Rod Coverdale, from Australia, has spent several years building the most painstakingly precise replica of the Interceptor vehicle from 1979 movie Mad Max (see video), and he moved to Queensland not long ago only to be slapped with a fine and banned from driving it.
Max Rockatansky’s ride of choice from the movie was critically acclaimed, and so was the imitation built by Rod. Even Murray Smith, the designer of the original movie car, said the replica was the best out there. In the 12 years Rod had spent driving his car, he was only ever stopped by police when they wanted to snap a photo with it. He even was an honored guest of a prestigious Mad Max event once. Apparently, none of it mattered for Queensland police.
According to The Drive, the inspector who halted the car said he appreciated its looks but could not allow it to be driven on public roads “for safety reasons.” He reasoned that the supercharger air intake protruding from the hood could injure pedestrians badly during a collision. Other criticisms included a blue flashing light looking precariously close to a police car beacon, and tailpipes exiting sideways by a rear wheel that allegedly someone could get into contact with and get burnt.
As of right now, Coverdale is legally obligated to have all of the “defects” listed above fixed before he could continue driving it. Personally, he believes the verdict to be too harsh: a simple warning would have been enough, especially since he is barely even driving the car anymore.
As a side note, the base vehicle used for the project was an Australia-spec Ford Falcon, just like in the movie.