You can shut the gate on this one, Maxie.

Mel Gibson’s iconic Ford Falcon V8 Interceptor from the original Mad Max films is one of the most famous cars from down under and for a good reason. Over the course of its 56-year run, it was frequently the annual bestseller of all cars in the country, and Max’s overhauled police version was an homage to that history as well as a big nod to Aussie muscle car culture.

In 1979’s Mad Max and it’s sequel, Mad Max 2 (or The Road Warrior in the United States), the Falcon begins as a standard police cruiser but ends up as Max Rockatansky’s sleek hardtop war machine in his bloody quest for revenge and redemption through the desert. In the first film, the police drive stock yellow XA and XB sedans in a similar manner to the Ford Crown Victorias seen across the United States during the latter-half of the 20th century. However, Max has the ultimate version, a gloss-black on matte-black design with a massive blower on the hood feeding a 600-hp V8. Max actually steals the coupe after his original Pursuit Special is destroyed by the Toecutter gang. In the film, the car is referred to as “the last of the V8s” as a nod to the Supercar Scare of the 1970s, during which many companies jettisoned more powerful vehicles out of fear of new global emissions standards.

In the sequel film, Max still has the Interceptor, but it is heavily modified and rebuilt after surviving the road carnage of the first film. It is also clearly Max’s home, as his nomadic wastelander existence would suggest. The update vehicle features two massive fuel tanks requiring the removal of the boot door and a distinct lack of front bumper to allow the vehicle to travel off-road. The passenger seat is also removed to fit a dog seat for Max’s canine companion, and there are numerous hidden weapons compartments through the car, as well as a booby trap that ignited the fuel tanks and blows up the car in case it is ever captured.

Ford’s aggressive diversification of its Falcon platform, in addition to the massive popularity of the Mad Max films, led the Falcon frequently leading the Holden Commodore as the best-selling passenger vehicle in Australia. The last production models were manufactured in 2016, and the muscle car community still prizes the car for its ease of customization and the availability of parts and wild modifications. Despite its aggressive potential, we still don’t recommend driving one through the desert in a shootout with wasteland outlaws. Unless, of course, you're a little Mad.

-Trey Fennell

The CocoMats Mad Max Shop Dog, Camino.