20 Of The Best Films For Petrol Heads

Mad about motors and movies? Do you love nothing more than seeing vehicles careen around the screen? Then sit tight and buckle up with any one of these cool rubber-burning flicks with gear sticks.

1. Bullitt:
Join Steve McQueen as San Francisco cop Bullitt in a great thriller containing one of cinema’s truly awesome car chase scenes.

2. 2 Fast 2 Furious:
The second in the franchise arguably has the best driving scenes. The only thing hotter than the engines is Eva Mendes.

3. Transformers:
A petrol head movie with a change, quite a few of them. Great action and SFX make this a winner.

4. The Driver:
Ryan O’Neal as specialist in the risky art of the getaway driver. Contains some great police chases that stick in the memory.

5. Days of Thunder:
Tom Cruise as hot shot NASCAR driver Cole Trickle, a guy who loves to take risks in one of the most dangerous racing championships. Focus on the driving and forget the script.

6. Le Mans:
Idol of the petrol heads Steve McQueen in a film of unflinching realism detailing one of the toughest endurance tests in motor racing.

7. The Italian Job:
“You’re only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!” Steer clear of the remake and watch the original Michael Caine starring Mini Cooper crime caper.

8. Duel:
Steven Spielberg directs this troubling tale about a commuter targeted by a psychopathic truck driver on the highway.

9. Smokey and the Bandit:
Don your cowboy hat and join Burt Reynolds as the wisecracking Bandit who leads Sheriff Buford T. Justice on a hilarious high speed chase across the States.

10. Gone in Sixty Seconds:
Angelina Jolie pouts her way through this story of a retired car thief, played by Nicolas Cage, forced back into the game to save his brother’s life by stealing 50 cars in a single night.

11. Cars:
One for the kids, although adults love it too. This Pixar classic will get junior petrol heads racing around the room.

12. Death Proof:
Kurt Russell stars as a scarred former Hollywood stuntman named Mike with murder in his headlights in Quentin Tarantino’s stylish slice of Grindhouse.

13. The Cannonball Run:
This wacky race starring a host of celebrities focuses on a highly illegal crazy cross-country car race actually organised for a time in America.

14. Death Race 2000:
An altogether different kind of futuristic cross-county race crammed with savage slayings and starring David Carradine and Sylvester Stallone.

15. Two-Lane Blacktop:
The tale of two car fanatics driving a 55 Chevy across the US challenging drivers to races. Strangely, Country and Folk singer James Taylor plays one of the main protagonists, imaginatively named The Driver.

16. Grand Prix:
James Garner stars in this motor racing classic mixing laps with love affairs. Great in-car cinematography sets this one apart from other F1 films.

17. Christine:
This film adaptation of Stephen King’s chilling novel about a boy’s beloved first car that just happens to be haunted might come back into your memory while you’re driving alone one dark night.

18. Mad Max:
This post-apocalyptic Aussie cult classic stars Mel Gibson as the eponymous hero and a trunk load of weapon-filled road rage. Max’s V8 Interceptor is one of cinema’s iconic cars.

19. Vanishing Point:
Another cult classic starring Barry Newman who leads the police on a hot pursuit as he takes a bet to drive and deliver a car from Colorado to San Francisco in 15 hours.

20. Taxi:
Flag down the original French version. Awesome car chases and stunt work abound in this Gallic tale of a young taxi driver caught speeding being forced to help a hapless cop hunt down German criminals so that he can keep his license.

This automotive fuelled blog post was put together on behalf of Vroomvroomvroom.co.uk, the UK car hire comparison website.

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