-Kurt

Correct. Boss 351's all had 15" wheels as the standard size. It seems logical that 429 equipped cars would have come with 15' wheels as well but I don't know that facts about the 429 cars.

The green circles represent the same analysis using the 14" wheels. To me it appears that the trim ring overhangs the 15.25" inner circle which represents a 14" trim ring outer dimension.

Also some reference 1/2" lines in the flat inner area of a 15" trim ring were added as a visual reference.

I still feel reasonably sure the wheels on this DAF car are 15"...not definitive but reasonably sure.

 

[cudak888]

Don, I re-checked Bo's pictures, and realized that a photo exists of that car from the bottom; a behind-the-scenes shot taken against the cameras:

I can't make out the engine from under here, but perhaps somone else can. At any rate, it's a C6 transmission, with all the usual M-code trimmings (staggered shocks, factory dual exhaust setup, etc.).

Perhaps an R-code expert can chime in here with a definite call on it.

That said, I dug up a 35mm photo from the film on eBay showing Connery in the hero car (the supposed 429 car). It is clear in this photo that it has 14" wheels, and not the optional 15". Also negates any claims of it being a repainted Boss 351 (not that anyone ever brought it up).

^

Still need to send this to Bo, as it is additional proof against the Alemeda car. I believe the Ian Fleming Foundation car is a 15" car as well, though enough proof exists to prove it had nothing to do with the film.

On another note: A similar red/black car is up on eBay as I write this. While it's not a DAF car, it has Trac-Lock, which got me thinking about the mechanics of the stunt itself. Following is what I wrote to Bo on the subject, as of this morning:

Been a while, but a DAF clone Mach 1 on eBay brought my mind around back to the Diamonds car:

The eBay car has 3.00 Trac-Loc on it, which spurred on a very interesting question: How did Buzz or the French team perform the two-wheeled stunt with a standard-axle car? That led me to two threads:

Someone says a "spool" was added to the back end of the Bundy KITT's, others say the gears were welded. At either rate, it stands to reason that the car entering the alleyway had some sort of locked axle, whether stock Trac-Loc or modified for the film:

http://www.knightfoundation.net/F0rum2010/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=14697&start=0

Someone in this thread claims Remy Julienne was the man on the French team, and was also responsible for wrecking the first set of cars. They also claim Bill Hickman did the actual stunt. Partially correct as to Julienne? At any rate, the posi/solid axle discussion comes up again:

http://www.autofixinfo.com/gD5OOHoWljjCYO/Diamonds-are-Forever.html

Obviously, the backlot stunt necessitated some sort of axle lock, as it maintains a constant speed during the stunt. Likewise, the deleted alleyway exit in Las Vegas shows the car holding its speed until it comes down, and it's not riding the wall either. However, the French stunt car not only seems to be riding the wall, it notably loses speed after it leaves the alleyway. The loss of speed is gradual too, just as one would expect. Standard axle, same as the Dezer car, and we've been saying it's the Dezer car all along.

Thoughts?

^

You know, this may be the reason for the legend of using a 351C car for the two-wheeled stunt: The only Trac-Loc car that was available to them had a 351C. Maybe all the 302 cars were standard axle and the stunt crew too foolish not to check.

-Kurt

 

[rpmcarter]

Don, I re-checked Bo's pictures, and realized that a photo exists of that car from the bottom; a behind-the-scenes shot taken against the cameras:

I can't make out the engine from under here, but perhaps somone else can. At any rate, it's a C6 transmission, with all the usual M-code trimmings (staggered shocks, factory dual exhaust setup, etc.).

Perhaps an R-code expert can chime in here with a definite call on it.

That said, I dug up a 35mm photo from the film on eBay showing Connery in the hero car (the supposed 429 car). It is clear in this photo that it has 14" wheels, and not the optional 15". Also negates any claims of it being a repainted Boss 351 (not that anyone ever brought it up).

^

Still need to send this to Bo, as it is additional proof against the Alemeda car. I believe the Ian Fleming Foundation car is a 15" car as well, though enough proof exists to prove it had nothing to do with the film.

On another note: A similar red/black car is up on eBay as I write this. While it's not a DAF car, it has Trac-Lock, which got me thinking about the mechanics of the stunt itself. Following is what I wrote to Bo on the subject, as of this morning:

Been a while, but a DAF clone Mach 1 on eBay brought my mind around back to the Diamonds car:

The eBay car has 3.00 Trac-Loc on it, which spurred on a very interesting question: How did Buzz or the French team perform the two-wheeled stunt with a standard-axle car? That led me to two threads:

Someone says a "spool" was added to the back end of the Bundy KITT's, others say the gears were welded. At either rate, it stands to reason that the car entering the alleyway had some sort of locked axle, whether stock Trac-Loc or modified for the film:

http://www.knightfoundation.net/F0rum2010/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=14697&start=0

Someone in this thread claims Remy Julienne was the man on the French team, and was also responsible for wrecking the first set of cars. They also claim Bill Hickman did the actual stunt. Partially correct as to Julienne? At any rate, the posi/solid axle discussion comes up again:

http://www.autofixinfo.com/gD5OOHoWljjCYO/Diamonds-are-Forever.html

Obviously, the backlot stunt necessitated some sort of axle lock, as it maintains a constant speed during the stunt. Likewise, the deleted alleyway exit in Las Vegas shows the car holding its speed until it comes down, and it's not riding the wall either. However, the French stunt car not only seems to be riding the wall, it notably loses speed after it leaves the alleyway. The loss of speed is gradual too, just as one would expect. Standard axle, same as the Dezer car, and we've been saying it's the Dezer car all along.

Thoughts?

^

You know, this may be the reason for the legend of using a 351C car for the two-wheeled stunt: The only Trac-Loc car that was available to them had a 351C. Maybe all the 302 cars were standard axle and the stunt crew too foolish not to check.

-Kurt

Good Lawd.... this kind of analyitcal thinking from a car guy is giving the producer and his clan way toooo much credit for being strategic.

 

[cudak888]

Good Lawd.... this kind of analyitcal thinking from a car guy is giving the producer and his clan way toooo much credit for being strategic.

The analytic end of it is mainly to prove that the two 429 cars that claim to be from the movie are fakes and to determine the scenes that the Keswick/Dezer car was used in (not to mention how many cars were used, and where).

Additionally, if we can narrow down the specs on the 429 car enough, Bo may be able to have Kevin Marti produce reports for all the cars that meet the listed specifications; if anything, one or more of the lot will come up as a special order. Seeing as we don't have the VIN numbers from EON Productions, this is the only way to find out the VINs of the missing cars (which appear to be two 351C cars and one 429, not including the wrecked 302 cars, or the 302 car used briefly in the parking lot scene).

As for the Trac-Loc: Guy Hamilton (DAF's director) may not have cared whether the car had a locking differential or not, but I guarantee you that it would have been one of the first concerns of the stunt crew. You can't perform the two-wheeled stunt otherwise.

-Kurt

P.S.: If you want to hear a great bit of movie car identification, read this thread about the Swigart Junker Herbie (Herbie #10) from The Love Bug and Herbie Rides Again: http://lovebugfans.yuku.com/topic/8582/The-Swigart-junker-Herbie-finds-a-new-home#.Ut8x5RAo7mg. Every dent on the body panel of that bug is a part of the films it was in.

 

[Kit Sullivan]

Sorry if mentioned already, but I didn't feel like reading the entire thread. This is the story of the stunt and resulting mistake:

Several 302 and 351-powered cars were used in attempting the stunt, but the original stunt drivers kept rolling the cars.

Joie Chitwood's stunt team was then hired for that one particular stunt. Chitwood's driver, "Buzz" Bundy required more power so two additional 429 cars were sourcedand painted to match. The entrance was filmed on a Hollywood backlot, while the exit was filmed in Vegas so the casinos could be seen. Both ebtry and the exit had the car up on it passenger wheels...no problems. But when the dailies were viewed later, the crowdswatching the exit scene portion being filmed ruined the footage.

So, the exit scene was scheduled for a reshoot, but Chitwoods team no longer available to do the stunt again. A French stunt driver was hired and no one realized he could only do the stunt on the opposite wheels until it came time to shoot the stunt. He did it, they tried to "fix" it by putting dorky transition scene from left tilt to right tilt, but it was pretty hokey.

Bundy went on to dothe infamous "Astro-spiral" jump in the AMC Hornet in the next Bond flick.

I had the luck to meet Chitwood, Bundy and some others on the team at thier "Tournament of Thrills" stunt show at Buffalo Speedway in Houston in the early 70s.

The spiral jump has only been done twice, first in Bond and then a few years ago for Chevy's Sonic "Kick Flip" shown during a Superbowl. There is a "secret" bit of equipment that enables the stunt to work. It was not visible in the Bond jump, but was breifly visible in the Chevy commercial. I'll never tell...

 

[cudak888]

Kit, I've been passed down a different version of the story, which states that the 429 car was chosen for the powerslides during the main chase.

The 302 cars are always referenced as the failed stunt cars (it is said that Remy Julienne - who did the incorrect second exit stunt - was responsible for the 302 wrecks), but the Chitwood/Bundy team is always referenced as doing the stunt with a 351C car (supposedly due to its performance and weight advantage over the 429).

Either way, Remy Julienne's retake of the stunt is the Dezer M-code - complete with standard rear axle - which has no relation to the car that did the on-screen stunt in the Universal Studios backlot, nor the one that Bundy drove out of the actual alleyway in the deleted take.

At least one 302 car makes it to screen in the parking lot, in a scene just before one of the Ford Custom police cars slam the wall. It (or another 302 car) also performs the ramp jump out of the lot. Whether these two are the same car are unknown, but both have single exhaust and no valance cutouts.

-Kurt

Several 302 and 351-powered cars were used in attempting the stunt, but the original stunt drivers kept rolling the cars.

Joie Chitwood's stunt team was then hired for that one particular stunt. Chitwood's driver, "Buzz" Bundy required more power so two additional 429 cars were sourcedand painted to match. The entrance was filmed on a Hollywood backlot, while the exit was filmed in Vegas so the casinos could be seen. Both ebtry and the exit had the car up on it passenger wheels...no problems. But when the dailies were viewed later, the crowdswatching the exit scene portion being filmed ruined the footage.

So, the exit scene was scheduled for a reshoot, but Chitwoods team no longer available to do the stunt again. A French stunt driver was hired and no one realized he could only do the stunt on the opposite wheels until it came time to shoot the stunt. He did it, they tried to "fix" it by putting dorky transition scene from left tilt to right tilt, but it was pretty hokey.

Bundy went on to dothe infamous "Astro-spiral" jump in the AMC Hornet in the next Bond flick.

More odd stuff:

Note the exhaust on the Julienne exit stunt/Dezer car (flipped for ease of comparison) vs. the Bundy exit car photographed from behind the scenes:

Dezer/Julienne car:

Bundy car:

Both have C6 transmissions, but the RH exhaust connection on the Bundy car sits deeper than the Julienne car. Given the C6, neither of these are 302 cars, which takes care of any debate over the RH manifold (as the 302 exhaust manifold is quite short). Don's touchup of the Julienne car clearly shows the angled back end of a 351C oil pan with it's tapering front as well:

Not much to make of the oil pan in the Bundy photo though. Any opinions on that exhaust?

-Kurt

 

[Kit Sullivan]

This is a great thread! I love all the crazy-detailed analysis of every posdible clue. Forensic trivia finding at its best.

It had always bugged me over the years when a vehicle is presented as an actual screen-used vehicle when it clearly is not.

I heard somewhere (?) many years ago that the Mach 1 blown up in "The Mechanic" was a "leftover" from DAF. Of course, it is just a statement...no clue if its true or not.

 

[luxstang]

Guys, I have the deepest respect for the dedication and research you are doing here.

If I have learnt one thing from all this it would be not to trust a French if you need something done properly, right?

 

[cudak888]

I heard somewhere (?) many years ago that the Mach 1 blown up in "The Mechanic" was a "leftover" from DAF. Of course, it is just a statement...no clue if its true or not.

I doubt it, though it is worth noting that the driving car had deluxe seatbelts:

If these cars were DAF leftovers, the hero car is the car from Dezer, as no other DAF Mustang had deluxe belts. What got blown up is another question entirely.

Still far fetched without any research or documentation to back it up.

-Kurt

 

[Boss1Ray]

Kurt, Don & others who have posted here:

I see too much thinking for me to try and get in the middle of all this. Great job BTW. But thought this might help as a quick reference as to the 1971 tires and sizes offered. Notice the breakout of Mach 1 tire availability vs all other models. Ray

 

[Don65Stang]

Kurt, Don & others who have posted here:

I see too much thinking for me to try and get in the middle of all this. Great job BTW. But thought this might help as a quick reference as to the 1971 tires and sizes offered. Notice the breakout of Mach 1 tire availability vs all other models. Ray

Ray,

Good addition to the data analysis. Do you have an earlier version of the chart? It looks like the one you posted was revised after the DAF cars were already built.

 

[Boss1Ray]

Kurt, Don & others who have posted here:

I see too much thinking for me to try and get in the middle of all this. Great job BTW. But thought this might help as a quick reference as to the 1971 tires and sizes offered. Notice the breakout of Mach 1 tire availability vs all other models. Ray

Ray,

Good addition to the data analysis. Do you have an earlier version of the chart? It looks like the one you posted was revised after the DAF cars were already built.

Yes - I think so. Let me look. But if my memory serves me well, the data for tires was not changed. Typically the stuff that is changed or added gets highlighted in a blue or red font to contrast the normal black and white text. That capture I posted was a color jpg.

Ray

 

[cudak888]

For some reason, I completely forgot to post these photos of 1F05M160938 when I took them back in April at Dezer. These show the extensive front crossmember damage from the stunts - creased in the center, and bent up and backwards - twisting the frame I beam channels inwards along the bottom. Also notice the slammed oil pan:

I'm trying to figure out what that piece of aluminum is that's hanging down from under the radiator shroud area, next to the trans cooler lines. That's not even a dislocated original part.

-Kurt

 

[Thin Lizzy]

Here are a few screen grabs of a documentary by Derek Nimmo from 1971 on the set of Diamonds Are Forever, from the archives of the BBC:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p035xn8h

 

[cudak888]

Just shot off an email to Bo and Myles. Some of those shots have opened up some previously dead leads, especially now that we have positive confirmation that the Las Vegas street rollbar car (a.k.a. Car 2 in our research) has red belts.

I wish there was some B-roll out there that shows how the camera rig was mounted in the car - whether it was directly to the rollbar, or to the car itself. I could not find anything on the Dezer car other than the rollbar mounts - and, for better or worse, I believe we ascertained that two or three cars did have this rollcage.

-Kurt

 

[Mike429cj]

Just shot off an email to Bo and Myles. Some of those shots have opened up some previously dead leads, especially now that we have positive confirmation that the Las Vegas street rollbar car (a.k.a. Car 2 in our research) has red belts.

I wish there was some B-roll out there that shows how the camera rig was mounted in the car - whether it was directly to the rollbar, or to the car itself. I could not find anything on the Dezer car other than the rollbar mounts - and, for better or worse, I believe we ascertained that two or three cars did have this rollcage.

-Kurt

That's all great, but did you hear that car idling while Mr. Bond was talking? The car really sounded tuff!

 

[cudak888]

That's all great, but did you hear that car idling while Mr. Bond was talking? The car really sounded tuff!

I did. We have a possible lead for an owner of both a bone-stock 71 M-code and J-code with factory exhaust and mufflers. Hopefully there's enough of a difference between the Cleveland and the 385 block to be able to determine the engine from the idle.

That said - not that it's conclusive - the cam sounds dead-on identical to my own M-code, which is still firing on factory points and condenser. My mufflers are a pair of Flowmaster Series 40's though, which are nothing like the factory units.

Regardless, all the evidence is pointing to that car being one and the same with the rollbar/camera rig car that performs the J-turn and is seen from the back weaving through Vegas traffic (with a camera visible on the rig).

The red belts are pointing heavily towards this being the Dezer car, though there is one other car that might fit the bill.

Lots of stuff to compile before we can formulate this into the website content, but the puzzle pieces are falling into place finally.

-Kurt

 

[amoniac]

Hi, I take the liberty of replying to this thread.

I'm new on these (great) forums (I just said hello) and after some research on ISO (In Search of Mustang part 1 ; In Search of Mustang - part 2), on IMCDB or even on Flickr for example, I read that investigations were launched on this subject on 71-73 Mustangs forum.

I'm interested to know what were the Mustangs used on DAF and what they have become.

Since now, I listed different Mustang that could have been used in DAF filming:

• 1F05J100066 (not 100% sure)
• 1F05J100076 (not sure at all)
• 1F05M160938 (for sure)

Some other sources (Street Muscle Mag) mention different cars or focus on other stories (Ponysite.de) and I try to synthesise the information from a maximum of sources, verify them, and, if possible I'd like to interview former or current owners of these Mustangs.

I'm writing this post to ask you some things:

• Do you have any update since the last post here 7 years ago, in 2015?
• Do anyone has a PDF of the network54 forum thread mentioned in the first page of this one? (http://www.network54.com/Forum/234286/thread/1219631751/Diamonds+are+Forever+Car+on+Ebay)
• I remember reading here that someone has the Marti Reports of the three Mach 1 (1F05J100066 / 1F05J100076 / 1F05M160938), do you mind sharing them with me?
• Paul Hewitt wrote an article about these Mustangs in Jan. '98 Mustang Monthly, I can't find it for a reasonable price (I'm in Europe) on eBay. Anyone has the article on his computer?

Guys, I have the deepest respect for the dedication and research you are doing here.

If I have learnt one thing from all this it would be not to trust a French if you need something done properly, right?

Funny! As I'm French, I'll try to prove it's not necessarily true!