Our Two Cents: The best “bad guy” car in a movie?

There was a fun little chat going on amongst my co-workers of Hagerty Media, as we were discussing our favorite “bad guy” vehicles in movies. After the first few comments I knew we had our next episode of Our Two Cents, so have a look at which car we loved to hate. Or hated to love, because the car was so cool but was driven by the wrong character?

Either way, we’d love to hear your thoughts and suggestions, as there are plenty of movies with bad guys with good cars!

1971 Chevrolet Nova – Death Proof

“Oh, it’s for sure Stuntman Mike’s Nova from Death Proof” — Greg Ingold

1958 Plymouth Fury – Christine

“I’m going with Christine, because it’s hard to picture a car more villainous than Christine in the fiery Fury scene.” — Eddy Eckart

“Christine. The car is literally evil (but Greg is also right about the Death Proof Nova).” — Eric Weiner

1977 Cadillac Fleetwood – Escape from New York

“Definitely gotta be the Cadillac Fleetwood with chandeliers in the movie Escape from New York.” — Cameron Neveu

1973 Mustang – Gone in 60 Seconds

“Having just watched the original Gone in 60 Seconds for the first time, I’m gonna nominate Eleanor, the 1973-ish Mustang. (“ish” because it’s cobbled together from like a 1971 car but with 1973 model year features.)” — Joe DeMatio

Porsche 911 Slantnose – Condorman

“The black Slantnose Porsche 911 belonging to the glass-eye’d Soviet spy and leader of the feared Prognoviach in the Disney classic Condorman. I wore out the VHS tape of this movie as a kid, mostly rewatching the car chase scene over and over again. Sure, the hero car was cool, but the slantnose 911 was the car I wanted and still want to this day. Might even be willing to sacrifice an eyeball for it …” — Ben Woodworth

BMW M5 (E34) – Ronin

“Since (John) Frankenheimer is on the mind lately, I’ll put a word in for the BMW M5 getaway car in Ronin. Surely one of the best car chase sequences ever filmed. All live action, no CGI.” — Aaron Robinson

2000 TVR Tuscan Speed Six – Swordfish

“The TVR Tuscan Speed Six, obviously!” — Matt Tuccillo

Peterbilt 281 – Duel

“It isn’t a car, but the Peterbilt 281 in Duel, the made-for-TV movie directed by a 23-year-old Steven Spielberg in 1971. The truck, driver unseen, chases a hapless Dennis Weaver, driving a Plymouth Valiant, across the California desert. I once interviewed Weaver about something else, but I had to ask about Duel. He said the truck was scary just sitting there.” — Steven Cole Smith

1968 Dodge Charger R/T – Bullitt

“How about the hubcab-shedding 1968 Charger  from Bullitt? The Mustang gets all the love, but the Charger was getting air and drifting through San Francisco, too.” — Brandan Gillogly

1977 Pontiac Lemans – Smokey and the Bandit

“I’ve got to go with the 1977 Pontiac LeMans driven to death by Sheriff Buford T. Justice in Smokey and the Bandit. The slow destruction of the car and the corresponding decimation of Justice’s morale perfectly complement one another.” — Stefan Lombard

“Every time I saw Pontiac’s iconic blocky front end on the road, I’d hear the booming trombones/tubas from the movie. Good times.” — Sajeev Mehta

1979 Pontiac Trans Am – Joe Dirt

“Kid Rock’s Trans Am in Joe Dirt.” — Alex Sobran

1970 Ford Thunderbird – Diamonds are Forever

“Bunkie Beak Bird. Brown body. Brutalist building. And a sinister Bond villain that stuffs Agent 007 in that trunk? Perfection!” — Sajeev Mehta

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