What a difference a holiday weekend makes. Over the three-day period, so many people saw Ride Along 2 that it dethroned Star Wars: The Force Awakens from pole position at the box office. Admittedly, we were not among those who queued up. We love Kevin Hart and Ice Cube, and we caught all the promotion they’ve been doing for the flick. Their appearance on The Bachelor was meh, but their turn as driving instructors in a bit with Conan was sublime. So much so that we’d rather watch that on repeat than go see the actual movie. We did, however, take a gander at the trailer just to see what cars were making big-screen cameos, and found plenty to gawk at. Here are our favorites.
Jaguar XJR
This saloon is a very big cat that can play nice as easily as it can rip your face off. The British sedan wears its French Racing Blue paint job superbly, a hue only available on Jag’s R-S variants. The 5-liter supercharged V8 generates a sizeable 550 ponies and 502 lb-ft of torque, meaning if you step on its tail, it’ll rocket its two-ton frame from a dead stop to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds. The “R” means rear-wheel-drive sedan also comes with an eight-speed transmission, stiffer suspension and beefier brakes, meaning it can keep up with bantamweight sports cars.
BMW M5
The XJR, piloted by Hart and ferrying Ice Cube and a terrified Ken Jeong, is being pursued by a duo of M5s. One is promptly dispatched in a ball of fire after Cube nails a tire with a well-placed bullet. On paper, the M5 and the XJR are ostensibly even. The M5’s biturbo V8 produces only 10 more horses and the exact same amount of torque. The M5 is also RWD and will do the business to 60 in 3.6 seconds—3.5 if the steed is upgraded with the Competition package. It’d be interesting to see a proper battle between the two sedans, one sans flying lead projectiles.
Lamborghini Murciélago
This Lambo was the first model developed by Audi AG after the Germans acquired the Italian manufacturer back in 1998. The 6.5-liter V12 mid-mounted engine produced an admirable 661 horsepower for the all-wheel-drive coupe. It was regarded by many as a great initial offering, and clearly Kevin Hart likes it; the comic hangs out the passenger window screaming jubilantly in the trailer. Fun fact: “Murciélago” is the Spanish word for “bat” which is kind of how one could describe Hart’s character, Ben Barber: an annoying little bundle of energy flapping around, requiring constant swatting to keep him at bay.
Chevrolet Tahoe
This lime-colored, tricked and donked ute screams around a parking garage, neon ground effects all aglow, chrome deuce-deuce rims all shimmery. Seconds later, it’s bursting through a concrete wall and tumbling end over end for three stories before landing on its back like a helpless turtle. It’s an unfitting demise for such a solid SUV. We’re already fans of the LTZ trim featuring the EcoTec3 5.3-liter V8 L83 powerplant and its 355-horsepower goodness, but we’d bow down if Chevy would quit teasing us with the one-off performance iterations (remember Tahoe Black from 2013 SEMA?) and put an SS or RS-badged variant into production.
Chevrolet Impala
A dropped and air-bagged ‘64 Impala will always turn heads, particularly when it’s bouncing and jerking and generally defying gravity. Which means it’s the wrong vehicle for an undercover cop to use when he wants to remain under the radar. Which means it’s the perfect choice for Hart’s character when he rolls up on a car meetup presumably populated by the bad guys. Points to whoever secured the car for the film. This drop top is mint.
Chrysler 300
Ice Cube pushes one of these as his patrol cruiser, though it stands out more than it blends in. His murdered-out 300 has smoked headlights, black rims and a dark tint on the windows. With any luck it’s got the 5.7-liter V8 Hemi option, which means 363 horsepower, bigger and stronger brakes and a 160-mph speedometer. Plus a decklid spoiler. Ice Cube deserves a decklid spoiler.