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Mercury Cougar from Bond film 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service' is up for auction

To a James Bond fan, this is a very cool and important car. This 1969 Mercury Cougar XR7 up for auction by Bonhams was one of three used during the filming of 1969's "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," the one-and-done film starring George Lazenby that's a dark horse favorite among many Bond fans (this one included, there's a Japanese-market 'OHMSS' poster hanging behind me as I type this). However, this was not James Bond's car in the movie. He drove an Aston Martin DBS, including in the film's pre-titles sequence when he follows Tracy di Vicenzo driving her bright red Cougar. She would go on to rescue him with it in Switzerland (hence the skis), sacrificing its pretty red paint and body work in a demolition derby on ice that they use to shake Blofeld's Benz-driving goons. Later, after getting caught in a blizzard, they seek refuge in a barn -- a pivotal scene in the film and one where this particular Cougar was apparently used.  ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE | Ice Car Race However, even without the Bond connection, this Cougar is a very cool car. It was one of only 127 in 1969 to be fitted with the top-of-the-line 428 CobraJet Ram Air V8 rated at 335 horsepower. Tracy had a serious muscle car. Bonham's doesn't seem to have thought to provide a Marti report, but I'm guessing the build of XR7, convertible and a color combo of matching red exterior and interior wasn't exactly a common one. Well, we know there were at least three. With skis and French number plates, too.  As for the '69 Cougar itself, this was the only year it looked like this: it got a new body for '69 that would last two years, but the horizontal grille slats that extended over the headlight doors (so cool!) didn't carry over to 1970. It looked worse, and it could easily be argued that it was only downhill from here for the Cougar.  The auction is set for December 16 and Bonhams is estimating a sale price of between $130,000 and $200,000. That certainly makes sense given the rarity of a CobraJet Cougar, the film connection and the complete restoration undertaken by the man who found it in a classified ad in the late 1980s. He originally just wanted it for the engine until he discovered the Bond connection. I actually saw this very car at the 50th Anniversary "Bond in Motion" exhibit at the Beaulieu Motor Museum in England back in 2013 (pictured below). There's also a model of the thing sitting next to me.

New Forza 6 car pack will let you race the Pontiac Aztek

Just in time for this weekend's Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona, the new Alpinestars Car Pack for Forza Motorsport 6 on the Xbox One lets you slip into the driver's seat of last year's winner. If you want to take something much weirder for a spin, the collection also includes a 2005 Pontiac Aztek. The download is available now for $6.99. The Ford #02 Chip Ganassi Racing Riley Mk XXVI Daytona was in a four-car battle early in last year's race, but it eventually was victorious. Forza Motorsport 6 also challenges drivers who download the car to a new Rivals event around Daytona, and the fastest people could win Alpinestars prizes. If you're nostalgic for a classic Daytona racecar, this pack includes Mercury #15 Whistler Radar Cougar XR-7. The V8-powered beast won the IMSA GTO class in the 24-hour event in 1990. It should be fun around the game's longer road courses like Road Atlanta. This collection also has an eclectic mix of vehicles that aren't racecars. The controversial Aztek and the equally-controversial 1996 Subaru SVX take their places beside a lineup that offers drivers three eras of performance cars – a 1967 Sunbeam Tiger, 1974 Toyota Corolla SR5, and 1992 Alfa Romeo Milano Quadrifoglio Verde. The video below shows all of them in action. Race to the Finish Line with the Alpinestars Car Pack for Forza Motorsport 6 By Xbox Wire Staff posted on January 27, 2016 at 8:00 am With the racing season set to kick into full gear during this weekend's Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona race, Forza fans now have a chance to get their own taste of endurance racing glory with the Alpinestars Car Pack for Forza Motorsport 6, available on Thursday, Jan. 28. Leading off the pack of seven cars is last year's 24 Hours of Daytona winner, the 2015 Ford #02 Chip Ganassi Racing Riley Mk XXVI Daytona Prototype. The prototype will be fielded in this weekend's race, which begins at 2 p.m. EST on Saturday, Jan. 30 and can be viewed live on Fox Sports 1 in the U.S. The Alpinestars Car Pack features six additional cars, each with a unique pedigree all its own. From the 1990 Mercury #15 Whistler Radar Cougar XR-7 – also a competitor in Daytona 24 Hour events of years past – to the inimitable 2005 Pontiac Aztek (famous more for its fictional owner than its performance), this pack has something for every kind of car fan. Forza Motorsport 6 is the only game where players can drive last year's Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona winner on the recently remodeled Daytona International Speedway.

NHTSA advances investigation of Ford Crown Victoria headlights

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is opening a preliminary evaluation into reports of suddenly failing headlights on 517,945 examples of the 2003-2005 Ford Crown Victoria and Mercury Grand Marquis. The government started looking into this problem in April when the North Carolina Consumers Council filed a defect petition with the agency. Now, the inquiry has moved to the next step. According to NHTSA's documentation (as a PDF), it examined its own database and worked with Ford to come up with a total of 3,609 complaints of the front lighting control module suddenly failing. When this happens, drivers lose the low-beam headlights, but the high-beams can be used by holding the stalk. Sometimes turning the switch off and on fixes the issue. Additionally, there are 15 allegations of crashes, and one reported shoulder injury. NHTSA's preliminary evaluations "evaluate the scope, frequency, and consequence of the alleged defect" and don't necessarily lead to a recall. NHTSA looked into this problem once before in 2008 and 2009 and decided that a recall wasn't necessary. Ford also extended the warranty on the front lighting control module for these vehicles. INVESTIGATION Subject : Loss of headlights Date Investigation Opened: AUG 10, 2015 Date Investigation Closed: Open NHTSA Action Number: PE15028 Component(s): EXTERIOR LIGHTING All Products Associated with this Investigation Vehicle Make Model Model Year(s) FORD CROWN VICTORIA 2003-2005 MERCURY GRAND MARQUIS 2003-2005 Details Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company SUMMARY: After receiving a defect petition (DP15002) concerning the loss of headlights and other exterior lighting in model year (MY) 2003-2005 Ford Crown Victoria and Mercury Grand Marquis vehicles, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) analyzed Vehicle Owner Questionnaire (VOQ) complaints received from consumers and identified a total of 605 reports (for all submission dates) alleging headlight failure. The complaints indicate failures of both low beam headlights typically while driving, a defect condition that was evaluated under a prior ODI investigation (PE08066). Most consumer VOQs indicate that the headlights failed suddenly and without warning leaving the driver with no forward lighting, however some report the headlights flickered or dimmed prior to turning off. In some cases drivers were able to turn the headlights back on after a period of time while others reported the headlights would not come back on at all.