The visual media of film, television and comic books all have the ability to stretch the imagination, something they’ve done on many occasions when it comes to presenting some of the weirdest and most wonderful car concepts.

One of the best examples of this is the 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am that played KITT in the original Knight Rider. The talking muscle car, driven by David Hasseloff in the hit US TV series, is undoubtedly one of the hottest sci-fi cars ever – and it should never have been replaced in the new version of the cult show, which hit UK screens recently.

Although the Ford Shelby GT500KR (pictured) is a hot car in its own right, replacing the Pontiac Firebird is as stupid as the idea of changing the look of the Starship Enterprise in the new Star Trek (which they didn't, thankfully). You just don't do it!

On the upside (and there is one, you'll be glad to hear), the absence of original KITT means its status hasn't been brought down by appearing in a new version of the cult TV show, which can only be described as the poor man's Knight Rider – and that's being kind.

And as its status as an all-time great remains untarnished, KITT can still sit proudly alongside other sci-fi greats such as the DeLorean from Back to the Future, the Lexus from Minority Report and the Akira motorbike, widely regarded as the coolest ever sci-fi two-wheeler.

To celebrate these mind-blowing creations, we've selected what we think are the best sci-fi cars and bikes from comics, cartoons, TV and films. Take a look.