As the cliché goes, “The car you drive defines who you are.” Nothing better defines a movie than the car the lead character drives. For decades, we saw movie after movie parade dozens of cars – whether it’s for action, horror, romance, etc.- but only a few got their recognition in a big way. And because we love movies, and we love cars. We give you today’s honor roll (drum rolls, please): The 15 most famous movie cars ever. Now, regardless of their use, color, or style, each of these cars had one thing in common: They became iconic and will always have a place in our hearts. Start the countdown now.
15. Christine
A gleaming red 1958 Plymouth Fury seems like a perfect find for a timid teenager. In John Carpenter’s Christine, there’s just one problem: the car murders people. Arnie Cunningham purchases the damaged wreck and begins restoring it, though his friends sense something deeply wrong with his new obsession.
Then Christine mends her own battered body before your eyes. Dents vanish, metal smooths out, and the car waits for whoever crosses her next.
Even among a lot full of classics, those fins and chrome would make her unmistakable. We’d still prefer to let somebody else handle the test drive.
14. The Mini Coopers
In The Italian Job (2003), the getaway cars have to fit through spaces where a big muscle car would get stuck. Cue the red, white, and blue Mini Coopers. Charlie Croker’s gang employs them to haul the stolen gold across Los Angeles, descending stairways and slipping into the Metro tunnels. Half of the chase you’re simply delighted by how impudent they appear, while the other half you’re fretting over the upcoming sharp corner.
Those tunnel sequences hide a clever touch as well: because motors producing exhaust fumes were forbidden in that space, the production team constructed electric replicas of the cars.
13. Eleanor
© 2000 – Touchstone Pictures
Nicolas Cage’s Memphis Raines has a long shopping list in Gone in 60 Seconds (2000), but one car makes him nervous. Eleanor is a gray 1967 Ford Mustang styled as a Shelby GT500, with black stripes and enough attitude to steal a film full of rare cars.
The bulging hood and exhaust pipes give it a mean look even when it’s parked. Once the chase starts, you get the noise to match. Eleanor keeps Memphis busy through the streets of Los Angeles, and the movie treats the car like an old rival he can’t quite resist. You don’t have to buy the wild stunts to understand why he wants those keys.
12. The Ford Mustang
© 1968 – Warner Bros. All rights reserved.
Steve McQueen could make a car look cool by sitting in it. Give him a dark green 1968 Ford Mustang GT fastback and the streets of San Francisco, and you get Bullitt (1968). The Mustang tears up and down those hills in a chase with a black Dodge Charger, with the noise of the engines doing much of the talking.
Look at how hard it lands after each jump. You can feel the weight of the thing, which makes the next sharp turn all the more tense. Ford later paid tribute with special Bullitt Mustangs, though the green car on those steep streets is still the image that comes to mind.
11. Dominic Toretto’s Dodge Charger
Before the Fast & Furious films sent cars into some very strange places, Dom Toretto had a black 1970 Dodge Charger R/T sitting in his garage. In The Fast and the Furious (2001), it’s the car he built with his dad, and he’s scared to drive it.
That makes the massive blower jutting through the hood look even more threatening. Dom is fully aware of the car’s potential. He then pulls up beside Brian’s Toyota Supra. As the race begins, the Charger’s front wheels rise, and the people in the scene almost fade from mind. It delivers all the muscle car roar you could ask for, backed by a family story that gives Dom a stake beyond just winning.
10. The Green Hornet Car
Forget Kato, the Green Hornet’s “real” sidekick is his car. In the 1996 television show, the masked crime-fighting vigilante used a Chrysler Imperial Crown filled with weapons and an emergency eject seat.
In 2011, a new adaptation of Green Hornet was shown, and the epic car chase inside the building is really the one that made it earn the spot in our top 15.
9. Mater
We just love Mater! Mater is a character in the 2006 animated Pixar film Cars, wherein all the characters are cars. And although he’s just the sidekick of the lead character, Lightning McQueen, there are dozens of other cars to choose from in that movie.
Mater is the one who captured the viewer’s heart. With his funny antics, rusty appearance, and the best backward drive ever, he’s certified iconic.
8. Ford Explorer XLT
Ford Explorer XLT – Jurassic Park was one of those kinds of movies wherein you absolutely think it is great, but you still hate it for giving you nightmares. Luckily, there’s the safari safety driverless vehicle to get your attention off the scary part.
The car is used to drive people around the various exhibitions on Isla Nublar.
7. Ghostbusters Car
The Cadillac Miller-Meteor Hearse seems to be a perfect choice for a group of parapsychologists looking to save Manhattan from a spiritual invasion.
The car is so iconic that those who are driving it in the decade Ghostbusters is shown can hear people singing “Who you gonna call, Ghostbuster” whenever they pass any street.
6. Bumblebee
Transformers is a movie about Alien cars that broke box office records, so it is just necessary for one of the cars to be a part of our list. And of course, we choose the lovable Bumblebee. Bumblebee is part of the Autobots and is assigned to guard the lead actor.
Although he is not the strongest Autobot out there, His funny antics, determination, and bravery make him our favorite Transformer. He can transform into a robot and fight the Decepticons, communicate with the army, or interact with the other Transformers.
5. Herby
OK, it’s a love bug, not a speed machine, but let’s face it, we all love our Herby. And admit it, even just once, you probably wish you had a talking car too! No other car on our list has a bigger personality than Herbie.
He captured the hearts of moviegoers of all ages. And yes, Lindsay Lohan teamed up with him in Herbie: Fully Loaded (2005), playing an aspiring racer who finds him in a junkyard.
4. The Mystery Machine
So the Mystery Machine doesn’t have any special gadgets on it; it doesn’t talk or transform, unlike the other cars mentioned above. So what makes it so iconic? Surely it’s because it has the best psychedelic paint job ever seen on a communally owned mid-sized van.
It is also one of the first unusual cars ever seen in movies (the 1950s). Not to mention is driven by crime-solving teenagers. The paint job itself is good enough for us to give it the 4th spot.
3. The Batmobile
Batman, one of the most popular superheroes of all time, is incomplete without its Batmobile. The car is so edgy, full of gadgets, and just screams out cool!
The Batman films have given us plenty of different Batmobiles over the years. But for us, the militaristic Batmobile tumbler that appeared in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight is the most impressive one – the body alone is said to be made of more than 65 carbon-fiber panels.
2. James Bond’s Aston Martin
Among all James Bond cars, the Aston Martin that first appeared in 1964 is the most iconic one. Even without the Bond spy modifications, the car’s build itself is impressive. But it’s the far-out gadgets that made it iconic.
Along with its popular tricks are the machine guns, ejector seat, smoke screen, and last but not least, the map screen, which foreshadowed today’s GPS. The proof that this car is so influential is that in 2010, one of the original Aston Martin cars used in Bond’s movie was sold for $4.6 million.
1. The DeLorean DMC-12
And the top spot goes to Back to the Future’s DeLorean DMC-12. Its unique retro-futuristic looks, combined with a bit of movie magic, gave the DeLorean legendary status. Wait, aren’t all things in this movie just iconic, and it’s just biased to put it at #1? Maybe. But who cares?
The 90s generation (and even other generations) would never forget Marty McFly and the DeLorean.
Cars featured in films are often unforgettable. Who cares about it when you have the leading characters and a great storyline ahead of you? But there are also some instances where the humble automobile has been the main reason we remember a particular movie, and that’s what makes a movie car iconic. Do you agree with our list of the 15 most famous movie cars ever? Let us know in the comments below!