Ford
Eleanor
"Eleanor" is a code name used in the 1974 film Gone in 60 Seconds to refer to a 1971 Ford Mustang featured in the film. The name is used again in the 2000 remake for a customized Shelby Mustang GT500.
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Eleanor (1974 film)
Though four instances of Eleanor are portrayed in the original 1974 film as "Eleanor" targets, only two were used, with license plates and tires swapped as necessary. One car was modified for the stunt driving necessitated by the final chase and wrecked in the process, while the other was kept intact for all external "beauty shots". The latter car was also used for all but two interior shots. Vehicle preparation. The two 1971 Mustang Sportsroofs used in the film were bought in 1971. Neither has been proven to be a Mach 1, as often assumed. As it was three years before the film's director H. B. Halicki could raise sufficient funds to start filming, each car was updated with 1973 grilles. Halicki's paint scheme blacked-out the lower bodyside, taillight panel, and standard hood, similar but not identical to contemporary Ford factory offerings on the Mach 1 (and Exterior Decor Group on Sportsroofs). All identifiable "Mustang" badging was removed but for the grille, and "Ford Motor Company" hubcaps are visible in the film. Despite claims that both cars were painted in Ford's Medium Yellow Gold, Halicki, in a 1974 interview, stated that the cars were painted "generic school bus yellow" to save money. Stunt car. The stunt car required 250 hours of modification. A roll cage was installed in the Mustang's stock unibody. The transmission was chained in for safety. An adjustable camera rig was mounted in the back seat to capture driver’s point of view footage. The wrecked Eleanor was equipped with a base interior and no instrumentation package, but swapped seats with the “beauty” car’s deluxe interior package. Other safety modifications included: Heavy-duty Simpson shoulder harness Deadbolt door locks Aftermarket hood pins 24-volt electrical system On-board first-aid kit Electric
Eleanor (2000 film)
In 1995, Denice Halicki, H.B. Halicki's widow, licensed the rights of the 1974 film to Disney for a remake of the same name. The new 2000 Gone in 60 Seconds film, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, features Nicolas Cage as master auto thief Randall "Memphis" Raines. Both films share plot similarities about a crew of thieves who steal a large order of cars (48 in the original, 50 in the 2000 film) and deliver them to the Long Beach docks. "Eleanor" is depicted as a Dupont Pepper Grey 1967 Shelby GT500 Ford Mustang fastback, dressed with a customized body kit designed by Steve Stanford and created by Chip Foose. Screen-used vehicles. Depending on the source, either eleven or twelve cars were built by Cinema Vehicle Services for the film (with an additional Ford 428 powered Eleanor clone built for producer Bruckheimer). Three were fully functional vehicles, and nine were built as shells. Seven were reported to have "survived the filming [and] made it back to Cinema Vehicle Services" according to research by Mustangandfords.com. Of the surviving vehicles, three cars, all claiming to be functional builds for the film, have been offered to the public for sale: Whether the two wrecked cars were rebuilt or surviving shells were built into functional cars remains unclear. The first Eleanor mustang built for the movie is at the Hollywood Star Cars museum in Gatlinburg, TN A fourth car, VIN #7F02C229830, last offered for sale in Dubai, also claims originality to the film, but has not been authenticated. Reproductions. Between 2007 and 2009 Classic Recreations manufactured licensed reproductions of the 2000 film's Eleanor Mustang, the 535 and 750. After two years Classic Recreations terminated the licensing agreement with Halicki Films/Eleanor Licensing. As of 2020, Fusion Motor Comp
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Sources
- Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5354209CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleanor_(automobile)CC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1359934641 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1967_Ford_Mustang_Shelby_GT-500_Eleanor.jpgCC BY-SA 3.0 · Photo: Juanyo at English Wikipedia · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.