The Big Top 10 List of Movie Cars Plus The Honourable Mentions

Some cars become movie stars in their own right, some on this list are as stunning as Charlize Theron, others as masculine as Clint Eastwood, but all have that intangible star power that some people (and cars) just have in spades. Here's our top 10 in no particular order, movie-star cars! (We left in TV cars as well, but only if they too had that screen presence)

1. Aston Martin DB5 (Goldfinger)

James Bond's cars become famous the moment they appear on screen, but none has garnered more attention than the machine gun-equipped Aston Martin DB5 from Goldfinger. It sold at auction in 2010 for a staggering $4.6 million.

2. Tumbler "Batmobile" (The Dark Knight)

Probably the coolest and most iconic incarnation of the Batmobile, The Dark Knights Tumbler might not be a normal "car" but it does have four wheels and drive on the street. Sounds like a car to me. The rocket thruster is another nice touch.

3. 1969 Dodge Charger (Dukes of Hazzard)

The Dukes of Hazzard ran 147 episodes over 7 seasons and a large number of 1969 Chargers were destroyed in filming. Some sources place the figure at over 300. In the last years of the show, producers found they had created a shortage of 1969 Dodge Chargers, so they used AMC Ambassadors, painted them orange and used fancy camera angles and editing techniques to try and hide the switch.

When the population of Chargers and Ambassadors got to a critical stage, the producers of the show went so far as to have a special effects company shoot some of the jumps using miniatures.

In an attempt to combat the shortage of Chargers they had caused, producers on the show were said to have placed notes on the windshields of 1969 Chargers in parking lots, asking owners if they wanted to sell them.

When production ended, 17 General Lees – in various stages of disrepair – survived.

4. 1982 Pontiac Trans Am (Smokey and the Bandit)

These days, Georgians can get all the Coors they want. But in 1977, it wasn't sold east of the Mississippi River. Getting 400 cases to Atlanta required the help of Bo "Bandit" Darville and, of course, a now-legendary black Trans Am.

5. Ford Mustang GT (Bullitt)

For car enthusiasts, Bullitt is easily Steve McQueen's best movie. The movie is full of outstanding cars and has some of the best car chases ever filmed. In celebration of the Mustang GT's starring role in the film, Ford's released several Bullitt-edition Mustangs.

6. Ecto-1 (Ghostbusters)

It's hard not to think of the Ecto-1 when you hear the Ghostbusters theme song. the Converted 1959 Cadillac is easily recognized by the iconic logo on each door.

7. DeLorean DMC-12 (Back to the Future)

If it weren't for Back to the Future, who knows how the DeLorean DMC-12 would be remembered. But thanks to Doc Brown and Marty McFly, John DeLorean's failed supercar is now the world's most famous time machine (Well, The Delorean or a certain blue Police box)

8. Lotus Esprit (The Spy Who Loved Me)

It's usually a bad idea to drive your car into the ocean (unless you drive an Aztek, then please do us all a favour) but not if you're James Bond. His Lotus Esprit could transform into a submarine. To this day, it's still one of the coolest things a car's ever done.

9. 1994 Toyota Supra MK IV (The Fast and the Furious)

Following the destruction of Brian's Eclipse, he asked his commanding officer Sergeant Tanner for another car to repay Dom Toretto with. When he arrives to Dom's garage, he brings a rusted Supra taken from a junk yard. In the movie, Dominic and his friends spent about $15,000-$20,000 on restoring it. (I need to meet their mechanic) When they're done the car is so fast it's able to smoke a Ferrari in a street race, and inspire a generation of kids to find a love of cars.

10. Volvo P1800 (The Saint)

Both the Volvo and the Jaguar E-type were launched at the Geneva motor show in 1961 and while the Jaguar would overshadow the P1800, something happened there that would eventually change the Volvo's fortunes dramatically. The producers of a new TV series were looking for a car for their dashing hero to drive and approached both Jaguar and Volvo to supply a car for filming. Jaguar declined, but Volvo accepted.

That TV series was The Saint, the dashing hero was Simon Templar, played by Roger Moore and the P1800 would go on to become a legend. Sales immediately increased when the series aired in 1962 and the P1800 would be a great financial success for Volvo, helping to hugely raise the brand's profile in the US market. Not only did Roger Moore drive the car in the series, he also owned one. One that was used in the series, in fact.

11. And here are our honourable mentions.

These didn't quite make our top 10, but were still too iconic to leave out.

12. 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder (Ferris Bueller's Day Off)

If you're going to ditch school and see Chicago, there's not many better cars to do it in than a beautiful 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder. I highly recommend picking one up.

13. 1982 Pontiac Trans-Am (Knight Rider)

One man might be enough to make a difference, but one Trans Am certainly wasn't enough to keep Knight Rider a hit TV show between 1982 and 1986. That's why NBC had to build around twenty.

It won't shock you to learn that in its debut year, demand was very high for Pontiac's hottest sports car. This meant NBC could only get four cars to do Knight Rider's entire first season. Then, they got lucky. In 1983, a car transporter derailed in California, and although the cars were fine, GM sold 10-12 Firebirds off that train to the studio for a dollar each, with the condition that they had to be destroyed once the cameras stopped rolling. Universal honoured that request by dropping a wrecking ball on them, but not before buying another six cars to ensure "Super Pursuit Mode" could be a thing.

14. 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi QV (Magnum PI)

Everyone wanted Magnum P.I.'s Ferrari. The guy showed a generation of TV viewers in the '80s that you didn't actually have to be able to buy a Ferrari to drive a Ferrari. It also spawned the awesome dorm drinking game that required a drink whenever the Ferrari appeared on-screen, which was all well and good until Magnum sat in the car during a stakeout for half the show...

15. 'Herbie' 1963 Volkswagen Beetle (The Love Bug)

It's hard not to remember the original Volkswagen Beetle fondly. Even people who couldn't care less about cars love Beetles. And part of that is because of the starring role the Beetle had in The Love Bug.

And that wraps up our list of our Top 10 4-wheeled movie-stars. Is there any you feel we missed, did we forget your favorite? Feel free to rant in the comments below!