The teenage racing drama,Motorheads, quickly became wildly popular on Prime Video. In no small part, that popularity stems from the show’s absolutely iconic collection of cars. The show opens with a high-stakes race where two different luxury sports cars are on the line, and it ends with a fiery wreck - every episode in between maintains that high-octane racing spirit. While Ryan Phillippe may star as Logan Maddox inMotorheads, the cars that the rest of theMotorheadscastdrive are clearly stars in their own right as well.
Motorheadssoared to the top of Amazon’s streaming chartswithin days of releasing. From unimaginably valuable cars kept behind high-tech security systems, to a race car that Caitlyn (Melissa Collazo) completely rebuilds while managing her high school responsibilities, Prime Video’sMotorheadshas no shortage of completely amazing cars in every episode.
10Alicia’s Tesla
It’s Not On-Screen For Long, But It Says A Lot About Her
The Tesla that Alicia Whitaker (Mia Healey) drives says a lot about who she is as a person and what her role is in the Ironwood community.Alicia is one of the only characters who never expresses any interest in racing. When her boyfriend, Harris Bowers (Josh Macqueen) wants to get involved in racing over her protests, Alicia threatens to dump him, and her choice of car reflects that.
Despite Alicia’s disinterest in racing, she nevertheless clearly knows her way around cars. She can hold her own in conversation with the other, racing, teens, and even she has to admit that her father’s car collection is cool.
Alicia’s father, Bruce Whitaker (Sergio Di Zio), is the wealthiest man in Ironwood. If Alicia wanted a racing car, he would have given her one.Alicia drives a Tesla - a car that’s safe and environmentally friendly, but which is not built for racing. It’s meant for hanging out with her friends and loved ones, and it exists in opposition to the rest of teenage culture inMotorheads.
It’s An Oldie But A Goodie
Image via Prime Video
Marcel Crawford (Nicolas Cantu) is one of the poorer characters, and that is reflected in his late 90s Pontiac Sunfire. The Sunfire is far from the flashiest car on this list. But, in the context ofMotorheads,Marcel’s beat-up old Pontiac Sunfire is undeniably delightful and endearing.
The Sunfire is one of the only things that Marcel owns for himself and doesn’t have to share with his father. It is his most prized possession, and it represents his hopes of being able to paint cars like Logan Maddox and be recognized as an artist. When Zac fries the car’s engine in a race, Marcel is ready to throw away their friendship.Because Marcel cares about the Sunfire, the audience cannot help but care as well.
8Harris’s Corvette
An Awesome Car And The Inciting Incident Of Motorheads
The first scene ofMotorheadsis a race between Christian Maddox (Deacon Phillippe) and a young Darrren Bowers; Bowers stole his father’s Corvette, and still couldn’t quite beat Christian Maddox. Decades later, Harris Bowers steals the same car from his own father to street race. While Harris wins his race, his action nevertheless leads to the car being stolen and stripped for parts.
The Bowers Corvette is a tragedy.
The Bowers Corvette is a tragedy. It is what first caused the rift between Zac and Harris, and the race that both boys' fathers raced directly prefigures their own in the dramaticfinale ofMotorheadsseason 1. Although the Corvette does not get to show off very much before being destroyed,it nevertheless haunts the narrative ofMotorheads.
7Harris’s Porsche
A Baby Blue Menace
Harris Bower’s baby blue Porsche is an extension of his personality. Even as everything else in Harris’s life is up in the air,his Porsche is the one place he can feel secure. When Harris is fighting with his father, he goes to his Porsche. When Alicia dumps him, he goes to his Porsche. When Harris finally turns his back on the car heist in the finale, he goes straight to his Porsche.
In the final moments ofMotorheads, Harris gets into a racing accident, which could very well kill him. The Porsche even spins out after hitting a pothole in the same way that his father’s Corvette spun out decades prior.The Corvette is the car that started the feud between the Bowers boys, Christian Maddox, and Zac, but Harris’s Porsche is the car that finishes it.
6'68 E-Type Jaguar
Mr. Whitaker’s Favorite Toy
Mr. Whitaker loves his cars. He maintains a password-protected storeroom in his mansion where he can display his rotating collection.When Mr. Whitaker shows off to Logan is a turning point inMotorheadsseason 1- it establishes not only the depths of wealth disparity in Ironwood but also introduces a collection whose theft is integral to the season’s climax.
In a show all about racing, Mr. Whitaker’s most prized cars are the ones that he rarely even drives…
Jaguars in general are some of the most famous racing cars in the world, but it is the D-type that is most famous, not the E-type. So, in a show all about racing, Mr. Whitaker’s most prized cars are the ones that he rarely even drives.
5Dean Martin’s Rolls-Royce
A Real Car In A Fictional Town
What makes Mr. Whitaker’s gray 1980 Corniche Convertible Rolls-Royce particularly interesting is that it is not just a creation ofMotorheads, but rather a real car that exists in the real world.Mr. Whitaker tells Logan thatthe Rolls-Royce is the very car that the “King of Cool,” Dean Martin, famously drove.
Up until Mr. Whitaker made that statement,Motorheadswas a show cut off from the worldwith its fictional setting. But Dean Martin is a real singer and actor, and he did drive a gray 1980 Corniche Convertible Rolls-Royce. On top of being a piece of history, Martin’s car is an integral grounding force in the often fantastical world ofMotorheads.
4Eleanor The Shelby Mustang
Another Movie Connection In Motorheads
Motorheadswas always a television show with a lot of connections to Hollywood. Zac and Caitlyn’s mother, Samantha Torres, is played by Nathalie Kelley, who rose to prominence inThe Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift. While “Eleanor,” a 1971 Ford Mustang, may not be a part of theFast and Furiouscinematic universe, the 1974 film which it first appeared,Gone in 60 Seconds, was certainly a precursor to the genre.
WhileGone in 60 Seconds wasfirst released in 1974, the movie was remade in 2000, starring Nicholas Cage, and featuring a slightly different take on Eleanor. Mr. Whitaker’s Eleanor is the 2000 version.
What including Eleanor in Mr. Whitaker’s car collection does forMotorheadsis to establish a throughline between three different generations of car-centric entertainment.First came Eleanor inGone in 60 Secondsin the 1970s, then came theFast and Furiousin the early 2000s.Every car in Mr. Whitaker’s collection is cool in its own right - it makes sense that people wanted to steal them - but the historical connections of Eleanor make it the coolest car of the bunch.
3Sam’s Mazda RX-7
A Racecar From a Bygone Era
Sam Torres always does her best to discourage her children from getting involved in racing. In episode 5, “Value,“Motorheadsreveals another side of Sam. Sam spots a Mazda RX-7 that she immediately recognizes as her old car from high school. Caitlyn does her best to convince her mother to purchase the car at auction and embrace the spirit of her youth.
What makes the RX-7 interesting inMotorheadsis what it reveals about Sam. Sam is on the sidelines in flashbacks while Christian races various characters whose adult counterparts are still haunting Ironwood. In the present day, Sam is strongly opposed to her own children falling into the lifestyle. But the RX-7 makes it clear that, at some level,Sam does love cars and racing.
2Logan’s Mustang
The Most Beloved Car In Motorheads
While Logan Maddox may own an auto shop, it is undeniably clear that his Mustang is his baby. At the start of the show, he drives the car everywhere. When the Mustang gets damaged in an intimidation tactic, Logan does not rest until he has restored it. Nevertheless, Logan ultimately has to give up the Mustang, selling it to Mr. Whitaker to secure not only some much-needed funds, but also the RX-7 for Sam. And, in the finale ofMotorheadsseason 1, the Mustang is one of the cars that Harris helps steal from Mr. Whitaker.
1Christian’s Car
An Unbeaten Racing Machine
In the world ofMotorheads, the most important race car is usually just called “Christian’s Car,” or just “that car.” It is immediately identifiable by its bright yellow paint job and its “UNB10” license plate, warning any would-be challengers that the car is unbeaten in races.The lines and silhouette of the car suggest that it started life as a Dodge Charger.However, it has been so aggressively rebuilt that, by the end of the series, no one refers to the car as any make or model.
Amazon Prime has not yet renewedMotorheadsfor season 2.
With help from Curtis and Logan, Caitlyn rebuilt the car from a pile of rust and junkyard parts, and she managed to honor the vehicle’s unbeaten legacy. When Christian Maddox drove the car, it made him a legend in his own time. When Caitlyn rebuilt it, it transformed her from a high school student to an engineer. This car is the beating, roaring, racing heart ofMotorheads, and it is undeniably the coolest car in the series.
Motorheads
Cast
Motorheads follows siblings Caitlyn and Zac Torres as they navigate Ironwood’s vibrant street racing scene. Grappling with their father’s troubled history, they team up with loner Curtis and outcast Marcel to restore his renowned car, in a world where high school prestige hinges on automotive prowess. Released in 2025.
