10 curiosities about the movie Cars you didn't know

The third instalment of the film Cars is finally here. The most famous animated car saga of recent times will return to the big screen next Friday, 14 July. At Top 10 Motor we have taken the opportunity to bring you some of the most interesting curiosities about the saga, including its latest instalment. Some of them you probably never would have imagined.

1. The cars are inspired by real car models

Lightning McQueen, Mater and Chick Hicks are original Pixar designs, but most of the film’s characters are based on real cars. For example, in the saga’s latest film, the character “Sterling” is influenced in its design by a BMW E9 Coupé, while the character “Cruz Ramírez” is based on the Chevrolet Camaro.

In the first instalment, there was no shortage of characters inspired by real models either. Among them is Sally – a Porsche 911 from ’98 -, Doc Hudson – a 1953 Hudson Hornet -, Luigi – a Fiat 500 from 1959 – and the owner of the Radiator Springs garage, Ramone – a 1959 Chevrolet Impala Lowrider.

2. Several drivers and motorsport professionals have made “cameos” in the saga

The character “The King” is based on the famous NASCAR driver Richard Petty, nicknamed “The King” in American competition. In the original version of the film, Richard Petty himself voices “The King” and the car is based on a 1970 Plymouth Superbird, with which the driver won several competitions. In the German version, Formula 1 champion Niki Lauda is in charge of voicing “The King”.

The three-time NASCAR champion, Darrell Waltrip, plays himself in a 1977 Chevrolet Monte Carlo nicknamed Darrell Cartrip. The character of Mario Andretti is voiced by the former Formula 1 driver himself, in a Ford Fairlane 1967 (the car with which Andretti won the Daytona 500 miles). Michael Schumacher also voiced a Ferrari red car in the first film of the saga.

Fernando Alonso provides the voice of Mario Andretti in the Spanish version. Hamilton and Vettel also take part in the original version. In addition, they have also lent their voices to other driver characters such as Nani Roma, Marc Gené, Pedro de la Rosa, Emilio de Villota, Antonio Albacete and Dani Sordo. For his part, the famous journalist Jeremy Clarkson voices Harv in the English version.

3. Cars 3, a reflection of the growing importance of technology in today’s motorsport

Cars 3 arrives with a new generation of cars in which design and the latest technology dominate, with new applications such as the use of virtual reality.

Ray Everham, NASCAR team boss, helps create a futuristic car inspired by the prototype of the character “Jackson Storm”, a model that used the main lines of Lightning McQueen but in a more powerful version. Storm is a car designed with the help of computers and wind tunnels that arrives to break all the records.

According to the director of the third instalment, Brian Fee, the character of Jackson Storm reflects the importance of technology in the future of racing and the need for earlier models – such as the protagonist Lightning McQueen – to renew themselves so as not to become outdated.

The American NASCAR driver, Jeff Gordon, was hired as a consultant for the film and helped create both the characters and the locations of Cars 3. Gordon has also voiced one of the cars: Jeff Gorvette.

4. The latest film “resurrects” Paul Newman

The late actor Paul Newman was the voice of the character Doc Hudson in the first instalment of ‘Cars’ (2006), and as Brian Fee has confirmed, the Oscar winner will “appear” again in the third film.

Pixar has decided to “resurrect” the character of Hudson thanks to the unreleased recordings that the studio has of the actor’s dialogues when he took part in the first instalment of the saga in 2006. During the third and final film, Newman appears in several flashbacks offering his advice to Lightning McQueen.¡

5. The Radiator Springs mountain is real and is in Texas

The mountain range surrounding Radiator Springs is inspired by the Cadillac Ranch, an open-air art installation located on the outskirts of Amarillo, Texas. In addition, some locations in the town of Radiator Springs are based on a small Kansas town called Galena, where figures of Lightning McQueen, Sally and the Sheriff have already been installed around the municipality.

6. Cars was one of the first films in which the drifting technique appeared

In the first instalment, the character Doc Hudson teaches Lightning McQueen the drifting technique, and he uses it to save himself in a race. At first, McQueen thinks Doc’s technique is nonsense, since the old car describes it as “turning right to go left”. The film that launched the saga was released on 6 July 2006, 15 days before the release of Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift, for example.

7. “Mater” is based on a NASCAR fan

The character “Tow Mater” got his name from a NASCAR fan called Douglas Mater Keever, whom the creative director, John Lasseter, met during a research trip to the Lowe’s Motor Speedway circuit in North Carolina. Keever even makes a cameo in the film, voicing a caravan.

8. A nod to Toy Story

Lightning McQueen’s car uses special wheels called “Lightyear” which refer to the famous Toy Story character: “Buzz Lightyear”. In addition, the delivery van of the “Pizza Planet” restaurant from Toy Story also appears. The number 95 with which McQueen races represents the year 1995, the year the famous toy saga premiered. It is worth remembering that Cars, Cars 2 and Toy Story share the same director, John Lasseter.

9. References to IndyCar and NASCAR

Cars 3 begins with a race at the legendary Dinoco 400 (a reference to the Indianapolis 500), where McQueen won in the first film of the saga. During the film we see how his sponsors will try to get the protagonist to compete in the Florida 500, another clear reference to the famous American endurance race: the Daytona 500. In addition to Ray Everham and Jeff Gordon – who collaborated as advisers -, many other NASCAR drivers and professional trainers such as Bubba Wallace, Daniel Suárez, Ryan Blaney and Chase Elliott have also taken part in the film.

10. The romance of Paris in films

John Lasseter and his wife, Nancy, heard during one of their visits to Paris that couples should kiss when crossing the famous Pont des Arts; the legend says that couples who attach a padlock to its railings and throw the key into the river seal their love forever. This was used in the second film of the saga, where two characters can be seen following it to the letter. In addition, in Cars 2 we also see the image of the popular bridge covered in padlocks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O91K6e648CQ