Thursday, April 6, 2017

Weiße Fracht für Hongkong - Dietmar Schönherr (1963) - Lung Ha Wan Road, Sai Kung

Staying around Lobster Bay for the next post as the mysterious drug heister gets into his car and drives off up Lung Ha Wan Road. I'm 99% confident that the flat area we can see is the space now occupied by the Clearwater Bay Equestrian Centre (CEEC). The slope in the background leads up to where there is now an open space meant for kite flyers (that's the same location used for the photo shoot in All About Ah Long).


The next shot shows the car leaving the flat area and heading back towards the main road past the beach that once had the concrete ramp. Despite the current tree growth it is quite easy for me to recognise this area. I've included a similar angle from Streetview below.


And then as the car drives past the camera, we pan to the left and follow it up the road. Again, the current Streetview placed underneath for comparison.


This isn't the last time we see this road though as the bad guys return later to dispose of a car (complete with requisite drugged victim placed in the driver's seat). They stop the car at a lay-by (it's a single lane road and so has lots of passing places).


They dump the car...


...and then drive off again.


Now, this got me thinking. There is (or perhaps was...it's been a while since I dived there) an old car wreck in the middle of this side of Lobster Bay. It wasn't a modern car either, quite old and in fact was really just the collapsed wheels and steering column - no body and very little chassis left. It's possible that the car wreck in Lobster bay may be this very same car dumped into the bay for the purpose of this film. For a long time people have assumed it was a car that fell off one of the old fast smuggler's speedboats but the age doesn't seem to tally with the time frame. So, if there are any car experts out there who can identify the make and model of the one in the picture above (HK 2358) it might be possible to compare the two to see if they match. My hopes aren't high but it would certainly explain the reason for the car's presence in the bay.

4 comments:

C said...

Hi Phil, I also looked at the trailer on YouTube. The car appears to be a 1953 or 1954 Ford Zephyr Convertible.

Phil said...

Thanks C, I'll try and see if ny of my diving buddies have a picture of it. Cheers, Phil

C said...

Hi Phil, you are welcome! There is a photo here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/aussiefordadverts/13002830014/in/photostream
...and the next photo shows the view of the back. The tail lights of the 1955 model (based on photos on the internet) are lower, so that is why I think this is 1953 or 1954. Apparently, not many convertibles were built, and one was "wasted" making a film.
I wonder if there is a way to find out more info about any old car from the Transport Department based on the licence plates?

Phil said...

It looks like a match doesn't it. Nice find. Great looking cars. I shall endeavour to locate some underwater shots of that old car.

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