Winding Road recently published a blurb about the most influential cars in movies. Not “car movies” mind you, but cars in a movie. I clicked the link expecting to see iconic automobiles, which I did.
Along with a couple of head-scratchers. A BMW 5-series from Ronin?
But most noticeable was what the list was lacking.
No mention of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang or Herbie the Love Bug? I’d dare say the Model T from Grapes of Wrath should muster an honorable mention.
In all fairness, they did hit the mark on Vanishing Point and the Mustang from Bullitt. Have a look and see what you think of their list of the Ten Greatest Movie Cars.
Oh man, did they blow it! Obviously the first one on the list should be the yellow Deuce in American Graffiti. Followed by the black 55 Chevy. Then too, the same 55 wearing primer in Two Lane Blacktop… and the GTO from the same flick. The Bullitt Mustang is right, as is the Ferrari and the Minis. The Dodge Challenger of Kowalski certainly belongs there, but goodness, couldn’t they have used a photo of the movie car, or at least one similar? Same thing with the 917 from LeMans.
And Herbie HAS to be there. Period.
Although I have actually never seen the movie, and have no desire to, I would think that the Plymouth from “Christine” would rank above the Pontiac in the French Connection – I mean that was just a vehicle/prop in that one, wasn’t it? If we’re going to include Pontiacs as props, I would nominate the SuperDuty TransAm that John Wayne drove in McQ.
And wasn’t the Merc in “Rebel Without A Cause” more iconic than the myriad of late model euro cars used in Ronin? I’m a “car guy” and can’t remember the vehicles in that one very well ; must not have been anything special, huh? Seems I remember an Audi… I think the Barracuda from Fireball 500 would rank above those. As would the Alfa Spider in The Graduate.
Seriously.