There have been quite a few cars made famous by Hollywood movies, so for this week’s Hollywood Drive of Fame we’re taking a look at The Dukes of Hazzard’s Dodge Charger; The General Lee.
The General Lee, a 1969 Dodge Charger, has one of the more interesting backstories in Hollywood motoring history. The car is well known for many reasons including its iconic horn, welded doors and… the confederate flag, but there’s much more too it than Southern American clichés.
The General Lee was also renowned for its ability to pull off some absolutely ridiculous bone-crunching stunts in the show that made it famous, The Dukes of Hazzard.
Apparently, around 256 General Lees were used to film the series and sometimes when filming a big jump, anywhere from 500 to 1,000 pounds (230 to 450 kg) of sand bags or concrete ballast was placed in the boot to prevent the car from nose diving into the landing ramp.
Just think about what that would do to the car’s suspension, and the driver’s spine, upon impact… The majority of the stunt drivers involved in the show reportedly loved the jumps, but hated the landings and it’s not hard to see why…
Unfortunately, due to the car’s weight, the majority of General Lees were retired after just one jump because the car would usually bend, snap or break apart after a stunt. So, unfortunately, only 17 genuine General Lees remain in existence.
We’ve already mentioned some of the more memorable features about the car, such as the doors, which were welded shut as it (apparently) made the car more aerodynamic, according to the Bo’s. However, the single most iconic feature on the car was the horn, which rang out the first 12 notes of the song, ‘Dixie’ – which is the anthem of the Confederate States of America in case you’re wondering.
The General Lee will always have a special place on the Hollywood Drive of Fame for being the car that rolled with the punches no matter how many stunts the Duke cousins put it through.
But our main reason for loving the General Lee is because the original Daisy Duke, Catherine Bach, looked great when she was draped over the orange Dodge Charger. Don’t blame us for saying what we’re all thinking…
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