Daniel James Quinlan, 27, was sentenced at the Ballarat Magistrates Court on Wednesday. 

The Black Hill man pleaded guilty to 36 charges in January, with the majority of offences relating to a crime spree over two weeks in July.

Magistrate Ron Saines described Quinlan's dishonesty offending as premeditated and continued, saying there was no other appropriate sentence other than imprisonment.

He said the offending caused $17,000 damage to Ballarat businesses while under $5000 cash was stolen during the crime spree.

The court had been told Quinlan, a father of two who was high on ice at the time, and co-accused Ross Fish allegedly targeted four car wash facilities in Delacombe, Mount Clear and Wendouree over two hours on July 11.

The pair allegedly drove a blue Ford Falcon with a distinctive white door to the car washes where they caused thousands of dollars worth of damage to units containing coins.

Quinlan stole a total of $4200 in coins by forcing entry into the units.

Two weeks later in the early hours of July 24 at Delacombe, police spotted Quinlan and Ross allegedly leaving Redan Motors on Wiltshire Lane when he drove his silver Commodore wagon directly at a police vehicle.

The court was told the pair allegedly did a u-turn before driving at the police vehicle a second time.

Police attempted to stop the pair but they allegedly drove through bollards at the Doug Dean Reserve.

The Commodore was located 300 metres from the first collision while the two accused were found a short time later.

On Wednesday Quinlan was given a non-parole period of 28 months, while 210 days was declared already served in custody.

The earliest date he will be eligible for parole is in 21 months.

Quinlan's driver's licence was disqualified for three years for ramming the police vehicles.

The magistrate said he took into account Quinlan's early guilty plea, prior criminal history and reasonable prospects of rehabilitation.

Defence barrister Zoran Petric urged the court to consider his client's early guilty plea, his seven-year gap of not offending and his first time in custody.

Quinlan pleaded guilty to 36 charges, including burglary, theft, handling stolen goods, fraudulently using a registration label, being a learner driver without an experienced driver, recklessly exposing an emergency worker to risk, possessing an unregistered firearm and possessing a drug of dependence and methamphetamine.

Fish pleaded guilty on Wednesday to 37 charges relating to the car wash incidents and thefts he committed on four occasions at Ballarat businesses after Quinlan had been arrested.

He was granted summary jurisdiction to have his charges dealt with in the lower court, rather than the County Court. 

Fish, who has been in custody for 189 days, will return to court in March for a plea hearing.

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