Robert Williams, 28, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty in Warrnambool court to 15 charges, including theft of a car and reckless conduct endangering life. 

Magistrate Peter Mellas said Williams had a history of violence, previously served prison terms, and his extreme manner of driving last Friday placed people at risk of being killed.

Police said last Thursday Williams went to Ballarat's Eclipse Motors where he took a $14,000 Ford Falcon sedan for a test drive, which he later stole.

About 1am the next morning Ballarat police saw the stolen car in Sebastapol but Williams drove off at high speed. 

At 3.40pm on Friday Warrnambool police received a call about a Ford Falcon being driven in a dangerous manner near Grassmere.

When Williams saw police near Bushfield he accelerated and gestured with his middle finger to officers.

Williams accelerated away from police who were driving at 150km/h. He was on the wrong side of the road and narrowly missed at least two head-on collisions. Williams was claimed to have put other road users at extreme risk of death.

About 7pm Warrnambool police were called to the Hopkins River near Proudfoots Boathouse.

There Williams had stolen a wooden boat, was about 20 metres off the bank and he was highly abusive to police officers. The Ford Falcon had blown its engine.

Defence counsel Xavier Farrelly said Williams went off the rails last week after not being able to see his son on his birthday and his own mother has cancer.