Quiz | Easy like Sunday morning

The Hindu Sunday quiz on ‘Automobiles’ by Berty Ashley

1. On January 21 in 1981, DeLorean started production of its sports car in Northern Ireland. The DMC-12 had a unique look, with its gull-wing doors and a brushed stainless-steel outer body. Unfortunately, it lacked power and after producing just 9000 units, the company shut it down. In 1985, its futuristic looks led to it being used as a time machine in a science fiction franchise. In the movies, the car, when driven at 88mph, could traverse time. Which movie series is this?

2. The 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am was the first Firebird to have a factory fuel injection and hatchback body. A TV series redesigned the car slightly, to be completely black in colour with red lights in the front to give it a futuristic look. Known as the Knight Industries Two Thousand, it ran on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and could talk to its driver. You would have seen this car in which series, whose theme music is famously iconic?

3. This action TV series that ran for just 14 episodes follows an ex-cop who is recruited for a secret government mission, in which he must ride an all-terrain attack motorcycle that can travel at 480 kmph to fight crime. Driven by the character Jesse Mach, what was the name of this bike, and hence the series?

4. The GMC Vandura van had a lot of interior space. It featured in a 1980s action-adventure TV series about four former members of the US Army special forces, who escape military prison and drive around in the van, trying to clear their names while helping wronged people. The iconic black van with a large red stripe was almost always driven by the protagonist Bosco ‘BA’ Baracus. Which series was this?

5. The 1968 Chevrolet Sportvan 108 had very comfortable interiors and usually came painted in teal. After a very famous cartoon series sported this van as its main mode of transport, its sales went up, and till date, many are seen with the same paint job. Known as the ‘Mystery Machine’, this colourful van appeared in which series, that was named after its title character?

6. This was actually a concept car known as the Lincoln Futura made by Ford, and was designed to look like a Manta Ray with two globular glass cockpits in front like eyes. First seen in a 1966 TV series, over the years it was shown to have infrared cameras, a super-magnet, an ultrasonic radar, a parachute, a battering ram, a projector and a phone. What is the name of this vehicle, and in which series would one have seen it?

7. The Aston Martin DB5 made its first appearance on screen driven by the lead character of a 1964 movie. What made it different from the commercially available model was the gun that popped out from behind the front indicators, the bullet shield over the rear window, and a three-way revolving number plate. Which character drove this car, that at one point of time, was known as the ‘most famous car in the world’?