I just watched a behind-the-scenes video regarding "The French Connection" , and its car-chases-train scenes .
It appears that the late , great Bill Hickman proceeded to drive that 1971 LeMans at a sustained 90 MPH for 26 blocks , completely without any permission or clearance ; just outright illegally flogged the car with the cameraman sitting in the back seat , and the film's producer (?) wrapped in a mattress sitting shotgun !