Mark Rockatansky (Mel Gibson) behind the wheel of the V8 Interceptor (Ford Falcon XB GT coupé).
Now that futuristic dystopias seem to be the dominant trend in fiction, both movies and television series, it is worth looking back to remember Mad Max, one of the great dystopian stories of the seventh art which had its first installment in 1979 and was followed by three sequels in 1981, 1985 and 2015.
The plot is based on the frenetic activity of the Central Force Patrol in an apocalyptic future characterized by social chaos in which groups of Motorized criminals dominate Australian roads.
The protagonist Max Rockatansky, a character played by Mel Gibson, who travels in a V8 Interceptor, also known as the Pursuit Special, a vehicle based on the Ford Falcon XB GT coupe and converted into a police interceptor. The last of the V8 Interceptors was created in the first installment of the series to convince Max to remain in the Core Force.
Tina Turner starred as Max Rockatansky's antagonist character, Aunty Entity, and was featured on the film's soundtrack.
THE ORIGINS
Going back to its origins, in 1976, producer Bryon Kennedy and director George Miller began pre-production on Mad Max with a budget of $350,000 for their film, including only $20,000 for vehicles and another 5,000 for its maintenance.
The task of designing the special chase car was given to the film's art director, Jon Dowding. His initial designs, based on a modified Ford Mustang, were highly stylized and futuristic, with spoilers on the roof and trunk, flares in the wheel arches and a modified front end.
At a car auction in Frankston, Victoria, three Australian cars were bought for less than $20,000: two Victorian Ford Falcon V8 XB police cars and a White 1973 Ford Falcon XB GT Coupe which had been seized in the Dandenong area. The two sedans became the Big Bopper and the Yellow Interceptor, while the GT would become the Pursuit Special of Max at hand.
The two sedans purchased for the film became the Big Bopper and the Yellow Interceptor.
THE MODIFICATIONS
The car was then modified and converted into the copy that was needed to bring the film's script to life. Much emphasis was placed on the every inch of the original supercharger will be exposed, which was achieved by mounting it higher than the engine, above the air filter. That supercharger needed to be powered by an electric motor and it didn't quite work, so eight individual side exhaust pipes were added.
The fiberglass front piece and the fiberglass rear and roof spoilers were instrumental in giving the model personality. The design was visually very attractive, but aerodynamically useless.
As for the paint scheme on the bodywork was described by Jon Dowding, the film's art director, as "black on black". The result was a combination of glossy and matte black, which differs only in the drop from the rear wheel arch to follow the line of the rear wing.
With its wheels also painted black, the Pursuit Special It took three months to be ready. The team that built it was quite skeptical at the time about the quality of the film and never imagined that it could become a success.
The car later underwent modifications by Murray-Smith, shooting mechanic, who would help to film high-speed chases, configuring the front geometry of the vehicle. smith too worked as a stunt driver and he was the double of Geoff Parry, the actor who gave life to the character of Bubba Zanetti in all the bicycle scenes.
The body paint scheme was a combination of gloss and matte black.
THE CONSEQUENCES
Once the shooting of Mad Max was finished, the car was given to Murray Smith as compensation for his unpaid work but, apparently, it consumed too much fuel and he decided to sell it for $7,500. A bargain! However, there were no buyers. Murray Smith later removed the supercharger and side exhaust pipes, although he kept the front end of the Concorde.
The vehicle was subsequently subjected to a tour of shopping malls, automotive museums and other promotional events in the Melbourne catchment area. With the success achieved by the film, the producers decided to buy the car, given the possibility of a sequel.
After its acquisition for a second part, rear wheels, supercharger and exhaust pipes were changed, also adding large gas tanks installed in the back, increasing its appearance of a weathered car. The front end was also modified, removing the lower section to provide more clearance. Curiously, that front part broke at the beginning of the shoot, during a chase scene.
Some of the characters from the movie Mad Max, directed by George Miller.
NOWADAYS
By the early 1990s, the Mad Max craze had passed and the car was on display at the Birdwood Motor Museum in Adelaide. A car collector named Peter Nelson, director of the Cars Of The Stars Car Museum in the UK, and with an extensive collection of movie cars, learned of its whereabouts and was determined to buy it.
It was in his museum until it was sold in 2011 to the Miami Auto Museum in Florida, USA, where it has remained on display until now in not-so-optimal conservation conditions. It is expected to be moved, along with the rest of the vehicles from the private collection, to the museum's new location in Orlando (5150 International Dr.).
In any case, that V8 Interceptor remains an indelible part of the imagination of a saga that He has a whole legion of followers. One example is the musical group The Rockatanskys, from Halifax (Canada) and released in Spain by the Madrid label Jarama Records. In addition to the name of the group, in a clear tribute to the main character of Mad Max, the cover of their EP, 45 RPM, It's a frame from the film where we can once again see the rear of that legendary Ford Falcon XB GT Coupé.
The rear of the V8 Interceptor appears on a cover of the group The Rockatanskys, released by Jarama Records.