Get Your Motor Running...

1. Aston Martin DB5 - Goldfinger

By a country mile the LOVEFiLM members' favourite is James Bond's fabulous Aston Martin DB5 - the classic 007 automobile, premiered in Goldfinger, that not only packs serious horsepower but some delicious, Q-branch refinements too: smoke and oil sprayers, rear bullet-shield, forward machine guns, passenger ejector seat, and revolving number plates...

Goldfinger

2. Ford Mustang GT-390 - Bullitt

Our next exhibit: a 1968 'Highland Green' Ford Mustang GT-390. One careful owner. Well, we say careful. It was Steve McQueen. And as a skilled racer on two and four wheels, he did his own driving stunts. Which involved tearing up, down and over the steep streets of San Francisco at speeds of up to 115 mph. So... thrashed? No, we wouldn't say thrashed. Broken in a bit, perhaps. Anyway, can you get any cooler than a dark green thrusting Ford that's had Steve McQueen's ass in the front seat? No. You can't.

Bullitt

3. Mini Cooper - The Italian Job

Forget that chunky BMW-updated contraption, for a retro and distinctly British edge, the original Mini Cooper just can't be beaten. Perfect for gadding about town with purloined bullion rattling around in the boot, or simply hooning up tiny side-streets while the granite-like suspension turns your spine to mush. Bliss. Mockney Michael Caine accent, optional. Having three in red, white and blue, laudable.

The Italian Job

4. Pontiac Firebird Trans Am - Knight Rider

Must have been tricky sharing a show with something so shiny, over-specced and faintly annoying, but to his credit, you rarely heard KITT complain. A Pontiac Trans-Am: black, bullet-proof, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound (near enough), the Knight Industries Two Thousand is a proper piece of work. Drives itself (making holiday journeys a breeze), all manner of whizzy gadgets, and that really cool red laser tracker thingy on the front. And since the lanky Hoff could squeeze into it, plenty of leg room for a coupe too.

Knight Rider - Season 1 ; Season 2 ; Season 3
Best of Knight Rider

5. VW Beetle - The Love Bug

An iconic shape famed throughout automotive history, the Beetle is the first word in retro appeal. This is an L87 pearl white 1963 Model 117 Volkswagen Type 1 Deluxe Sunroof Beetle, and his name's Herbie. No chit-chat from the Herbster, but he's another motor happy to take driving duties upon himself, though caution: this often involves some fairly hair-raising stunts conducted in a rather comic speeded-up motion. Bit of a sentimental old fool, also been known to get saucy with attractive lady cars. Don't think about that too much. Seriously.

The Love Bug
Herbie Rides Again
Herbie Goes To Monte Carlo
Herbie Goes Bananas
Herbie - Fully Loaded

6. Dodge Charger - Dukes Of Hazzard

A souped-up 1969 Dodge Charger, the General Lee is a huge, fire-orange slab of muscle-car. Ideal for rallying around dusty rural roads and leaping gullies, rivers, etc due to an apparently indestructible front-axle. Those with back complaints may find entry and exit (through rolled-down windows - doors are welded shut) a bit awkward. Male drivers: unbuttoned shirts, chest wigs and loud shouts of "yeee-haaaa!" compulsory. Even at traffic lights. Female drivers: outrageously tight and short denim cut-offs compulsory. Especially at traffic lights.

Dukes Of Hazzard - Season 1 ; Season 2 ; Season 3 ; Season 4 ; Season 5 ; Season 6 ; Season 7
Dukes Of Hazzard - 2005 movie

7. Lamborghini Countach - Cannonball Run

Rich pickings when it comes to selecting a vehicle from the Cannonball canon, Burt Reynolds' fictional and enjoyably messy version of the real-life Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash. Could have selected Sammy Davis & Deano's Ferrari 380, but we just can't resist the shiny, jet-black Lambo, with its spoilers, vertical doors, and sheer, low-slung, super-car style. The fact that its erstwhile drivers were women in skin-tight cat-suits with apparently faulty zippers has nothing, whatsoever, to do with it.

Cannonball Run

8. Ford Gran Torino - Starsky & Hutch

Formerly used for undercover policework before someone pointed out that a growling, bright red Ford with a white stripe up the side isn't the most covert of vehicles. This 1975 Gran Torino sedan has been thoroughly valeted inside and out, so no trace fluff remains of the chunky knitwear worn by the former owners. We've left the little red light that you can pop on the roof, though - you know, just for when the traffic gets a bit thick.

Starsky & Hutch - Season 1 ; Season 2 ; Season 3 ; Season 4
Starsky & Hutch - movie

9. Lotus Esprit S1 - The Spy Who Loved Me

Perhaps not quite as cool as the Lambo, the Lotus still has major head-turning properties - even if those heads happen to belong to scuba-divers. There's something irresistible about a low-slung, bright white sports car that sprouts fins and turns into a sleek submersible, for when the Channel Tunnel's shut and those ferry queues are just too long.

The Spy Who Loved Me

10. Plymouth Fury - Christine

1958 Plymouth Fury. Scarlet red. Possessed by Hell. We've since removed that last part from the dealership pamphlet, after some rather sensitive souls in the marketing dept felt this might make it more difficult to shift. Classic-looking cruiser that answers to the name Christine, it has the benefit of a big, comfy backseat for canoodling purposes at the drive-in/lover's lane. Prospective male buyers ought to be aware, however, that some unfortunate, erm, accidents have befallen the girlfriends of previous owners.

Christine

11. Stock car/endurance racer hybrid - Cars

Meet Lightning McQueen - part stock car, part Le Mans-style endurance racer in the mould of a Lola or Ford GT40. And his name's a fairly obvious nod to Bullitt, yet more evidence of how cool that film is. Like KITT, Lightning can talk (in the laconic tones of Owen Wilson) and drive himself. Downside is you have to enter cartoon world if you want to ride. Upside is, cruisin' with McQueen means you stand a very good chance of picking up Jessica Rabbit somewhere along the way.

Cars

12. Chevrolet Lumina - Days Of Thunder

Black with red piping, sponsor decals strewn all over it and '51' slapped on the side, the Exxon Chevrolet is a mean, aggressive petrol-guzzler. And doesn't it look great? Admittedly, Tom Cruise mullered it round a number of NASCAR circuits, but the engine's tuned so tight it sounds like a T-Rex on steroids. Full body-kit means that this shrugs off the odd bump or car-parking nudge with ease. Besides, rubbing's racing. Right?

Days Of Thunder