Ford Mustang Mach 1

In the 1971 movie Diamonds Are Forever, James Bond (Sean Connery) and Tiffany Case (Jill St. John) drive around Las Vegas in a red 1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1. Mach 1 is a special performance option package for the Ford Mustang 'Sportsroof' (or 'Fastback').

In the film, the red Mustang is most likely a rental car, rented by Tiffany Case. The car is first seen at the McAllen International Airport in Las Vegas, when Tiffany Case and Bond follow the Willard Whyte van driven by Bert Saxby, one of Ernst Stavro Blofeld's leading henchmen. Tiffany Case later picks up Bond at Whyte's research laboratory in the desert. This time Bond takes the wheel and they end up in a thrilling car chase with the police on Fremont Street in Las Vegas. Bond gets away by putting the Mustang on two wheels and escape through a very narrow alley. In one of the more famous movie mistakes, the car comes out riding on the other two wheels. A shot was added showing Bond and Case in the car that changes to the other side (without explanation of how that would have happened).

The Mach 1 in the film has a red exterior and black and red leather interior. The license plate of the car in the movie reads CA52H6. Discussion on which of the cars used in the film are still around today, can be found on the website links below.

There are several model cars made of the James Bond Mach 1, including this recent remote control version of the Ford Mustang Mach 1 by ToyState.

The 1:14 scale (approx. 13") Toy State model has a 'smart phone' inspired controller, and features light, sound and music. This model is still available on Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk. Read more about the Toy State models here.

Other models of the Mach 1 made by Corgi, Hotwheels, Johnny Lightning or Ertl (1:18), can be found on eBay. The Mustang Mach 1 is number 13 in the James Bond Car Collection magazine series.

This is not the first Ford Mustang seen in a Bond film: Fiona Volpe drives a blue Ford Mustang convertible in the movie Thunderball (1965) and Tilly Masterson drives a white Ford Mustang convertible in the movie Goldfinger (1964).