AMC Hornet

Starred in:

• The Man with the Golden Gun (1974, Roger Moore) — $64.9 million*

Bond steals an AMC Hornet from a dealership in Bangkok, making his exit by crashing through the showroom window.

This red hatchback is a curious choice for a Bond car. It isn't particularly fast or stylish. It is just a typical compact passenger vehicle of the mid-1970s, with average performance and an unremarkable appearance that is neither ugly nor attractive.

However, this car did perform what is possibly the most remarkable stunt in Bond history: a corkscrew jump.

AMC Hornet does a barrel roll in midair

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Computer modeling helped plan almost every detail of the complicated stunt, down to the precise weight of the car. Bond lore sometimes credits the computer models with coming up with the choice of a Hornet, as well.

In the film, Bond is shown screeching around Bangkok after the villains, intent on rescuing fellow spy Mary Goodnight. He uses a half-fallen bridge to jump over a river, doing a barrel roll in the air and landing the car safely on its wheels to continue the chase on the opposite side of the water.

It remains an impressive feat, even if some mock the silly whistling sound that accompanies the aerial twist.

AMC was as average an American automotive brand as there ever was. Were it not for the Hornet’s famed Bond stunt, it would be long forgotten by all but a few.

The Gadgets:

None for this (yet again) stolen car, but it displays the ability to execute spectacular aerial acrobatics.

Villain Scaramanga's flying AMC Matador

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Did You Know …

• In a chase scene, Francisco Scaramanga, the villain and the man with the golden gun referenced by the film’s title, drives an AMC Matador coupe into a shed where he keeps his attachable flying gear. Then he escapes from Bond by taking off in the car-turned-plane.

• AMC stands for American Motors Corp., a company created by the 1954 merger of Nash Motors and Hudson Motor Car Co. Chrysler purchased the company in 1987.

• After months of careful planning, the AMC Hornet’s stunt was filmed in one take, with no mishaps. Loren “Bumps” Willard was the stunt driver.