The Cars of Disney Pixar s Cars Trio
The Cars of Disney Pixar’s Cars Trio
Fresh Car Review
Car Comparison
The beauty of Disney Pixar’s “Cars” franchise is that it draws in people of all ages and interests. But for true fans of all things automotive, there’s more to the “Cars” movies than just the entertaining story line and epic digital animation. Many of the main characters are simply Pixar animators’ fabrications that have been done so well we think these folks might have a 2nd career as real car designers. However, for those like us, half the joy of watching the very first “Cars” movie was attempting to guess which of our 4-wheeled friends inspired the animators. We also like how Pixar gets so many of the details just right — the sound of the harass, the way the bod leans in a corner, the Pontiac-looking fetish mask ornament/mountains and the tire-tread vapor trails in the sky. And is that a hint of a supercharger we hear in the fresh “Cars Three” character Jackson Storm? Clearly, someone has done their homework.
Of course, some of the characters are more visible than others. Sally Carrera, for example, is clearly a two thousand two Porsche nine hundred eleven Carrera, while Mater is a one thousand nine hundred fifty one International Harvester pickup. Doc Hudson is a one thousand nine hundred fifty one Hudson Hornet, Mack a one thousand nine hundred eighty four Mack Superliner and Ramone a one thousand nine hundred fifty nine Chevy Impala. Fillmore is pretty clearly an early 1960s VW microbus, Sarge a Willys MB Jeep and Tex Dinoco a one thousand nine hundred seventy five Cadillac Coupe DeVille with a Texas longhorn treatment. But what about the others? Below is a list of the not-so-obvious Pixar creations, and our guess as to the collage of styling cues from various makes blended together to form one car. Of course, we all know no two people see a tree in the same way, so let us know: What do you see?
Lightning McQueen — The lead in all three films, Lightning McQueen, is a custom-built hand-built stock racing car whose design encompasses a number of cars. Albeit loosely based on the two thousand two Dodge Viper GTS, we can see little hints of the Ford GT40 in his front and rear fenders, the C6 Corvette in his profile and the one thousand nine hundred ninety five Mazda RX-7’s rounded fender bulges and lower air intake. Later in the film, when McQueen agrees to let the residents of Radiator Springs give him a makeover, he finishes up looking like a vintage one thousand nine hundred fifty six Corvette. While many think McQueen is based on the late actor and race-car driver Steve McQueen, he’s actually a tribute to the late Pixar animator Glenn McQueen, who passed away in 2002.
Chick Hicks — Chick is a generic mash-up of a few mid-80s GM intermediate coupes. The long rubber hood and brief trunk, squared-off edges and petite quarter window are a clear hat peak to the ’80-’84 Buick Regal and, by extension, the Grand National, with a little bit of the Chevy Monte Carlo’s rear quarter panel thrown in for good measure. The mustache-like grille may have been inspired by the one thousand nine hundred eighty Mercury Cougar’s grille and angled taillight treatment.
Darrell Cartrip — Voiced by legendary NASCAR and Daytona five hundred winner Darrell Waltrip, Cartrip is based on a one thousand nine hundred seventy seven Chevy Monte Carlo, as evidenced by the stacked headlights and petite immobile window in the B-pillar. Waltrip raced a ’77 Monte Carlo in the one thousand nine hundred seventy nine NASCAR Cup Series, coming in 2nd place to Richard Petty.
“Cars Two”
2nd in the series, we again see a number of familiar cars, only this time with a more European flair. David Hobbscap is clearly a one thousand nine hundred sixty three Jaguar E-Type, while Nigel and Finn McMissile are animated versions of the Aston Martin DB8 and DB5, respectively. Francesco is a generic F1 racing car with Italian racing colors. Of course, the villain in the story is aided by a pair of well known AMC cars named Grem, a one thousand nine hundred seventy two AMC Gremlin X, and Acer, a one thousand nine hundred seventy five AMC Pacer. The AMC connection can be linked to the James Bond film “The Man with the Golden Gun,” which showcased two AMC cars, a Matador and Hornet. Alongside these notables are another series of mash-up cars seemingly concocted from various parts. The joy of it is that there are some real car-guy nods in many of these kids’ movie scenes.
Now for the not-so-obvious characters:
Master Miles Axlerod — Tormentor Miles Axlerod, the oil tycoon who has discovered a clean-burning fuel to substitute oil, shows up to be based on a number of Land Rover models. The overall form and 2-door configuration is clearly a nod the Defender 90, but with smoother sheet metal. The bondage mask, grille and raised roof (accomplish with a built-in solar panel) look more like something from the LR4 and Discovery series.
Holley Shiftwell — Holley shows up to be a midengine sports car strongly influenced by the Jaguar XJR-15, but with a rear end that mimics the Jaguar C-X75 concept car. Her headlights are vaguely reminiscent of some Chrysler concepts, and her bulbous fenders might lightly have drawn inspiration from a number of concept cars, including the Chrysler Atlantic. Her wheels could lightly be an exaggerated version of the stylish turbine fin wheel that adorned the mid-90s Volvo 850.
Rod “Torque” Redline — For the most part, Rod most resembles a Dodge Challenger, but some have commented there’s a hint of Ford Mustang in the fetish mask, grille and headlight treatment. The rear fascia and taillights have a little bit of one thousand nine hundred seventy seven Pontiac Firebird, but that might be a open up.
“Cars Trio”
In the upcoming “Cars Three,” we’ve only been given a sneak peek at some of the players. From the teaser trailers, this is what we think we know so far.
Cruz Ramirez — We see a bit of the first-generation Dodge Charger in her profile, only minus two doors. There are also distinct chunks of the Nissan GT-R in there. Her rear fenders, glass window and tail-end treatment most resemble an Aston Martin, perhaps the Vantage or DB9. Up front, Cruz’s headlights emerge to be streamlined versions of those from the Ferrari four hundred fifty eight Italia or four hundred eighty eight GTB.
Lightning McQueen — Lightning gets updated. While retaining the same basic assets, Lightning now displays larger graphics and some Nascar-inspired aerodynamic add-ons (like the big rear spoiler bolted to his trunk).
Jackson Storm — Albeit he’s billed as a “Custom-built Next Gen Piston Cup Racer,” Jackson’s design seems pretty powerfully influenced by the current Corvette Z06, but with sharper edges similar to more exotic supercars like the Acura NSX. There’s the slightest hint of the Lexus RC coupe in Jackson’s rear side glass (at least as shown in the more detailed trailer rendering). The large blue decal on Jackson’s side resembles a modernized version of the hurricane symbol used by the National Weather Service.
Also making a cameo appearance are a group of vintage old-timers who knew Doc Hudson in his glory days. Chris Cooper, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Margo Martindale and veteran racer Junior Johnson lend their voices to Smokey (a hat peak to famed mechanic Smokey Yunick), Sea Scott (a tribute to Wendell Scott), Louise “Barnstormer Nash” Nash (clearly inspired by the Very first Lady of Racing Louise Smith) and Junior “Midnight” Moon.
The Cars of Disney Pixar s Cars three
The Cars of Disney Pixar’s Cars Trio
Fresh Car Review
Car Comparison
The beauty of Disney Pixar’s “Cars” franchise is that it draws in people of all ages and interests. But for true fans of all things automotive, there’s more to the “Cars” movies than just the entertaining story line and amazing digital animation. Many of the main characters are simply Pixar animators’ fabrications that have been done so well we think these folks might have a 2nd career as real car designers. However, for those like us, half the joy of watching the very first “Cars” movie was attempting to guess which of our 4-wheeled friends inspired the animators. We also like how Pixar gets so many of the details just right — the sound of the harass, the way the assets leans in a corner, the Pontiac-looking rubber hood ornament/mountains and the tire-tread vapor trails in the sky. And is that a hint of a supercharger we hear in the fresh “Cars Three” character Jackson Storm? Clearly, someone has done their homework.
Of course, some of the characters are more demonstrable than others. Sally Carrera, for example, is clearly a two thousand two Porsche nine hundred eleven Carrera, while Mater is a one thousand nine hundred fifty one International Harvester pickup. Doc Hudson is a one thousand nine hundred fifty one Hudson Hornet, Mack a one thousand nine hundred eighty four Mack Superliner and Ramone a one thousand nine hundred fifty nine Chevy Impala. Fillmore is pretty clearly an early 1960s VW microbus, Sarge a Willys MB Jeep and Tex Dinoco a one thousand nine hundred seventy five Cadillac Coupe DeVille with a Texas longhorn treatment. But what about the others? Below is a list of the not-so-obvious Pixar creations, and our guess as to the collage of styling cues from various makes blended together to form one car. Of course, we all know no two people see a tree in the same way, so let us know: What do you see?
Lightning McQueen — The lead in all three films, Lightning McQueen, is a custom-made hand-built stock racing car whose design encompasses a number of cars. Albeit loosely based on the two thousand two Dodge Viper GTS, we can see little hints of the Ford GT40 in his front and rear fenders, the C6 Corvette in his profile and the one thousand nine hundred ninety five Mazda RX-7’s rounded fender bulges and lower air intake. Later in the film, when McQueen agrees to let the residents of Radiator Springs give him a makeover, he completes up looking like a vintage one thousand nine hundred fifty six Corvette. While many think McQueen is based on the late actor and race-car driver Steve McQueen, he’s actually a tribute to the late Pixar animator Glenn McQueen, who passed away in 2002.
Chick Hicks — Chick is a generic mash-up of a few mid-80s GM intermediate coupes. The long spandex hood and brief trunk, squared-off edges and petite quarter window are a clear hat peak to the ’80-’84 Buick Regal and, by extension, the Grand National, with a little bit of the Chevy Monte Carlo’s rear quarter panel thrown in for good measure. The mustache-like grille may have been inspired by the one thousand nine hundred eighty Mercury Cougar’s grille and angled taillight treatment.
Darrell Cartrip — Voiced by legendary NASCAR and Daytona five hundred winner Darrell Waltrip, Cartrip is based on a one thousand nine hundred seventy seven Chevy Monte Carlo, as evidenced by the stacked headlights and puny immovable window in the B-pillar. Waltrip raced a ’77 Monte Carlo in the one thousand nine hundred seventy nine NASCAR Cup Series, coming in 2nd place to Richard Petty.
“Cars Two”
2nd in the series, we again see a number of familiar cars, only this time with a more European flair. David Hobbscap is clearly a one thousand nine hundred sixty three Jaguar E-Type, while Nigel and Finn McMissile are animated versions of the Aston Martin DB8 and DB5, respectively. Francesco is a generic F1 racing car with Italian racing colors. Of course, the villain in the story is aided by a pair of famous AMC cars named Grem, a one thousand nine hundred seventy two AMC Gremlin X, and Acer, a one thousand nine hundred seventy five AMC Pacer. The AMC connection can be linked to the James Bond film “The Man with the Golden Gun,” which showcased two AMC cars, a Matador and Hornet. Alongside these notables are another series of mash-up cars seemingly concocted from various parts. The joy of it is that there are some real car-guy nods in many of these kids’ movie scenes.
Now for the not-so-obvious characters:
Tormentor Miles Axlerod — Master Miles Axlerod, the oil tycoon who has discovered a clean-burning fuel to substitute oil, shows up to be based on a number of Land Rover models. The overall form and 2-door configuration is clearly a nod the Defender 90, but with smoother sheet metal. The bondage mask, grille and raised roof (finish with a built-in solar panel) look more like something from the LR4 and Discovery series.
Holley Shiftwell — Holley shows up to be a midengine sports car strongly influenced by the Jaguar XJR-15, but with a rear end that mimics the Jaguar C-X75 concept car. Her headlights are vaguely reminiscent of some Chrysler concepts, and her bulbous fenders might lightly have drawn inspiration from a number of concept cars, including the Chrysler Atlantic. Her wheels could lightly be an exaggerated version of the stylish turbine fin wheel that adorned the mid-90s Volvo 850.
Rod “Torque” Redline — For the most part, Rod most resembles a Dodge Challenger, but some have commented there’s a hint of Ford Mustang in the fetish mask, grille and headlight treatment. The rear fascia and taillights have a little bit of one thousand nine hundred seventy seven Pontiac Firebird, but that might be a spread.
“Cars Three”
In the upcoming “Cars Trio,” we’ve only been given a sneak peek at some of the players. From the teaser trailers, this is what we think we know so far.
Cruz Ramirez — We see a bit of the first-generation Dodge Charger in her profile, only minus two doors. There are also distinct chunks of the Nissan GT-R in there. Her rear fenders, glass window and tail-end treatment most resemble an Aston Martin, perhaps the Vantage or DB9. Up front, Cruz’s headlights emerge to be streamlined versions of those from the Ferrari four hundred fifty eight Italia or four hundred eighty eight GTB.
Lightning McQueen — Lightning gets updated. While retaining the same basic assets, Lightning now displays larger graphics and some Nascar-inspired aerodynamic add-ons (like the big rear spoiler bolted to his trunk).
Jackson Storm — Albeit he’s billed as a “Custom-built Next Gen Piston Cup Racer,” Jackson’s design seems pretty strongly influenced by the current Corvette Z06, but with sharper edges similar to more exotic supercars like the Acura NSX. There’s the slightest hint of the Lexus RC coupe in Jackson’s rear side glass (at least as shown in the more detailed trailer rendering). The large blue decal on Jackson’s side resembles a modernized version of the hurricane symbol used by the National Weather Service.
Also making a cameo appearance are a group of vintage old-timers who knew Doc Hudson in his glory days. Chris Cooper, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Margo Martindale and veteran racer Junior Johnson lend their voices to Smokey (a hat peak to famed mechanic Smokey Yunick), Sea Scott (a tribute to Wendell Scott), Louise “Barnstormer Nash” Nash (clearly inspired by the Very first Lady of Racing Louise Smith) and Junior “Midnight” Moon.
