Goofs

During the opening scene, as the camera pans the Edsel mounted up on the post, it can be seen through the grille that the car has no engine. Later in the movie, dead Luke drives the car across the field and crashes it into the power station.

The Edsel mounted on the pole at Luke Fuchs' used car lot is a 1959 model, which is said to have been Luke's family car. In a later scene where it is brought down from the pole (to orchestrate Luke's "death") it is seen crashing into a power station. However, the Edsel careening into the power station is a 1958. You can also tell it's a '58 when they are loading Luke's body into the front passenger seat. In addition, later on when they are looking at one of Luke's family pictures taken when Barbara was a child, the family is standing in front of the "family" car, which is a 1958.

When Fuchs walks over as the guys are finishing burying the Edsel a shovel full of mud is thrown onto his white shoes, yet when he walks away his shoes are clean.

When Mickey is destroying the '57 Chevy during the test drive with Luke, Luke rips the Castrol GTX patch off Mickey's outer Castrol jacket, revealing the New Deal patch beneath. Yet the New Deal patch is never ripped off the inner jacket. Later, when dying, Luke drops the patch he ripped off which shows it to be a New Deal patch, leading Rudy to believe Luke's death was Roy's doing. The patch Luke ripped off was a Castrol GTX patch, not a New Deal patch. Where did the New Deal patch come from?

When Roy Fuchs is getting out of the car to go after Jeff, one scene shows him already out of the car and in the next, he is just getting out of the car.

Toward the end of the movie, it is established that the setting is Maricopa county, Arizona, which is in the mountain time zone. Earlier, when the decision is made to interrupt President Carter's TV address, it is said that it will be on at 9:00. That would indicate that the address started at 11:00 Eastern time- somewhat late for a televised speech.

A false advertising case would take weeks, if not months, to be challenged in court--not in the following 24 hours as depicted--let alone the business shut down by a court order the next day of the accusation.

The scene in the bar where the Denver Broncos are playing the Kansas City Chiefs is actually an Arizona State University game. You can see the maroon and gold uniforms, the "Sun Devils" script in the end zone, and Sparky, the ASU mascot on the bar TV.

When the judge measures the 1974 Mercury Montego, he says "You're two inches short." Jack Warden laughs and strikes the trunk lid, and the license plate drops, showing the gas cap. The gas cap on a 1974 Montego is really above the rear bumper, between the tail lights, behind a door.

Jeff pulls up sharply next to the tow truck in front of the train, and proceeds to fiddle with the tilt tray controls to roll the car on the back off, yet the driver of the truck fails to react in any way.

After Marshall Lucky blasts his nemesis' "High Prices" with his shotgun, crew members can faintly be heard laughing off camera right after Frank McRae slides off the car hood in his hilariously over the top "death scene".

Rudy uses a spinning rod to cast a $10 bill from his car lot to the lot across the road, but when he reels it back in the line pulls the bill under the fence.

In the tracking shot that opens the film, the reflection of a crewman holding the boom mic can be seen in the car's side-view mirror.

After the car jumps over the train, a camera is visible on the centerline of the road. This camera jammed before the car landed so there was no usable footage from it.

When Rudy is taking money from the safe in his refrigerator, more cash is being pushed into the safe by someone behind the set.

When Barbara is in court defending the "mile of cars" accusation, Sam (the "Prosecutor") points out that she already has 25 cars on her lot "according to witnesses". If one mile of cars is 250 cars, and Rudy has "exactly 250 drivers" to drive back the 250 cars he bought from the Mexican, then they are well over the mark with one mile + 25 cars. They didn't have a "one car safety margin," they had a 25-car safety margin.

Fuchs beats the tar out of Jeff at night; the next day Jeff appears perfectly fine.

250 Cars would not make a mile of cars but would only make one kilometer of cars. At a average length of 14 feet for cars and pickups around that period would actually be around 377 to 378 cars needed to make a Mile of Cars. Mile being 5280 feet and a kilometer being 3280.84 feet. Also while the Judge is asking Ms. Fuchs if she understood the question, he hangs a 1977 Han Solo action figure. This movie came out one month after Star Wars Empire Strikes Back.

New Deal Used Cars was able to lure customers away from Roy L Fuchs Pre-Owned Automobiles using strippers dancing atop the cars. The customers were families, enjoying a circus atmosphere. It seems unlikely that the women and most of the children present would be attracted by the strippers, and drop everything to rush across the street.