Whether it’s a secret agent threading the needle through narrow city streets, or a heist spiralling into a high-octane pursuit, moviegoers have been addicted to the thrill of the chase for over a century.
From Bond to Batman, Hunt to Hobbs, the best car chases don’t just thrill; they choreograph action with precision. Every screeching turn, every near miss, every perfectly timed explosion makes you feel the ride in your chest. But among the dozens of iconic Hollywood car chases, which delivers the ultimate adrenaline rush?
At Canstar, we help customers cut through the noise when comparing car insurance. Using that same rigour, we tapped the science to reveal the most heart-pounding, thrilling car chases in cinematic history.
From BPM to HRV: the metrics behind movie magic
In 2025, we recruited over 150 volunteers to watch some of cinema’s most iconic car chases, curated from global critics’ lists, Reddit suggestions, and our own personal favourites.
For each screening, viewers were fitted with a heart monitor tracking beats per minute (BPM) and heart rate variability (HRV), to find out which scenes sent pulses racing based on the changes from their average resting heart rate.
BPM is one of the simplest ways to judge how fast your heart is beating. We compared viewers’ average heart rate during chase sequences to their resting BPM. The bigger the jump, the more thrilling the scene.
HRV tracks the millisecond-by-millisecond differences between each heartbeat. When we’re relaxed, we generally have a high variance between beats; however, when we’re stressed or anxious, the variance drops and our heart beats more consistently. Scenes that caused the biggest HRV dip were the ones that had viewers literally holding their breath.
We combined these metrics with peak BPM spikes to calculate a total “excitement score” out of 100. So, strap in—here are cinema’s most scientifically heart-racing chases.
The most exciting movie car chases – according to science
Rank | Movie title | Baseline | Movie | BPM | HRV | Excitement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Mad Max: Fury Road | 68 | 93 | 25 | 21 | 94 |
2 | Ronin | 68 | 91 | 23 | 18 | 85 |
3 | Baby Driver | 68 | 89 | 21 | 20 | 81 |
4 | Mission Impossible: Fallout | 68 | 90 | 22 | 17 | 81 |
5 | Quantum of Solace | 68 | 88 | 20 | 18 | 76 |
6 | Batman: The Dark Knight | 68 | 87 | 19 | 19 | 74 |
7 | Furious 7 | 68 | 86 | 18 | 14 | 66 |
8 | Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga | 68 | 85 | 17 | 14 | 63 |
9 | F1 | 68 | 83 | 15 | 13 | 57 |
10 | The Bourne Supremacy | 68 | 83 | 15 | 11 | 55 |
11 | The French Connection | 68 | 82 | 14 | 12 | 53 |
12= | Fast & Furious 6 | 68 | 82 | 14 | 11 | 52 |
12= | Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior | 68 | 82 | 14 | 11 | 52 |
14= | Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation | 68 | 82 | 14 | 10 | 51 |
14= | Spectre | 68 | 82 | 14 | 10 | 51 |
16 | Fast Five | 68 | 81 | 13 | 10 | 48 |
17 | The Fast & The Furious (2001) | 68 | 81 | 13 | 9 | 47 |
18 | Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One | 68 | 80 | 12 | 11 | 46 |
19 | Bullitt | 68 | 81 | 13 | 8 | 46 |
20 | The Matrix Reloaded | 68 | 80 | 12 | 8 | 43 |
21 | Deathproof | 68 | 79 | 11 | 9 | 41 |
22 | The Bourne Identity | 68 | 78 | 10 | 9 | 38 |
23 | The Transporter | 68 | 77 | 9 | 8 | 34 |
24 | Gone in 60 Seconds | 68 | 76 | 8 | 9 | 32 |
25 | Terminator 2: Judgment Day | 68 | 77 | 9 | 6 | 32 |
Australia’s own Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) tops our list as the most scientifically exciting car chase, raising average heart rates by a whopping 25 BPM (37%). One of three franchise entries to make the list, George Miller’s post-apocalyptic masterpiece feels like one continuous car chase with HRV dropping 21%—the steepest dive of all films tested.
Second place goes to 1998 thriller Ronin, starring Robert De Niro—the oldest film to make the top 10. Tearing through the narrow streets of Paris, this meticulously choreographed chase raised pulses by 23 BPM (34%), proving that precision and realism can be just as electrifying as CGI and explosions.
Rounding out the top five were Edgar Wright’s stylish getaway film Baby Driver, Tom Cruise’s jaw-dropping Mission: Impossible – Fallout, and 007’s high-octane opener from Quantum of Solace.
Franchise ‘horsepower’
Rank | Franchise | Number of | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Fast & Furious | 4 | 53 |
2 | Mad Max | 3 | 70 |
3 | Mission: Impossible | 3 | 59 |
4 | James Bond | 2 | 63 |
5 | The Bourne Identity | 2 | 46 |
Of all the films screened, car chases from five franchises landed multiple appearances in our top 25 list: James Bond, Mad Max, Mission: Impossible, Bourne, and Fast & Furious.
It’s no surprise that the Fast and Furious franchise, famed for its gravity-defying stunts and exaggerated chase scenes, features more than any other movie (or franchise) on our list, with four separate appearances. Led by Vin Diesel, the series lives up to its name, delivering spectacle after spectacle.
But when it comes to average excitement scores, George Miller’s Mad Max franchise claims the title of king of the car chase. With an average score of 70/100, it proves that post-apocalyptic mayhem can get hearts racing like nothing else.
James Bond follows in second place, with Daniel Craig’s Quantum of Solace and Spectre scoring an average of 63, while Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt in the Mission: Impossible series scored an average excitement rating of 59.
Behind the wheel, Vin Diesel tops the actor leaderboard with four appearances, placing him firmly in pole position. George Miller and Christopher McQuarrie are tied as directors at three apiece.
Pedal to the premium: crunching Hollywood’s car insurance costs
While it’s unlikely the Dark Knight is shopping around for a comprehensive policy on the Batmobile, we crunched the numbers to see what fully comp would cost for Hollywood’s finest rides. Note that Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning features an original 1960s-era Fiat 500, so we've quoted for the modern equivalent:
Movie title | Vehicle make | Average yearly cost |
|---|---|---|
Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation | 2015 BMW M3 | $3,131.32 |
Quantum of Solace | 2008 Aston Martin DBS | $2,538.23* |
The Fast and The Furious | 1994 Toyota Supra | $1,822.02 |
Ronin | 1998 Audi S8 | $1,697.27 |
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One | 2023 Fiat 500e | $1,487.91 |
Baby Driver | 2006 Subaru Impreza WRX STI | $1,474.85 |
Death Proof | 1971 Chevrolet Nova | $1,253.54 |
The Transporter | 1995 BMW 735i (E38) | $1,222.63 |
The French Connection | 1971 Pontiac LeMans | $1,069.17 |
Mission: Impossible - Fallout | 1986 BMW 5 Series | $946.61 |
Source: www.canstar.com.au. Based on online comprehensive car insurance quotes obtained where possible from four Australian car insurers (Bingle, Budget Direct, NRMA and Shannons). Assumes a base model with no modifications and an approximate excess of $1,000. Quotes obtained 17/02/2026. *Could only obtain a quote from one provider.
Collectable and high-priced vehicles, such as Mad Max’s Ford Falcon “V8 Interceptor” or Gone in 60 Seconds' Ford Mustang, are difficult to obtain an online quote for, even from specialist insurance providers. These speciality policies usually come with an agreed value (a value you and the insurer agree to insure your car for), meaning a ‘quick quote’ won’t cut it – they’ll usually want to discuss this with you over the phone.
If you’re looking for insurance for your own set of wheels, you can easily compare car insurance with Canstar.
Gone in 60 Seconds – and why you shouldn’t try this at home
Fun fact: more than 300 cars were written off during the filming of The Matrix Reloaded. A bill Hollywood directors can afford, but that kind of real-world recklessness would leave you with bills, demerit points, and inflated premiums of cinematic proportions.
High-speed thrills are best enjoyed from the safety of the sofa or cinema seat. In real life, attempting any type of high-speed pursuit or street race isn’t only extremely dangerous, it will likely also invalidate your car insurance.
To find out more about the impact speeding demerits can have on your policy premiums, visit our dedicated demerit guide page. For more information on some of Australia’s best car insurance providers, view Canstar’s 2026 Award Winners.
