Phoo-ey! I’m still reeling from last month’s Mad Max feature, which came jam packed with some insanely bizarre and utterly bad-ass rods! This time, however, we’re going to turn it down a notch, taking a dive into one of the best car flicks of the millennium. I’m of course talking about the 2000 remake of Gone In 60 Seconds, starring Nicholas Cage as lead protagonist Randall ‘Memphis’ Raines.
With a plot centred around stealing 50 rides in 3 days, there are a lot of cars that could fight for a spot in a top 5 list. We picked the ones that stood out due to either their fantastic movie scenes, the quality of the car itself, or maybe a bit of both. Enjoy!
2000 Volvo Turbo Wagon R
Starting off our list is the Volvo V70 R AWD aka Lisa. It’s a sports wagon weighing in at 1600kg and possessing a 2.3L L5 Turbo DQHC engine pumping out 261 hp at 5700 rpm.
It is a car perhaps better known for its comfort rather than its mechanical prowess. Yes I know, of all the cars to put on this list, how could this one possibly make it? Well, to be honest it was less about how wonderful the car is as it was about how hilarious the scene in which the car was stolen is.
Mirror man, played by TJ Cross, walks up to a security guard at an impound lot and opens with such a wonderful line; “every time I drive my Volvo up to Beverly Hills they tow the shit.” While the guard is distracted the rest of the crew proceed to break into the lot and steal a few cars.
The guard maintaining he doesn’t have a clue what Mirrorman is on about turns to look at the cameras, whereupon Mirrorman pulls out a doll and starts dancing it while singing “she’s a brick house.” Finally with the cars successfully stolen, Mirrorman’s pager beeps, and he signs off with “I’ve got a midget paging me, I’ve got to get out of here, time is money” to the flabbergasted guard. If that isn’t reason enough to be on this list then I don’t know what is.
1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4
Aka Nadine, this is an absolutely spectacular rod, and ridiculously rare to boot. Only 330 were ever produced, one of which was famously owned by Steve McQueen.
Utilising a Colombo V12 engine with the power of 300 ponies, it was capable of a top speed of 268kph. Such was its brilliance that Sports Car International put it at #7 on its top sports cars of the 60s. Not too shabby eh.
Yep Mirrorman is involved again. Along with The Sphinx, played by Vinnie Jones, they break into a warehouse full of cars via the roof. Disabling the locks on the building doors, they let in the rest of the crew. Sara Wayland, Angelina Jolie’s character, takes a moment to admire the large number of wonderful cars. She turns to the rest of the crew with a wry smile, quipping “always was a sucker for a red head,” before they begin boosting several Ferraris on the list including the aforementioned Nadine.
1988 Porsche 959
Coming up next is another beauty: the Porsche 959 aka Virginia. As close to automobile perfection as you can get, bringing the best of both the technical and luxury into one item. Don’t believe me? Check this out.
A 2.8L twin turbo charged engine delivered 444hp, which was capable of doing 0-97kph in 3.6 secs, and with a top speed of 339kph (the fastest street legal at the time).
This car was an absolute beast, so much so that Sports Car Illustrated puts it at #1 on its top sports cars of the 80s.
During the film, Virginia was also stolen in a rather amusing scene. While all the other cars were taken with craft, guile and some form of stealth, this one required a little bit more brute force.
Giovanni Ribisi’s Kip Raines steps out of his car, turns to his crew and states “I’ve got to get my tool,” picks a brick out of the boot and proceeds to shatter the glass of the showroom.
They steal the car, then burst right through the showroom window before driving away. Kip then stops at a red light and challenges another diver in a Honda Civic to a race, proceeding to leave it in the dust.
1999 Humvee H1
Another one that’s on this list purely for the quality of the scene more than the car. The Hummer H1, aka Tracy, sports a 6.5L V8 Turbo engine, outputting 300hp, and capping out at 134kph. Yeah, maybe the Hummer is better known for being an absolute fuel hog rather then fast or manoeuvrable.
During the film, we get even more Mirrorman and Sphinx, with yet another fun theft. Identifying the target vehicle in a multi story parking lot, they proceed to steal the car with the iconic number plate: ‘SN4KE’. While they begin driving the car down the parking lot, a couple of police officers arrive to ‘check for a car.’
Mirroman panics as he notices a snake crawling on the car floor. The snake then begins to climb up his leg, yikes! The cops notice the out of control Hummer driving up the parking lot and stop right in front of it.
Sphinx, having none of this, hits the accelerator and begins ramming the cop car down the ramp, before knocking it over the edge. The cops, in sheer shock, suddenly hear a sound on their roof. Yep, Sphinx had just thrown the snake onto their car, before calmly driving the Hummer out of the parking lot. This is perhaps the second most memorable scene in the movie and thus deserving a spot on our list.
1967 Ford Mustang GT500
Yes, naturally our top spot has to go to the 1967 Ford Mustang, aka Eleanor. This beaut had a growling 351 Ford V8 pumping out 430hp, and was capable of 0-96kph in 7 seconds, without the added effects of Nitrous Oxide. Just to show how iconic this vehicle was, the officially licensed car sold for a stunning $1 million in 2013.
As you’d expect from the car at top spot, it also had arguably the best scene in the movie. Having left her as the last vehicle needed, Raines finally steals the infamous Eleanor just as detectives Castlebeck and Drycoff arrive.
Raines U-turns the car and a long chase ensues winding its way through the packed city. Despite ending up down a blocked alley, Raines begins eluding the detectives while driving in reverse, eventually arriving onto the main road. He notices a smiling child in the back seat of a car, returns a smirk before stopping the car and driving off.
As expected, given Eleanor’s history, right when Raines has lost the police and is slowly making his way to the rendezvous point, Eleanor does what Eleanor does and stalls. A desperate Raines begs the car to juice up and just as a Policeman spots him, Eleanor finally gives.
The chase finally comes to a head on the bridge. Despite evading a huge number of vehicles, helicopters and explosions, Raines faces his final barrier…an accident induced traffic jam.
Staring down the barrels, a despairing Raines suddenly notices a ramp, puts the car in reverse, builds up some distance, and then floors it, accelerating towards the ramp, leaping over the jam and getting home free to the shock of the chasing cops and to his relief.
That concludes our list of cars from Gone In 60 Seconds (2000). I know some of you probably have a few ideas around cars that should’ve made this list, so feel free to let us know which ones in the comments.
I’ll leave you with Eleanor’s jump scene.
Until the next time, this was October’s Unusual cars in film and television. Peace out!
