A new study by the leasing experts at Vanarama have revealed the monstrous motors that are featured the most in horror films released this decade.
The research shows the manufacturers that feature in the 30 most popular horror movies from 2020-2023, as well as looking at over 450 specific models to see which appear the most. The data also devilishly delves into the car types used in this genre the most… and it may not be the type you think.
Carmaker Ford is the scariest manufacturer of the decade
American brand Ford has been revealed as the scariest car manufacturer, featuring the most in horror movies this decade. Ford was featured 87 times in horror films released since 2020, with appearances in the likes of Evil Dead Rising, Halloween Kills and The Conjuring.
In fact, out of the 35 cars featured in The Conjuring, 31% of models are Fords. The most popular of these is an Econoline.
Ford is already one of the most popular manufacturers on UK roads, as well as in the US with the bestselling F-Series pickup. In 2022, nearly 654,000 of them were sold in the States. It seems that movie directors are favoring this brand just as much.
Car manufacturers used the most in horror films this decade
| Manufacturer | Total appearances in horror films 2020-2023 | |
| 1. | Ford | 87 |
| 2. | Chevrolet | 61 |
| 3. | Dodge | 32 |
| 4. | Toyota | 26 |
| 5. | Honda | 14 |
| 6. | Jeep | 12 |
| – | Volkswagen | 12 |
| 7. | Cadillac | 11 |
| – | Nissan | 11 |
| 8. | BMW | 10 |
| – | Kia | 10 |
| – | Plymouth | 10 |
| 9. | Mercedes-Benz | 9 |
| 10. | Pontiac | 8 |
The next popular manufacturer was Chevrolet, making 61 appearances. Chevy got the most screen time in Army of the Dead, where ten different cars were featured. At least one Chevrolet car could be found in 19 of the 30 films in the dataset.
Third on the list was another American brand, Dodge, with 32 cars. As part of the North American Stellantis group, the manufacturer was popular in X and Army of the Dead, where five cars were seen.
Chevrolet Tahoe and Ford F-Series are the most haunting vehicles to feature in horror films
You may think Halloween films are more likely to feature a hearse, but the most popular vehicles were the Chevrolet Tahoe and Ford F-Series. Although these varied in specific models, both vehicles were seen 16 times across the films analyzed. The Ford pickup had the likes of the F-150 and F-350 featured in Antlers, while the F-250 can be found in Halloween Kills. The Chevrolet Tahoe PPV police car features twice in Renfield, while other specs can be found on screen in Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Invisible Man.
Dodge Chargers are behind the Ford and Chevrolet models with 11 varying models being cast in the popular horror movies. Chargers can be seen alongside other favorites from the auto brand in the likes of Scream and Freaky.
Another Ford model also made the top three – the Crown Victoria featured across nine films. The ‘Crown Vic’ was a popular police car, which could explain why it features across these frightening flicks so often. The car originally was unveiled in the 1990s.
Spooky sedans (saloons) are a film director’s car type of choice in scary movies
The most popular type of car to feature in the research was a sedan, also known as saloons in the UK. A total of 140 saloons appeared in the study, accounting for 31% of the total cars analyzed.
The next two vehicle types were a bit more stereotypical of the horror genre: off-roaders and SUVs appeared 97 times, followed by pickups in third with 40 appearances.
Some less common car types also popped up, including a limousine, a farming vehicle and a supermini, with one appearance apiece.
From https://www.vanarama.com/
