The Cars of Brian O’Connor

Engaging in practice sessions for quarter mile races, (presumably) within the vacant parking area of Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, we are introduced to Paul Walker’s character (using the name “Brian Earl Spilner”) a few minutes into the 2001 film “The Fast and The Furious” as he sits in this verdant vehicle.

The car in the movie is said to be worth $80,000, which seems to have had quite a few modifications and specifications later on.

The car found in Saigon Little, where the bad guy Johnny Tran proceeds with the riddle, is blown up, causing bullets to fly. In the movie, the cops arrive at the scene when Vin Diesel and Dominic Toretto race. The car famously suffers an engine failure during the race but still works well enough as a getaway car for O’Connor. The script demanded that the car drift and skid like a truck, so a stunt driver in a flatbed truck allowed the film crew to film the car on top of a special rig with relieved wheels and drivetrain. Another car, the ZR18/40/225, had Toyo Tires wrapped around it, measured by Inc. Tuning Sport Axis. The movie featured five cars, all equipped with handbrakes. At least one stunt car had a console in the center with a video monitor, racing pedals, an alloy shift knob, and GReddy boost and temperature gauges. The racing seats were provided by Sparco, and the headlights were neon lighting in a green color. The car had shaved mirrors and a carbon fiber wing, as well as a custom GT-style front splitter, side skirts, and rear and front bumpers. The Eclipse Armor Car Robo-A kit included visual modifications. The practicality of the cold air intake and the NOS-system with a double-bottle Neon were argued about. The used car(s) were known to have a turbocharged 420a-engine from Dodge.

The boring one. The 1999 Ford F-150 SVT Lightning

There is no information suggesting that there are any modifications known for the car that was used. He works at Auto Parts Store as part of his cover ID in the first movie, but this car does not belong to O’Connor.

The famous one. The 1995 Toyota Supra Mark IV

The hero car, which was recently sold at an auction, has a mention of 650hp from other sources while the listing specs mention 544hp as the output power. The interior of the car features Sparco steering wheel and seats, APR wing, TRD hood, Bomex full body kit, and 19″ Hart Racing Dazzle wheels. The car is painted in a Candy Diablo Lamborghini Orange Pearl color, bringing the whole visual modifications closer to the ground. It is equipped with Eibach coilover suspension, an Eibach flywheel with an 11-pound billet clutch, and a Stage III Clutchmasters racing clutch. Additional power flows through an intake-Airinx controller, Airinx boost controller, GReddy Extreme Power exhaust system, GReddy downpipe, AEBS NOS headers, RPS wastegates, and two Turbonetics ball-bearing T66 turbos fitted to a 3.1-liter turbocharged 2JZ engine, which was swapped naturally aspirated from the 2JZ GE-engine version. The car, known as the “car hero,” belonged to Craig Lieberman, the movie’s technical advisor, and was found abandoned, with talks about its damage shown in an article about O’Connor’s Supra. The Supra was ditched by Toretto, hinting that it was his car. In the 2003 interquel “Turbo-Charged Prelude,” O’Connor finally escapes from the police and gives the Supra to Toretto, who uses it to win the final race against O’Connor, crashing his Charger spectacularly. Later, when Jesse is killed and O’Connor goes on a hunt to track down Tran, he uses the Supra to rescue Vince during another truck-heist. Toretto demands the 10-second car from O’Connor, who turns up at Toretto’s house with a rusted-out Supra on a flatbed truck, owing to Tran’s explosive end at the hands of O’Connor. After helping Mia, they turn up at Toretto’s garage with the wrecked orange car, apologizing for the turn of events.

The brief departure from JDM-cars. The 1991 Dodge Stealth

Departing from the Dodge vehicle, O’Connor catches a ride with an unknown woman and successfully evades the law enforcement officer. The vehicle is noticed by a police officer stationed outside a motel before O’Connor triumphs in several races across different cities. Throughout the majority of the film, O’Connor operates a heavily modified red Dodge Stealth, which is the American version of the Mitsubishi GTO. O’Connor departs from Los Angeles, likely to avoid his arrest, after resigning from his job in law enforcement and being forced to go on the run. The short film “Turbo-charged Prelude”, which occurs between the first two main films, showcases O’Connor’s actions.

The first GT-R. The 1999 Nissan Skyline GT-R

The car had the ABS system disabled for stunts, and also had the stop-tech brake feature. The interior lights were turned blue with blue neons added to the underside of the car. The car also had a sound-system from Infinity, JBL, and Clarion, as well as three bottles of nitrous, all of which were removed in favor of a passenger seat. The wheels were wrapped in Toyo T1-S tires, with 19-inch HRE 446 wheels. The car had blue decals and a Pearl Platinum paint job by Kolor House. It was a sports car that was supposed to “misbehave nicely”. The car was converted to rear-wheel drive and had a disabled steering wheel. It also had various modifications from Intercooler-Turbonetics, Exhaust-Titanium HKS system, Air Ram K&N, rear wing-K Flexivity, roll cage-Full harnesses, Sparco seats kit, Sparco body Motorex, and C-West modifications. Before modifying it, the owner rented a workshop for a short period of time and earned money to buy it in bad condition. Although the car is in bad condition, he finds a red Dodge behind the GT-R R34 at a dealership in Texas and decides to leave in that car instead.

The collection of cars in Walker’s possession was in great condition, but within a few days, it had to be repaired due to damage suffered by the GT-R, which was being driven by Walker’s stuntmen. The GT-R, along with all the other cars, was used in a real race opening scene, where a partially opened bridge served as a jump. This stunt became one of the most famous scenes in the movie. After the race, the cars were impounded and Walker’s character eventually disabled the car using a futuristic harpoon-like taser. However, when the cops arrive at the scene, he attempts to flee in the disabled car, earning him some money and respect. In the previous interquel, it is revealed that the main hero character, Paul Walker, actually bought the GT-R that he uses in the “2 Fast 2 Furious” movie.

The green one. The 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII

The police successfully manage to catch up with O’Connor, who is about to hand off a Camaro to Parker Tej before winning a Ferrari in the Florida Keys. The car used for the movie audition, which was imported from Europe, had been impounded and O’Connor retrieves a package from it. This particular car was auctioned for $24,200 and it was modified to resemble Evos like the VII Evo, which is a left-hand drive imported from Europe. However, the VII Evo was not sold in the USA like the regular production Evos. Since O’Connor can’t just flee from law enforcement, the car also carries a tracking beacon. In the movie, the car features Motegi FF5-rims wrapped in Racing Tires, a rear ARC wing, and rear lights from the VIII Evo bodykit. O’Connor gets a job as a courier for Carter Verone, a drug lord, and tries to use a Mitsubishi Lancer car for the job.

The one that attacks a boat. The 1969 Chevrolet Camaro “Yenko-Style”

Upon arriving in Florida, O’Connor and Pearce find themselves in a scramble to escape from the pursuing cops. In their attempt to make a getaway, O’Connor starts using the Camaro, which was once donated to the ROWW charity by Walker’s hero car stunt. Instead of driving it down to the yacht to add it to the top deck, they decide to use the Camaro as their means of escape. However, when they need the car to function properly, it fails, indicating that the only modification done to the on-screen hero-car was the interior. Another incorrect hint comes from the high prices of the original Yenko Camaros, making it unlikely for O’Connor to choose them as his wheels. Therefore, they decide to find another set of wheels and dress them up to look like a normal production Camaro, as opposed to the high-priced Yenkos.

The GT-R that wasn’t one. The 2002 GT-T

The drivers of cars, including the Skyline, all meet at a designated meeting point to park their cars and begin their journey from Mexico to the USA. Toretto finds out that the drivers are supposed to be killed once they reach the USA, so he contacts some law enforcement contacts for help. Before they start the drive, O’Connor still manages to get a job as a driver and smuggles the car from Mexico to the USA. During the street race, Toretto loses control of his Skyline after spinning it out, causing it to crash. The crew constructs a couple of frames made of pipe and fits them with Beetle drivetrains and GT-R parts for the off-road scenes in the desert. After filming wraps up, two of the Skylines were stolen and sold as cars and parts, saving them for potential sequels. The production crew used six Skylines in total, with some of them fitted with GT-R parts to make them look right. They bought GT-Ts to fit them with GT-R parts, and the actual GT-R was only used for corners that the producers wanted to “cut” in reality. The car’s suspension was brought closer to the ground with a Kaizo Industries roll cage and OMP seatbelts. It also features Contact-tires Sport Continental wrapped wheels, RE30 Volk Rays, a rear wing, Flexivity body kit, and Motorex C-West/Motorex upgrades. Toretto chooses three Nissan GT-R Skyline cars, one red, one white, and one blue, as well as a red R35 and a blue R34, to upgrade. The red car donates its only twin-turbo VR38DETT 3.8L V6 engine to the blue car. O’Connor is given an undercover assignment where he sees Toretto smuggling drugs from Mexico to the USA.

The one used to kill a bad guy. The 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX STi GH

In the final moments of the movie, Toretto is held at gunpoint and dragged out of the heavily damaged Impreza after crashing his car into Fenix’s car, resulting in their deaths. Meanwhile, O’Connor is attacked by Braga’s henchmen while driving through the tunnels. To bring him back to the USA and capture the main antagonist, O’Connor uses the Impreza to drive to Mexico. The car is equipped with a new bodykit constructed by Veilside, along with some interior parts providing by Veilside and a rollcage by Sweeney. The interior is upgraded with Takata seatbelts, a Veilside steering wheel, and a shifter. The car is also modified with Cobb Tuning exhaust pipes, mufflers, headers, an intercooler, and an air intake filter. O’Connor steals the hatchback Impreza from an impound-lot in L.A.Subaru, after blowing up his Skyline.

The oldtimer. The 1971 Nissan Skyline GT-R “Hakosuka”

It is not seen afterwards and presumably sold. It is only used for a short scene of Brian driving into the Favela, which is a part of the city where he meets up with Vince, a member of the gang from the first movie. There isn’t much information about the car since it’s only used for that scene. The “Fast Five” installment, released in 2011, takes the crew to Rio de Janeiro after Toretto frees himself from prison at the end of the previous movie.

The “Smurf Car”. The 2001 Porsche 911 (996) Carrera 2

When Hobbs arrives to apprehend the team, the previous owner (who later becomes their ally) might have just returned the vehicle. The car does not make another appearance, and the team is unable to outsmart the camera system despite multiple attempts. Upon returning to their hideout, Brian races the car around a replica of the route in the basement. After previously belonging to the region’s top racing driver, Toretto wins this Porsche in a race when the team searches for a vehicle capable of maneuvering through the police headquarters’ basement without being detected by the cameras.

The “invisible” car. The 2011 Dodge Charger PPV

The movie coordinator sent three Dodge Chargers to the police, quoting “We need more Chargers for our small fleet.” They turned them into police cars by using spare parts. The Chargers used for stunts were 2009 models, but they were made to look like authentic 2010 SRT8s with police livery. In reality, the Brazilian police didn’t have cars like that. Before the crew left, they disguised the cars as regular Chargers. This was the plan since the crew never actually takes place in Hobbs’ team’s hideout. Since he wants to be a father, Toretto agrees to help Brian, who wants the money as a “starting budget.” Eventually, Toretto lets off the throttle and lets Brian win second place. Roman, Han, Brian, and Toretto decide to steal four Dodge Charger Police Cars after they see them in a police garage. They plan to steal them from the backlot of a police station where the security cameras won’t notice. However, it proves to be impossible when they realize that the security cameras are run by the police and stealing the “invisible” cars would draw too much attention.

The remodelled Police Cars. The 2010 Dodge Charger SRT8s “Vault Cars”

There are still a lot of gearboxes, but Chargers All are equipped with automatic transmissions, which is a typical feature of the franchise. After Hobbs agrees to give them a 24-hour head start, Brian and Toretto leave Brian in Charger and start. When bodyguard Reyes tries to shoot only Toretto, Brian tries to shoot him by shooting into Reyes’ Charger. Then Toretto jumps out of his car and executes a few maneuvers, using the inertia to haul the Charger into Reyes’ car. After apparently fleeing, Toretto tells Brian to leave him behind heavily armed with Reyes’ team, as they face off against the majority of the local police cars. After shaking off most of the pursuing police cars, the crew uses Hobbs’ truck to drag the Chargers to safety and then smashes through the wall of the underground garage. The surviving part of Hobbs’ team decides to join forces with the crew, who stole the police cars that they modified, to be less subtle in stealing the vault from the police headquarters.

The return of Godzilla. The 2011 Nissan GT-R R35

Jack is seen driving in a brief race at the end of the previous movie, where he presumably bought a Nissan GT-R R35 using the stolen money. He returns to the Canary Islands, pulling up outside a small building before the end credits sequence, where he witnesses the birth of his son, Mia.

The big black German one. The 2010′ BMW E60 M5

In various ways, the vehicles (along with a group of law enforcement vehicles) being destroyed, the team attempts to apprehend Shaw’s group using those vehicles, after being summoned to London to capture Owen Shaw in exchange for having their criminal records expunged they are given a fleet of BMW E60 M5s. The vehicles seem to be intended to be standard M5s, and in the story were likely scrapped (since none of them appear to be worth repairing after the pursuit). When Hobbs discusses them, he mentions that they have V8 twin-turbo engines with 560hp, details that perfectly match the E60’s successor. In reality, most of the 14 vehicles were actually 535i-models, and all of the vehicles featured roll cages, racing seats, and racing harnesses, with one even having a pneumatic piston to assist in rolling it through a glass facade.

The rally car. The 1974′ Ford Escort RS 2000 Mark 1

When a stuntman took a fast ramp and hit the road with a standing car nose down, essentially destroying the 1600 RS, the interior of the RS was fitted with a green-screen in front of a moveable rig that was placed on a normal chassis of the Escort. The crew bought four cars, including the modified 1600 RS Escort, to make them look like the 2000s RS, and one of them is briefly seen when the crew buys it. In an attempt to intercept Shawn’s robbery of a military convoy with Brian’s main Escort, Roman’s Mustang gets crushed by Shawn’s tank, which is being used as an emergency “platform”. The crew uses oldtimer-cars to acquire old cars with as little electronics as possible when they can.

The one chasing a plane. The 2010′ Alfa Romeo Giulietta

The producers may have found the engine of the Giulia not sounding “sporty enough” because, oddly, the car has the engine sound from the Impreza in the fourth movie. The only modification shown in the film is the replacement of the rear seats with a winch. When the plane explodes, the Giulietta drives into the cargo hold and gets destroyed. While crashing it, he attaches another bad guy’s car to the plane using a winch. Prior to that, he successfully avoids one of the bad guys’ “flip cars” coming from the opposite direction. Brian switches to a 2010′ Giulietta after previously using the Escort RS 2000. In order to prevent Shawn from escaping with a military microchip, they need to catch up to a cargo plane that is taking off from the world’s longest runway and apprehend him at a military airfield. Since he has his men hold Mia hostage, they have to release him once they capture Shawn during the chase.

The bulked up Godzilla. The 2012 Nissan GT-R R35 Bensopra

Rumors are circulating that Collection Walker’s movie had some interesting twists. Although the appearance of the cars in the movie was not the only thing that was used, it was short-lived. The car was equipped with Performance Grade Weapons, including carbon-ceramic discs and CCM brake pads to ensure proper deceleration. The suspension was customized with Pro RS JRZ coil-overs and custom R Tuning camber and ride-height adjustments. The only part of the drivetrain that was left untouched was the wheels, which were swapped out for Advan Racing ETS-wheels and Advan A005-slicks that were 290mm wide. The car is said to have claimed modifications by R-Tuning, a California-based company, including a custom-made cooling system, exhaust, and HKS plumbing. It also includes an AP005 ECU Accessport Cobb for further modifications, pushing the output to an estimated 800hp. The car has massive intercoolers, two high-pressure turbochargers, revised wastegates, better fuel injectors, and an improved intake. The heart of the modification is the P800 Switzer turbo kit, which is housed under a new hood. The bodykit consists of extensively widened wheelarches, a one-piece front tilt grille and fenders, and the most obvious part, the full BenSopra bodykit. The chassis was rebuilt to accommodate these parts, and the car started out as a stripped 2010 GT-R. This R35 2012 model, designed by SP US-based, is parked in the driveway of this car with the Los Angeles crew showing the scene in an epilogue-short.

The anti-cool one. The 2013 Chrysler Town & Country

After the minivan departs, the team leaves Los Angeles shortly following the explosion. There are no serious injuries or significant damage. The explosion hurls debris onto the car, causing Brian to be thrown against it. Just as Toretto discovers a bomb that has been delivered to the house, Brian puts his son in the car on another day. Brian briefly uses the vehicle to take his son to preschool, and the blue BenSopra GT-R from the previous film has been replaced by a blue minivan. While the blue BenSopra GT-R at the end of the previous movie has been substituted with a blue minivan, we witness Brian’s struggle to adjust to family life at the start of Furious 7 in 2015.

The one that makes up for the minivan. The 2012′ Subaru Impreza WRX STi GH

When the crew travels to the Caucasus Mountains in Azerbaijan to rescue Ramsay from a convoy, Brian finds himself aboard a cargo plane in a modified Subaru Impreza. The car is equipped with a rear spoiler and hood made of carbon fiber, as well as a modified sunroof that holds a parachute for short and steep descents from the plane to the road below. The car also features a reinforced suspension, a rollcage, a racing seat with a matching harness, and hooks on the roof for aerial transport. Although none of the cars that survived the crash into the side of the mountain in the movie were repairable, Subaru instead provided seven more Imprezas to the production, none of which were from the fourth movie.

The one that is a supercar. The 2013′ McLaren MP4-12C Spider

The vehicles didn’t experience any damage, which is (one of) the factor(s) why the vehicles were provided to the production by a private collector, who allegedly also facilitated the connection with W-Motors. The vehicles used in those few scenes were briefly observed driving various sports- and supercars, with Brian operating an MP4-12C Spider when the crew journeys to Abu Dhabi.

The one that is a lowrider. The 2012 Nissan GT-R R35

Gatlinburg, a city in Tennessee, is home to “The Hollywood Star Cars Museum.” In the movie, there were two pipe-frame copies of cars that exploded, but one car survived and was visible. In a massive explosion, seven real cars were destroyed, and the GT-R was hit by a missile, causing it to bail out before Parker climbed over and into his car. Eventually, Brian, who was Ramsay’s passenger, was able to continue evading the enemy while the GT-R returned to its normal ride-height and endured most of the bullets. Brian leads the pursuit to the truck, from which the drone opens fire, and in the movie’s opening, there is a nice homage to the first scene as the car takes cover under a semi-trailer’s underneath. At one point, he presses a button that lowers the car’s airride-suspension, scraping the ground. While evading a white drone, Brian manages to drive the dark blue GT-R back to “home ground” in Los Angeles, where the crew returns at the end of the movie.

The one that belonged to Paul. The 1998 Toyota Supra Turbo

Displaying a touching message, as the image transitions to white, the camera tracks the Supra as it moves towards the sun. At a Y-intersection, the two cars travel in separate directions, eventually parting ways. It’s more of a synchronized drive, as they engage in one last (not entirely serious) race before bidding farewell. Driving a white Supra, Brian catches up to Toretto at an intersection, without actually saying goodbye. Ultimately deciding to “retire” from a life of crime, Brian chooses to meet us in an epilogue scene at a sunny beach, alongside the crew.