Sometimes movie studios partner with car companies and place their products throughout the movie, other times movies are specifically about cars, and sometimes movies just make some cars look just awesome. While in most movies, the car brands are hidden and the car is just nondescript, in other movies, it is just the opposite.This has been happening for a long time, and sometimes movies can have a profound effect on the perception and popularity of a car, shaping public consciousness of the car for decades to come.Sometimes movies are deliberately trying to advertise a particular brand of car, and at others times the brand of the car is just incidental. Some movies, like the Fast & Furious franchise, just make the cars look larger than life — something like how actors in those movies are also larger than life. Here are 10 movies that really made us want to buy the cars that starred in them.
10 The Italian Job 1969 - Mini
The original British movie The Italian Job from 1969 starred the famous actor Michael Cain from the East End of London pulling off a heist in Rome. But perhaps what is best known about this movie is its car chase scenes in the Mini.
The Mini was perfectly suited to the tiny, narrow and cobbled streets of Rome and the movie catapulted the Mini to international fame. A remake of the Italian Job was released in 2003 also starring the Mini.
9 Herbie, The Love Bug 1968 - Volkswagen Beetle
This fun comedy also from the 60s starred an anthropomorphic pearl-white 1963 Volkswagen Beetle as the main character. This movie might be overly slapstick, but sometimes it really is fun watching old movies from the 1960s, when the ideas of movie making were different.
The movie was followed by a score of sequels, all starring Herbie as the protagonist. The movie was silly but entertaining and certainly made the audience think they wanted a car like that!
8 The Transporter 2002 - BMW 735i
The Transporter from 2002 is a French movie made in the English language starring noted actor Jason Statham as Frank Martin — a badass driver for hire. In this first movie, his car is a BMW 735i, which features very prominently in the movie.
In the plot, Jason Statham and his BMW goes through all the customary car chase scenes through the beautiful and quaint French cities and French countryside.
7 The Transporter 2 & 3 - Audi A8 W12
In the sequels to the original Transporter, Jason Statham reprises his role as the badass driver for hire, Frank Martin, but this time, his BMW 735i is swapped out for an Audi A8 W12.
These French action-thriller movies also proved as successful as Jason Statham's awesome driving skills. Few people could watch these movies and not crave an Audi A8 W12 afterward. Somehow, and who knows how, Jason Statham just makes the Audi look sexy.
6 I-Robot 2004 - Audi RSQ
This futuristic sci-fi movie starring Will Smith at his very best made us all fall in love with the future of driving (just not the future of rogue robots turning on everyone). In I-Robot, we see Will Smith driving his fully autonomous Audi with manual override.
The futuristic Audi RSQ coupe he drives was specially designed by Audi for the movie. It was designed by Julian Hönig (the Senior Exterior Designer at Audi AG) no wonder it looked good.
5 1,750 Movies And TV Shows - Chevy Suburban
Basically, anyone whether a hero or villain needs a Chevy Suburban. So much so that this vehicle has starred in more movies than any other car. In December 2019 it was rewarded a Hollywood Walk of Fame star for having appeared in "1,750 films and TV shows since 1952."
Another awesome thing about the Suburban is that it was first launched in 1934 and is today the longest continuously produced nameplate in history — that is quite an accomplishment.
4 Back To The Future - DeLorean
Back To The Future was our childhood movie. And as much as the movies are known for the crazy mad scientist, they are also loved for the DeLorean starring in the movie as their time machine.
A total of six DeLorean cars were used during filming, plus another mockup made of fiberglass for when the vehicle had to "fly". Now, the question is how much do we want to buy a DeLorean versus how much we actually want a time machine.
3 James Bond, The World Is Not Enough 1999 - Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow
The James Bond franchise has a history of product placement, and one such one includes the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow in the 1999 installment of the franchise. Of course, this is just one of James Bond's many sexy cars.
This luxury English car was produced from 1965 through to 1980 and saw over 30,000 units produced. It's pretty much obligatory for James Bond to have an awesome car, so the Silver Shadow was the car for him.
2 James Bond, You Only Live Twice 1967 - Toyota 2000GT
One more James Bond movie with an awesome car was the 1967 movie with Sean Coronary and his Toyota 2000GT. The vehicles used in You Only Live Twice were specially modified for the movie, and the car chase scenes were mostly filmed in the 1964 Summer Olympic Stadium.
It's not every day that a Toyota so prominently stars as the sexy performance car. Toyota used to make more performance cars in the past — and they are trying once more.
1 The Great Escape 1963 - Triumph TR6
The Great Escape, a truly great movie. How could we ever forget the image of Steve McQueen fleeing Nazis in the German countryside, jumping fences on his Triumph TR6 disguised for the movie as a German motorcycle?
While of course, a Triumph TR6 is a motorcycle and not a car, the scenes are so memorable and the stunts are considered some of the best ever in the history of filming that it deserves an honorable mention.