John Lasseter admits he made this movie cause he likes cool cars. As a teenager, he worked at his father's car dealership during the summer, so the subject also had some personal value. Cars: Lightning League (2017) note Another iOS game released by Play Side that features characters from the third film. The King's crash seems to be a re-creation of Petty's real-life Daytona 500 accident in 1988 with the exception that it was not caused by a collision with another driver as in the movie. The bit which Lightning assists him to the finish line seems to be based on the 1976 incident, albeit by the pit crew. Paul Newman as Doc Hudson, a 1951 Hudson Hornet, later revealed to be the Fabulous Hudson Hornet. He is also a doctor and a judge. (This was Newman's final film role before his retirement in May 2007 and his death in September 2008). Yeah yeah, come on, let's get a picture! You know - get a ton of pictures, because champ here has been a role model of mine for years now! I mean A LOT of years, right? I love this guy!"

He won from his second to his last race to be champion of the Piston Cup at the Southern Speedway until the Los Angeles 500 for McQueen and the veterans to enjoy his retirement. When Lightning was about to be hooked up to Bessie for community service, Mater took off the clamp without hooking him up to Bessie first, not realizing that Lightning could simply zoom off once the clamp is removed, and he does. Doc gives him a Death Glare in the process. Mater lampshades this seconds later by saying he thinks he should have hooked Lightning up to Bessie first before removing the clamp. He is a green race car who appears as the arch-nemesis of Lightning McQueen and Strip Weathers and one of the rivals of McQueen. Unreliable Narrator: Mater is one, as evident in his "Tall Tales" shorts. This becomes a plot point for Cars 2.When aired on Disney Cinemagic in the UK, Mater's line "He did what in his cup?!" when Lightning McQueen mentions the Piston Cup was cut. Later, The King, his Wife and Dale Earnhardt Jr. went to Radiator Springs. The King stated that The Hudson Hornet was his inspiration for Racing. When Mater explains to Lightning that Radiator Springs is the cutest little town in Carburetor County, the DVD and Blu-Ray subtitles misspell Carburetor County as "Carburettor County".

Merchandise-Driven: Four years and five new Pixar movies later, you still can see an ad for a new Cars toy once in a while, and they still take up a good portion of shelf space in stores. A study conducted in 2010 found that 50% of American boys aged 5-13 had at least one Cars shirt in their wardrobe. This is probably the reason that justifies Disney's greenlighting a sequel despite the previous film's lukewarm reception. To put it into perspective, Cars is second only to Star Wars in the value of American merchandise sold. Several of the senior animators and designers at Pixar are also car enthusiasts, and the company regularly holds in-company car shows where staffers bring in their vintage and exotic automobiles. Oh, hey there, champ. I heard you're selling mudflaps after today. Is that true? Hey, you put me down for the first case, okay?"Dinoco functions as the movie equivalent to Sunoco, the official fuel provider of NASCAR note Dinoco also comes from Toy Story, it's the gas station where Woody and Buzz get lost in the first movie. Species Title: If one counts cars as a "species". Or, for that matter, if one counts the planes referred to in the similarly-named spin-off. It has also been noted that the plot of Cars bears a striking resemblance to that of Doc Hollywood, the 1991 romantic comedy which stars Michael J. Fox as a hotshot young doctor, who, after causing a traffic accident in a small town, is sentenced to work at the town hospital, falls in love with a local law student and eventually acquires an appreciation for small-town values. Air Mater— Mater goes to a town inhabited by planes and learns to fly. It was released on the Cars 2 DVD and acts as a set up for Planes. Suspiciously Specific Denial: After tractors run amok on the streets, Mater insists that he wasn't out tractor tipping.

Lightning: Oh, like you? You've been here how long and your friends don't even know who you are?! Who's caring about only himself?! Cars: Fast as Lightning (2014) note An iOS game released by Gameloft that features characters from the first two films.In the tiebreaker race, Lightning says, "I think The King should finish his last race." This is a sign that his Character Development is finally complete and that he doesn't care about just winning anymore.