“Bond” Hornet to be auctioned

One of two specifically built for use in the movie, the Hornet was the result of a collaboration between Jay Milligan, who ran an automobile stunt show, and Raymond McHenry, a computer programmer, who was using early computer modelling software to research and simulate car accidents.

The two got together in 1970, with the view of proving that a computer-modelled “corkscrew” jump - where the car rotated 360 degrees in mid-air - could be completed for real.

In addition to the optimum ramp size, angle and placement required to make the jump work, the vehicle had to be modified, too. That entailed placing the driver in the centre of the car and moving the engine rearward to centre the weight so the “spin” element of the jump was more stable.

Soon after the stunt was first performed successfully in 1972, Milligan allegedly contacted the producers of the James Bond films to convince them to include the stunt in an instalment of the popular movie franchise. They were keen, as were AMC, so a deal was struck that would see both the stunt and American Motors cars used in the tenth Bond film - The Man with the Golden Gun.

Milligan built two modified 1974-model Hornet X hatchback coupes, each using the proven central driving position and repositioned drivetrain. Externally, each car looked like a standard Hornet, but a roll cage and full spaceframe chassis (replacing the factory monocoque construction) resided under the skin to strengthen the car for the stunt, while a small fifth wheel on the rear axle aided stability.

On location in Thailand for The Man with the Golden Gun, the jump was done by one of Milligan’s stunt team, Loren “Bumps” Willard, and captured in one take, the only hitch being a windscreen crack on landing.

After filming, the movie car went into Milligan’s personal collection, while the unused second car was employed in numerous astro-spiral jumps at shows and events across the US until the late 1970s.

Jay Milligan passed away earlier this year, which has recently led his son to decide to sell several cars from the collection, including the “Golden Gun” movie car.

To be offered through Auctions America at their Auburn Fall sale in Indiana, this 31 August to 3 September, the Hornet carries a pre-sale estimate of US$250,000 – 350,000 (AU$300,300 – 420,450 approx.). If it reaches that, it’ll be easily the most expensive Hornet sold at auction and amongst the most expensive AMC cars ever, but it’ll have to substantially exceed its estimate to beat the US$891,000 (AU$1.1 million approx.) that an AMC AMX/3 concept sold for with Gooding & Co. earlier this year.

For more details and further information, go to: auctionsamerica.com