HAutos

Haute Superhero

When America’s most haute superhero reappeared across movie screens late April, his travel wasn’t confined to the armored flying suit that earned him the title of Iron Man. Sometimes Robert Downey Jr.’s fictitious Tony Stark prefers to drive, and with his collection of automobiles, who could blame him. Picture car coordinator John Armstrong had to mull every automobile used in the film, carefully preparing a pool of possibilities from which the final selection was made.

As in the original Iron Man, Marvel entered a deal with Audi that provides each company with a series of cross-marketing opportunities and guarantees. (If you turned on your television even once during the month of May, you probably saw an Audi commercial that begins in the guise of an Iron Man 2 ad.) Though exact details remain confidential, it’s likely that Audi footed much of this cross-marketing bill in exchange for certain guarantees of product placement in the film. Put it this way: you won’t see Tony Stark behind the wheel of any car that doesn’t have four rings on the hood. As TV ads have since amply clarified, that sleek two-door convertible he jets around in is the new Audi R8 Spyder. During filming, the car was so new that it was one of only two prototypes yet in existence.

Further conside-ration was required for Tony Stark’s workshop, which doubles as a garage littered with beautiful automotive set pieces. In the new film, Tony’s garage is bookended with the R8 Spyder and a neat little billionaire’s toy called an ICON A5, an amphibious, retractable-wing, two-seat aircraft that can be towed behind a car like a boat. In between those is director Jon Favreau’s flame-painted Deuce roadster, a 1932 Ford hot rod. Just before shooting was scheduled to begin, the producers let Armstrong know he had three days to come up with a couple more scintillating cars for the Stark garage. Cashing in a favor from the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, Armstrong raided its collection and came up with a customized 1949 Mercury and a 1953 Cadillac 62 with a Ghia body. This was the first time the Petersen Museum ever lent out a car for film shoot purposes, and because the museum is a non-profit, it took some creative thinking to come up with a form of compensation. Leave it to Armstrong’s sense of conservation to provide an answer. While cutting up two Rolls-Royce Phantoms that were scheduled to be cinematically destroyed by Mickey Rourke’s bad guy Whiplash, Armstrong realized that the unique 6.7 liter V-12 Phantom engine might be an enticing form of barter to the Petersen, and it wouldn’t require any extra investment from Marvel. Armstrong conferred with contacts at Rolls, Marvel, and the museum, and all parties agreed that the “donation” of the engine would be a mutually beneficial and cost-effective solution.

See more HAuto coverage at
www.HauteLiving.com, including:

» Aston Martin Garage Sale

» Milestone Sale of a Coveted Bugatti

» Mullin Automotive Museum

» Gran Turismo Omologato

» Greystone Concours d’Elegance

» Tesla and TAG Heuer’s Odyssey of Pioneers