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Synopsis[]

Note: From the May 30, 2006 edit of the original Wikipedia article.

En route across the country to the big Piston Cup Championship in California, Lightning McQueen, a hotshot rookie race car driven to succeed, finds himself unexpectedly detoured. He ends up in the largely-abandoned town of Radiator Springs on Route 66, which parallels the real-life town of Amboy, California. McQueen gets to know the town's offbeat characters, who help him realize that there are more important things than trophies, fame, and sponsorship. McQueen discovers that life is about the journey, not the finish line.

In a world populated by anthropomorphic talking vehicles, the final race of the Piston Cup season begins a rivalry between retiring veteran Strip "The King" Weathers, frequent runner-up Chick Hicks, and brash rookie sensation Lightning McQueen. McQueen, at the back of the field, avoids a multi car crash caused by Chick. While the rest of the running competitors pit for new tires under the pace car, McQueen stays out but blows out both rear tires on the last lap. Chick and the King catch up, resulting in a three-way tie. The tiebreaker race is scheduled for one week later at the Los Angeles International Speedway. McQueen is desperate to win the race, not only to be the first rookie to win the Piston Cup, but also because it would allow him to leave the unglamorous sponsorship of Rust-Eze, a bumper ointment company, and take The King's place on the prestigious and lucrative Dinoco team. However, he struggles to work with others due to his selfishness, which has caused him to fire three crew chiefs and having his pit crew quit after the race. Eager to get to California as soon as possible, he pushes his big rig, Mack, to travel all night long. While McQueen is sleeping, Mack nods off and is startled awake by a gang of tuner cars (Boost, DJ, Snot Rod, and Wingo), causing McQueen to fall out the back of the trailer and onto the road. McQueen wakes up in the middle of traffic and speeds off the highway in search of Mack, but instead ends up in the rundown desert town of Radiator Springs, where he is chased by Sheriff and inadvertently damages the pavement of the main road.

The next day, McQueen is ordered by the town judge and medical doctor, Doc Hudson, to leave town immediately, but the local lawyer, Sally, requests that McQueen should instead be assigned community service to repave the road by a machine (Bessie), to which Doc reluctantly agrees. After a failed attempt to escape from the town, and still being in a rush to leave, McQueen repaves the road shoddily. However, Doc is not satisfied and he challenges McQueen to a race around Old Willie - if McQueen wins, he can leave. McQueen loses and is forced to start all over. During this time, he begins to warm up to the town, and befriends several of its residents, including Mater, tire vendor Luigi and his assistant Guido. He learns that Radiator Springs was once a popular stop along U.S. Route 66 until it was bypassed with the construction of Interstate 40 and mostly forgotten, an Doc was the Fabulous Hudson Hornet, a three-time Piston Cup champion whose career ended from a devastating crash in 1954. He bonds with Sally, who found happiness when she gave up a fast life in Los Angeles to live in Radiator Springs, and now dreams of putting the town back on the map. McQueen eventually repairs the road, reinvigorating the town's residents, and decides to spend an extra day in Radiator Springs with his new friends, but his time there is cut short when Mack and the media (including helicopters) descend on the town. McQueen reluctantly leaves to reach California in time for the race while Sally expresses her disappointment with Doc upon discovering that he was responsible for tipping off the media to McQueen's whereabouts, and she and the others, dismayed about the departure of their new friend, go to sleep, while Doc, alone by the traffic light, regrets his actions.

At the race, as McQueen couldn't say goodbye to his friends, races distractedly and ends up with one lap behind. He is then surprised to discover that Doc, having a change of heart, has taken over as his crew chief, and most friends from Radiator Springs are helping in the pit. Inspired and recalling tricks he learned from Doc and his friends, McQueen manages to recover and vaults into the lead. On the final lap, Chick sideswipes and sends The King into a dangerous crash. Recalling Doc's fate, McQueen stops just short of the finish line and drives back to push The King over the line to finish his last race, while Chick zooms by. As a result, the angered crowd and media condemn Chick's victory but praise McQueen's sportsmanship. Tex offers McQueen Dinoco sponsorship, but he declines and insists on staying with Rust-Eze out of loyalty for their past support. Back at Radiator Springs, McQueen reunites with Sally and announces that he will be setting up his racing headquarters there, putting Radiator Springs back on the map.

In a post-credits scene, Minny and Van, a couple who were trying to find the Interstate, are shown lost in the middle of the desert.

Cast[]

In Other Languages[]

Production timeline[]

  • April 2002: The film's name changed from Route 66 to Cars.
  • May 7, 2002: Video game announced along with Finding Nemo and The Incredibles when Disney and Pixar enter a deal with THQ.
  • December 7, 2004: Originally set for release on November 4, 2005 (replaced by Chicken Little)[1], the film was delayed to June 9, 2006.[2]

Release timeline[]

Format Country of origin Date
Teaser trailer #1 Worldwide November 5, 2004
Teaser trailer #2 Worldwide November 4, 2005
Theatrical trailer #1 Worldwide November 23, 2005
Theatrical trailer #2 Worldwide March 9, 2006
Theatrical trailer #3 Worldwide May 10, 2006
Original theatrical USA June 9, 2006
DVD Australia/New Zealand October 25, 2006
DVD USA November 7, 2006
DVD Japan November 8, 2006
VHS USA February 19, 2007
Blu-ray Disc USA November 6, 2007
Cable television USA December 3, 2008

The film was advertised on the following:

  1. The Incredibles (November 5, 2004-March 15, 2005)
  2. Toy Story (10th Anniversary Edition) (September 6, 2005)
  3. Cinderella (Platinum Edition) (October 4, 2005)
  4. Herbie Fully Loaded (October 25, 2005)
  5. Toy Story 2 (Special Edition) (December 27, 2005)
  6. The Simpsons: Kiss and Tell: The Story of Their Love (February 7, 2006)
  7. Goof Troop: Volume 1 (February 14, 2006)
  8. Quack Pack: Volume 1 February 14, 2006)
  9. Whisper of the Heart (March 7, 2006)
  10. My Neighbor Totoro (March 7, 2006)
  11. Howl's Moving Castle (March 7, 2006)
  12. The Shaggy D.A. (The Canine Candidate Edition) (March 7, 2006)
  13. Chicken Little (November 4, 2005-March 21, 2006)
  14. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (December 9, 2005-April 4, 2006)
  15. The Greatest Game Ever Played (September 30, 2005-April 11, 2006)
  16. Spymate (April 11, 2006)
  17. Walt Disney's It's A Small World of Fun! (Volume 1) (May 16, 2006)
  18. Walt Disney's It's A Small World of Fun! (Volume 2) (May 16, 2006)
  19. Growing Up with Winnie the Pooh: Love and Friendship (May 23, 2006)
  20. Growing Up With Winnie Pooh: It's Playtime With Pooh (May 23, 2006)

This film contained trailers for films like Pixar's next film, Ratatouille, Disney's next animated feature, Meet the Robinsons, Warner Bros.'s The Ant Bully, Sony Pictures' Open Season, and Paramount's Barnyard.

Home video timeline[]

Main article: Home video timeline for Cars

Weblinks[]

From Pixar:

Availability on Disney+[]

NOTE: The availability chart shown here is based on Equestria's Disney+.

Audio Subtitles
Chinese (中文/简体) Y R
Chinese (中文/繁體) Y Y
Chinese (粵語) Y Y
Dansk Y Y
Deutsch R R
English Y Y
Español R R
Español (Latinoamérica) R R
Français R R
Français (Canada) R R
Italiano R R
Magyar Y Y
Nederlands Y Y
Norsk Y Y
Polski Y Y
Português Y Y
Português (Brasil) R R
Română Y Y
Slovenčina Y Y
Suomi Y Y
Svenska R R
Türkçe Y Y
Íslenska Y Y
Čeština Y Y
Ελληνικά Y Y
Japanese R R
Korean Y Y

There is also a Flemish dub, but it's region-locked to Dutch viewers.

Gallery[]

Main article: Cars/Gallery

Rankings[]

Rank of worldwide release
(prior to December 6, 2004)
68
Rank of worldwide release
(after December 6, 2004)
70
Rank of release in North America
(prior to December 6, 2004)
67
Rank of release in North America
(from December 6, 2004 to January 19, 2005)
69
Rank of release in North America
(as of January 19, 2005)
70
Rank of release on DVD worldwide 70
Rank of release on DVD in North America 68
Rank of release on Blu-ray and/or Digital HD worldwide 7
Rank of release on Blu-ray and/or Digital HD in North America 7

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