Many characters from "Cars" are drawn from real cars. Some are difficult to recognize, and some are exact copies of a real car. For example: Fillmore, Michael Schumacher, Snot Rod, Mama Topolino, Natalie Certain and many others from the cars movie are real car models.
Much of the history of the movie "Cars" was inspired by memories of Angel Delgadillo, a road character and owner of a "Barber Shop" in Seligman, Arizona, who welcomed and served thousands of travelers during the heyday of the mythical route.
Chick is a 1979 Shyster Cremlin, a fictional car based on and designed after a 1986 Buick Grand National (Regal GNX). Chick is painted green, with the number 86 painted on his doors, and has yellow rims.
Hardcore historical NASCAR fans know that Hall of Famer Herb Thomas (2013) was the first two-time premier series driver champion and that his career became the basis for the Doc Hudson character in the hugely successful “Cars” film franchise.
Comparison: "Cars" Characters from Oldest to Modern
What person is Lightning McQueen based on?
Lightning's last name is a tribute to Glenn McQueen, a supervising animator at Pixar who passed away prior to the release of Cars, though the implied reference to the legendary actor and car guy Steve McQueen is certainly a bonus.
Cars 3 is the only movie in the series where they do not appear. Either they forgot to put them in the movie, or they were giving up being McQueen's fans because he was getting too old.
Former cafe owner Fran Houser was the inspiration for the Flo character in the movie and her signature Ugly Crust Pies can be found on the menu of the Cars Land carhop. Houser has sold the Midpoint Cafe since her brush with fame, but the new owner still serves the same food (including the famous pies).
Strip "The King" Weathers (voiced by Richard Petty) is a veteran race car and racing legend. Weathers is an anthropomorphic version of Petty's 1970 Plymouth Superbird, sporting the same shade of blue and Petty's racing number, 43, as well as being a fictionalized version of him.
The cartoon depiction of Radiator Springs and Carburetor County is based on a composite of multiple landmarks in multiple states, from Baxter Springs, Cherokee County, Kansas to Peach Springs, Arizona and a bit beyond.
Six-time Turismo Carretera champion Juan María Traverso voiced the character in the Rioplatense Spanish version of the first film. Doc is based on the real-life Fabulous Hudson Hornet of NASCAR. He generally maintains the same image in all three films with navy-blue paint, and later light modifications for racing.
The movie is set in a fictional town called Radiator Springs. While this town is purely fictional, Historic Route 66 is not, and many of the landmarks in the film were inspired by real places, such as Baxter Springs in Kansas, Peach Springs in Arizona, and even elements of Tucumcari right here in New Mexico.
Instead of being a tale suggesting that life is better when you slow down and savor it, like the original film, Cars 2 is a big, bombastic spy movie that puts Mater center stage and relegates everything charming about the first film to the story's margins.
Holley is a 2008 MT-R Mark II which is based on and a reference to the 2005 TVR Tuscan S Mk2 with elements from the 2008 Ronn Motor Scorpion, the 2010 Jaguar C-X75, and the 2008 Diatto OttoVu Zagato. In some LEGO Cars 2 sets that include her, Holley is more pink.
Sarge, a 1942 WW2 Willy's Army Jeep is the most patriotic resident of Radiator Springs. He runs the local army surplus store, Sarge's Surplus Hut, and always starts the day with a rendition of Reveille.
The Sally Special. A one-of-a-kind Porsche 911 designed in collaboration with Pixar as a tribute to none other than the iconic Sally Carrera of the studio's “Cars” franchise. That's right. A car.
Flo is a sassy, no-nonsense 1950's show car who enjoys traveling cross-country. She now runs the local diner, Flo's V-8 Cafe, and the only gas station for miles around.
In the movie Cars 3, Lightning McQueen crashes during a race due to a combination of factors including his own overconfidence and the emergence of a new generation of technologically advanced race cars.
And although the decision was made for Doc not to appear in 2011's Cars 2, Disney and Pixar animation story chief John Lasseter said the choice to bring Doc—and Newman—back for Cars 3 was simply essential to the film's story.
They're not based on specific real drivers. Chick is a typical '80s stock car, modeled after a Buick Grand National. Lightning is a typical mid-2000s stock car.
The Hudson Hornet is a full-size car manufactured by Hudson Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan from 1951 until 1954, when Nash-Kelvinator and Hudson merged to form American Motors Corporation (AMC). Hudson automobiles continued to be marketed under the Hudson brand name through the 1957 model year.
