Here’s the car trivia from film and TV you need to know before you bingewatch

COVID-19 has made us stay at home for the safety of ourselves and the community, but that doesn't mean you have to be bored and have no interesting facts to tell your friends via socials and video chat catchups.

Here are some cult classic film and TV shows that are very bingeable and very full of fun car related trivia facts. So before you binge, read up on them it'll put your bingewatching experience in a whole new light.

It’s one of the most popular, and profitable, franchises ever to hit the screens. Not only is the cast iconic and jam-packed with superstars, but it also let rev-heads froth over some classic beauties while also introducing them to a whole new audience.

Dom's Dodge Charger R/T: there were actually four of these beauties used throughout the franchise. One for close-up shots and modified with a fake blower, while there were also three more with big block engines.

Read more: The five best cars from the Fast and the Furious film franchise

The DeLorean is best known as the car used by Back to the Future’s plucky mad scientist, Doc, as the basis for his time machine which underpins the late '80s trilogy. Through the success of the film, the car – along with hoverboards and Michael J Fox – became a pop-culture icon. But the other half of the DeLorean story is less well known. It’s the story of a designer and engineer, raconteur, corporate maverick and accused cocaine trafficker.

About 10,000 DeLoreans were made and around 100 are owned in Australia today.

Read more: Old School: The story of John DeLorean

From its DC Comics origins with ‘the Bat-Man’, to the cheeseball 1960s TV series that brought crimefighting pals Batman and Robin into our lounge rooms, and the last 30 years of cinematic gothic noir-action, the Batmobile is iconic. But there’s more to Batman’s wheels than what you’ve seen on screen.

The 1960s TV Batman drove a pretty funky Batmobile which had a jet engine turbine on the rear. Turns out that it was nothing more than a 5 gallon paint can seamlessly incorporated into the car’s bodywork. Now that's a creative art department!

Read more: Old School: 15 interesting facts about the Batmobile

Cars, guns and beautiful women (not necessarily in that order) have been intrinsic to the success of the cinematic franchise that has been with us since 1962. As it reaches film number 25, No Time to Die, we are reminded that the franchise helped make many cars the automotive icons they are today.

The 1977 Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me, stared a Lotus Esprit nicknamed Wet Nellie who had a liking for underwater travel. Nellie was constructed in the USA by underwater propulsion specialists Perry Oceanographic and at the time cost a reported US $100,000.

Any keen car observers (which we know you certainly are) are treated to an array of mint condition American and European classics peppered throughout the Quentin Tarantino film. Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood is set in 1969 Los Angeles, sees TV star Rick Dalton, played by Leonardo DiCaprio and his longtime stunt double Cliff Booth, played by Brad Pitt, make their way around an industry they hardly recognise anymore as Hollywood’s golden age comes to an end.

The blue 1964 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia driven by Pitt’s character Cliff Booth is the same car driven by Uma Thurman in Tarantino’s iconic trilogy, Kill Bill. The reference is to a car that Tarantino remembers from his childhood rather than being a call back to Kill Bill. A cool coincidence nevertheless. The car’s engine was replaced with a Subaru engine and fitted with an automatic transmission just in case Brad Pitt couldn’t drive manual. Turns out he can.

Read more: The cool cars from the film Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood

In 1968, some five years after a British rock band had everyone in a spin, a new type of mania swept the world. This time it was ‘Beetle’ mania. Its protagonist: a Volkswagen named Herbie. For decades it’s been a family favourite, and it would return as a sequel and television series a number of times. Its most recent version was Herbie: Fully Loaded with Lindsay Lohan at the peak of her celebrity in 2005.

In the first film Herbie is never referred to as a Volkswagen. This is because VW were hesitant to promote the film but, after its runaway success, VW were oh-so happy to help out with subsequent features.

Read more: 10 interesting facts about Walt Disney’s Herbie The Love Bug

Topping almost every ‘best science-fiction film ever’ list is Ridley Scott’s 1982 classic Blade Runner, a film known for its incredible art direction and special effects, but equally famous for its prophetic storyline.

In Blade Runner 2049, you'll notice a less-than-subtle product placement in a few scenes (IT’S A PEUGEOT!). Could this be a clue that Peugeot is working on a secret flying car? Probably not – it’s more likely to coincide with the rumoured return of the French car-maker to the American market. Peugeots haven’t been sold in the US since 1991.

Read more: Old School: Blade Runner - Science fiction becomes fact

The four-wheeled characters of the 1978 film Grease were as integral to the storyline as Danny, Sandy, Rizzo and Kenickie. The film that was released in the early ’70s but set over a decade earlier, Grease chronicled the early years of the American teenager, a novel new idea after centuries where people finished being children and immediately morphed into working, married adults.

Grease’s cars including the forever desired Greased Lightning, were all designed and built by Eddie Paul, a legendary crafter of movie cars whose work can be seen in Taxi, Cars, The Dukes of Hazzard and the Fast and Furious franchise.

Read more: Old School: Cars from the movie Grease

Netflix’s Stranger Things is best known for being a bingeable homage to the 80s; a fun and frightening summer vacation that never has to end. Filled with plucky teenagers, creepy monsters, and alternate universes, Stranger Things works best when challenging what we believe, especially when it comes to what we believe to be realistic and relatable. It’s also a vintage car lover’s dream come true.

Character Steve Harrington drove his dad’s 1980s BMW 733i which was the German car maker's first generation 7 Series range. It was very ahead of its time having many never-seen-before features such as an on-board computer and a complex climate control system. It was also the first BMW to offer an anti-lock braking system (ABS), a driver's airbag and a newly designed front suspension.

Read more: Seven iconic cars from the Stranger Things universe

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