Scary Cars from Scary Movies

Halloween is commonly thought of as a day of witches, ghouls and goblins, but our imaginations also include several scary cars that Hollywood has used over the years. This is certainly the case for cars that stolen the spotlight of many a horror film. While automobiles aren’t what we normally think of as scary, they can be filmed in such a way to create a sense of fear. With custom bodywork, ground effects or wild after-market parts, you can make any car into a scary machine.

To help celebrate the cars of Halloween, here is a top 5 of the most memorable and frightening movie automobiles.

1971 Plymouth HemiCuda - This was one of the coolest muscle cars ever made. It is also one of the stars of the fan favorite horror film series, Phantasm. This jet-black beast appeared in all four Phantasm films. It’s almost as much of a trademark of the series as flying silver spheres that suck out people’s brains, little evil hooded dwarves and the Tall Man, the ghoulish mortician from another dimension.

1973 Oldsmobile Delta - This is another famous horror film car. It first came into notoriety as the car driven in the Evil Dead. It came back for both sequels, and was even modified into a “deadite” zombie killing machine in the third film, Army of Darkness.

One of the most hilarious things about this scary car is it looks like something a soccer mom would have driven in 1985. However, if for some reason, you ride in this car to a cabin in the woods, you better start say your prayers.

The Batmobile - No list would be complete without a mention of the one automobile that has struck fear into the hearts of criminals for decades. Perhaps, the scariest Batmobile was the one that appeared in Tim Burton’s 1989 film starring Michael Keaton. This version was sleek, dark, and extremely gothic. While the Dark Knight was a good film, the film’s more “tank-like” version of the Batmobile doesn’t share the same kind of aura.

The Green Goblin Semi - This truck literally has the face of the Green Goblin from Spiderman. However, it appeared in a non-Spiderman related horror film from 1986, Maximum Overdrive. This film was in fact Stephen King’s only directorial effort.

Let’s be honest. Semi-trucks are frightening under normal circumstances. We all get nervous when we have to drive near them on the highway. This film takes that fear a step further. The semi-trucks in this film have come to life and rebelled against humanity. The thought of being run over by a semi with the face of laughing ghoul is enough to give anyone nightmares...

1958 Plymouth Fury - Truly the scariest car ever has to be the Plymouth Fury from John Carpenter’s adaptation of another Stephen King story, Christine. If you hear spooky 50’s swing music playing and see this cherry red 50’s classic, you better run. This haunted, driverless death machine won’t stop until its victims have been crushed and mangled.

Each of these scary cars holds a special place in our memory. And just to be safe, if you see one on the street, run, run for your life!

Author Jason Lancaster prefers to think of his car as the Batmobile, although his wife disagrees, and he writes for Olathe Toyota Parts and Accessories which sells cheap Toyota OEM parts to keep your scary machine on the road.