Pixar film Cars reference Cadillac Ranch, If you saw Pixar’s 2006 creation Cars and visit this site, chances are you enjoyed the automotive-themed Disney opus. Kids everywhere loved watching—and continue to watch, repeatedly, in the back seats of minivans everywhere—Lightning McQueen and the gang competing for the Piston Cup, and parents appreciated the movie’s intelligence and subtle adult-grade humor.
Car nerds, even childless ones, were hooked by details such as references to automotive lore like the Cadillac Ranch, historically accurate car characters, and even the anthropomorphized equivalents of cameos by Michael Schumacher, Tom and Ray Magliozzi, and Richard Petty.
Cars 2, which moves the story and the racing to the international stage, will be in theaters this summer and features a slew of new characters. Lightning and most of his friends are back, of course, but this time he’s competing in the World Grand Prix. Here, for the first time, are two vehicles that will make their debut in Cars 2, as well as a rundown of some new characters that have already been announced. Meet the new car-acters below.
The first of our two exclusive debuts, Sir Miles is voiced by cross-dressing comedian Eddie Izzard. An oil baron turned electric vehicle, he has discovered what he believes to be the clean fuel of the future. He creates and sponsors the World Grand Prix to bring attention to the new energy product, Allinol. The character’s similarity to financier T. Boone Pickens is not lost on us. A mash-up of iconic SUVs, Miles boasts in-wheel electric motors behind his two-spoke “Regen R8” wheels and an array of solar panels on his roof.
That the Aston Martin grille, outlined in contrasting colors on race cars like Nigel, looks so much like a scowling mouth makes us wonder why it took until version 2.0 for Cars to use an Aston as a character—and why Pixar still puts the character’s mouth below the grille in the bumper.
This DBR9, wearing the No. 9, hails from Britain (of course), where he got his start in hill-climbs. (Read our rundown of the real-life DBR9 here.) Our second exclusive debut, Nigel comes to the World GP by way of the Grand Touring Sports Car Series, and his résumé includes spots on the podium at the Nürburgring and Le Mans.
Fans of racer-turned-announcer David Hobbs—and we certainly count ourselves among them—will find the character’s resume familiar. Voiced by the venerable Hobbs, the 1963 Coombs Lightweight E-type hails from Royal Leamington Spa, England. Just like Hobbs, Hobbscap has 20 Le Mans starts under his belt and has retired from racing to become a broadcaster. Along with Brent Mustangburger and Darrell Cartrip, Hobbscap will provide color commentary for the World Grand Prix, as Lightning McQueen and the rest of the challengers vie for the win.
Nigel is not the only Aston being added for Cars 2. Finn McMissile, a take on the James Bond DB5, is a British operative loaded with weaponry and gadgets. Finn, voiced by Michael Caine, believes there’s a conspiracy surrounding the World Grand Prix and mistakenly identifies Mater, the tow truck from the first movie, as an American agent. Hilarity will surely ensue.
Holley is a young, seemingly mid-engined supercar of indeterminate origin. She’s another British spy, just learning the ropes and playing everything by the book—to a fault. High-tech equipment is her specialty, and she, too, gets wrapped up with Mater, who falls for her.
Carla is a Brazilian Le Motor Prototype race car (modeled after a Le Mans Prototype, of course). The successful racer moves up the ranks to become the only female in the field at the World Grand Prix. Raoul is a French-born rally car who learned gymkhana after joining the circus. As the World Grand Prix includes dirt sections, Raoul is confident his rally training will give him an advantage.
Grem, voiced by Joe Mantegna (known to Simpsons fans as the voice of Fat Tony), is a beat-up AMC Gremlin. He and his partner, Acer, work as henchmen for the movie’s bad guy, Professor Z, whose identity is still a secret but who is attempting to sabotage the World Grand Prix. House regular Peter Jacobson provides the voice for Acer, an AMC Pacer. Like Finn McMissile, he and Grem mistake Mater for an international spy and believe they need to stop him from foiling their plan to sabotage the series.
Another Le Motor Prototype competing in the World Grand Prix, Shu hails from Japan, where he cut his teeth racing at Suzuka. We’re told he’s coached by a Mazda who was the only Japanese car to win at Le Mans—this being the highly accurate world of Cars, we take that to mean it’s the 1991 Le Mans–winning, rotary-powered 787B.
Francesco is an Italian open-wheel racer who grew up near Monza; as a child, he used to sneak onto the track with his friends. The tricolore-liveried formula car is a favorite to win the World Grand Prix, which means he and Lightning will be gunning for each other.
Most of the characters from Cars return for the sequel, including Fiat 500–based tire salesman Luigi. When racing brings the competitors to Luigi’s hometown of Porto Corsa, Italy, we’re introduced to his family. The owner of the town’s tire shop, his Uncle Topolino is the one who taught Luigi and his sidekick, Guido the forklift, about the rubber business. Uncle Topolino is voiced by Italian actor Franco Nero and modeled after an early Fiat 500 Topolino. Voiced by Vanessa Redgrave, real-life wife of Franco Nero, Mama Topolino is Uncle Topolino’s wife. As her matriarchal name suggests, she makes it her business to keep the cars well fed—with her special brand of fuel. Like her husband, she resembles a vintage Fiat, but Mama is a later model, built sometime in the ’50s.
Billed as "a Detroit muscle car," Rod Redline actually looks like a combination of all three of Motown's famous pony cars: There's more than a little Mustang in his hood; the side profile and graphics say Challenger; and the rear resembles a Camaro. He's an American spy who gets wrapped up in the mess with Mater and the British. Bruce Campbell, known for his role as Ash in the Evil Dead series, provides the voice.
Siddeley is not quite a car, but planes do at least have wheels. This twin-engine spy jet is Finn McMissile's sidekick and is likewise loaded up with high-tech espionage tools. (His name refers to several British aerospace firms.) Siddeley is voiced by Jason Isaacs, whom your kids will know as Lucius Malfoy from the Harry Potter movies.
Z is for Zündapp, specifically the Zündapp Janus. The late-'50s German microcar has a door on either end, and looks like two Isettas that backed into each other. Professor Z, the evil genius behind the plot to sabotage the World Grand Prix, is a very tired example. The monocle-wearing professor is voiced by German actor Thomas Kretschmann.
This Parisian three-wheeler bears a strong resemblance to an early Reliant Robin and sells car parts that may not have been legally acquired. The layout of his wheels is described by Pixar as "unstable," and his name means "to fall" in French. Tomber somehow becomes tied up with Finn McMissile and is voiced by Michel Michelis, whom we've never heard of, either.
Rip is a citizen of the newly independent Republic of Rearendia, a former (and made-up) European colony. The #10 car is an up-and-coming competitor who placed well in qualifying races to earn a spot in the World Grand Prix. His back story has some similarities with F1 driver Robert Kubica's. The Chevrolet Corvette C6.R wears Jeff Gordon's #24 and is voiced by the driver, hence the name. While the NASCAR driver usually finds himself behind the wheel of an Impala, the rest of the character's story matches: He was born in California and moved to Indiana, where he got his start in racing. Gorvette is yet another competitor in Cars 2's World Grand Prix.
Darrell Cartrip is back, once again voiced by NASCAR commentator Darrell Waltrip. The #17 Chevy Monte Carlo has moved up from calling Piston Cup races and will be part of the team announcing the World Grand Prix in Cars 2. Yes, that means more “boogity, boogity, boogity,” whether you like it or not.
It’s no secret who’s providing the voice for this character. F1 driver and former champion Lewis Hamilton is reverse-anthropomorphized into a McLaren MP4-12C–esque sports coupe for Cars 2, complete with his trademark tooth gap. Like his namesake, the British car came up through karting, and he wears the flag of Grenada in honor of his familial roots. Hamilton joins Michael Schumacher, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., and Mario Andretti on the list of racers who’ve kept their names in the transfer from human to cartoon for the Cars franchise.
The movie's director and Pixar chief creative officer, John Lasseter, makes his digital debut playing a pickup truck who, fittingly, works as a crew chief. Lasseter was encouraged by his own crew to voice the character.
Max is a DTM-style racing sedan who originally rolled off of a Stuttgart, Germany, assembly line. He grew up on the Black Forest's back roads. This racer also is an engineer, having "used his logic and analytics to refine his build," including increasing his horsepower and incorporating carbon fiber. Sounds German to us—all he's missing is a three-pointed star and an AMG badge. Max holds the World Torque Champion League record for race wins at the Motorheimring and is another World Grand Prix contender.
Miguel is not, in fact, a Chevy El Camino. This Spanish race car hails from Pamplona, where he participated in the Running of the Bulldozers. The toreador is quick on his, uh, wheels, which has led him to a racing career and a run at the World Grand Prix. Miguel is another nondescript racer, although his headlights appear to be lifted from a Ferrari 458 Italia.
Okuni is a kei car dressed in a kimono and full kabuki garb. She performs in a Tokyo theater. Kei cars are cute.
Another self-explanatory name, Zen Master is a little three-wheeled Japanese pickup who tends to a Zen garden. We get the feeling that a portion of the movie will take place in Tokyo.
This microvan is paradoxically a sumo wrestler. Pinion wears a teal wrap called a mawashi. Like Pinion Tanaka, Kingpin Nobunaga is a sumo-wrestling van. He is differentiated from his twin by a purple mawashi.
Voiced by Vanessa Redgrave and painted a nice shade of royal blue (get it?), the Queen is another race fan who's excited for the World Grand Prix to come to London. She appears to be a classic Roller wearing a bespoke crown.
The Prince is Cars-ified into a Bentley Continental GT, possibly a Speed model—check out his blacked-out Union Jack wheels. He's a racing fan and as such will be rooting for Nigel Gearsley and Lewis Hamilton in the World Grand Prix's final race, which takes place in London.
The imperturbable Sgt. Highgear is the Land Rover Defender version of a Buckingham Palace guard, complete with bearskin cap and bayonet-topped gun. Chances are he won't say much in the movie.
This classic double-decker bus will appear in the London portion of the movie. He runs the Killswitch route, which passes through Petroldilly Circus. Be sure to read all of the advertisements plastered on him.
Chauncy is a traditional London taxi—either an LTI TXII or TX4—who knows his way around the city.
Sharing announcing duties with Darrell Cartrip and David Hobbscap is Brent Mustangburger. The 1964½ Mustang coupe claims to have the "best stall in the garage." Oh, and he's voiced by sportscasting great Brent Musburger. But you probably figured that out.
Car nerds, even childless ones, were hooked by details such as references to automotive lore like the Cadillac Ranch, historically accurate car characters, and even the anthropomorphized equivalents of cameos by Michael Schumacher, Tom and Ray Magliozzi, and Richard Petty.
Cars 2, which moves the story and the racing to the international stage, will be in theaters this summer and features a slew of new characters. Lightning and most of his friends are back, of course, but this time he’s competing in the World Grand Prix. Here, for the first time, are two vehicles that will make their debut in Cars 2, as well as a rundown of some new characters that have already been announced. Meet the new car-acters below.
The first of our two exclusive debuts, Sir Miles is voiced by cross-dressing comedian Eddie Izzard. An oil baron turned electric vehicle, he has discovered what he believes to be the clean fuel of the future. He creates and sponsors the World Grand Prix to bring attention to the new energy product, Allinol. The character’s similarity to financier T. Boone Pickens is not lost on us. A mash-up of iconic SUVs, Miles boasts in-wheel electric motors behind his two-spoke “Regen R8” wheels and an array of solar panels on his roof.
That the Aston Martin grille, outlined in contrasting colors on race cars like Nigel, looks so much like a scowling mouth makes us wonder why it took until version 2.0 for Cars to use an Aston as a character—and why Pixar still puts the character’s mouth below the grille in the bumper.
This DBR9, wearing the No. 9, hails from Britain (of course), where he got his start in hill-climbs. (Read our rundown of the real-life DBR9 here.) Our second exclusive debut, Nigel comes to the World GP by way of the Grand Touring Sports Car Series, and his résumé includes spots on the podium at the Nürburgring and Le Mans.
Fans of racer-turned-announcer David Hobbs—and we certainly count ourselves among them—will find the character’s resume familiar. Voiced by the venerable Hobbs, the 1963 Coombs Lightweight E-type hails from Royal Leamington Spa, England. Just like Hobbs, Hobbscap has 20 Le Mans starts under his belt and has retired from racing to become a broadcaster. Along with Brent Mustangburger and Darrell Cartrip, Hobbscap will provide color commentary for the World Grand Prix, as Lightning McQueen and the rest of the challengers vie for the win.
Nigel is not the only Aston being added for Cars 2. Finn McMissile, a take on the James Bond DB5, is a British operative loaded with weaponry and gadgets. Finn, voiced by Michael Caine, believes there’s a conspiracy surrounding the World Grand Prix and mistakenly identifies Mater, the tow truck from the first movie, as an American agent. Hilarity will surely ensue.
Holley is a young, seemingly mid-engined supercar of indeterminate origin. She’s another British spy, just learning the ropes and playing everything by the book—to a fault. High-tech equipment is her specialty, and she, too, gets wrapped up with Mater, who falls for her.
Carla is a Brazilian Le Motor Prototype race car (modeled after a Le Mans Prototype, of course). The successful racer moves up the ranks to become the only female in the field at the World Grand Prix. Raoul is a French-born rally car who learned gymkhana after joining the circus. As the World Grand Prix includes dirt sections, Raoul is confident his rally training will give him an advantage.
Grem, voiced by Joe Mantegna (known to Simpsons fans as the voice of Fat Tony), is a beat-up AMC Gremlin. He and his partner, Acer, work as henchmen for the movie’s bad guy, Professor Z, whose identity is still a secret but who is attempting to sabotage the World Grand Prix. House regular Peter Jacobson provides the voice for Acer, an AMC Pacer. Like Finn McMissile, he and Grem mistake Mater for an international spy and believe they need to stop him from foiling their plan to sabotage the series.
Another Le Motor Prototype competing in the World Grand Prix, Shu hails from Japan, where he cut his teeth racing at Suzuka. We’re told he’s coached by a Mazda who was the only Japanese car to win at Le Mans—this being the highly accurate world of Cars, we take that to mean it’s the 1991 Le Mans–winning, rotary-powered 787B.
Francesco is an Italian open-wheel racer who grew up near Monza; as a child, he used to sneak onto the track with his friends. The tricolore-liveried formula car is a favorite to win the World Grand Prix, which means he and Lightning will be gunning for each other.
Most of the characters from Cars return for the sequel, including Fiat 500–based tire salesman Luigi. When racing brings the competitors to Luigi’s hometown of Porto Corsa, Italy, we’re introduced to his family. The owner of the town’s tire shop, his Uncle Topolino is the one who taught Luigi and his sidekick, Guido the forklift, about the rubber business. Uncle Topolino is voiced by Italian actor Franco Nero and modeled after an early Fiat 500 Topolino. Voiced by Vanessa Redgrave, real-life wife of Franco Nero, Mama Topolino is Uncle Topolino’s wife. As her matriarchal name suggests, she makes it her business to keep the cars well fed—with her special brand of fuel. Like her husband, she resembles a vintage Fiat, but Mama is a later model, built sometime in the ’50s.
Billed as "a Detroit muscle car," Rod Redline actually looks like a combination of all three of Motown's famous pony cars: There's more than a little Mustang in his hood; the side profile and graphics say Challenger; and the rear resembles a Camaro. He's an American spy who gets wrapped up in the mess with Mater and the British. Bruce Campbell, known for his role as Ash in the Evil Dead series, provides the voice.
Siddeley is not quite a car, but planes do at least have wheels. This twin-engine spy jet is Finn McMissile's sidekick and is likewise loaded up with high-tech espionage tools. (His name refers to several British aerospace firms.) Siddeley is voiced by Jason Isaacs, whom your kids will know as Lucius Malfoy from the Harry Potter movies.
Z is for Zündapp, specifically the Zündapp Janus. The late-'50s German microcar has a door on either end, and looks like two Isettas that backed into each other. Professor Z, the evil genius behind the plot to sabotage the World Grand Prix, is a very tired example. The monocle-wearing professor is voiced by German actor Thomas Kretschmann.
This Parisian three-wheeler bears a strong resemblance to an early Reliant Robin and sells car parts that may not have been legally acquired. The layout of his wheels is described by Pixar as "unstable," and his name means "to fall" in French. Tomber somehow becomes tied up with Finn McMissile and is voiced by Michel Michelis, whom we've never heard of, either.
Rip is a citizen of the newly independent Republic of Rearendia, a former (and made-up) European colony. The #10 car is an up-and-coming competitor who placed well in qualifying races to earn a spot in the World Grand Prix. His back story has some similarities with F1 driver Robert Kubica's. The Chevrolet Corvette C6.R wears Jeff Gordon's #24 and is voiced by the driver, hence the name. While the NASCAR driver usually finds himself behind the wheel of an Impala, the rest of the character's story matches: He was born in California and moved to Indiana, where he got his start in racing. Gorvette is yet another competitor in Cars 2's World Grand Prix.
Darrell Cartrip is back, once again voiced by NASCAR commentator Darrell Waltrip. The #17 Chevy Monte Carlo has moved up from calling Piston Cup races and will be part of the team announcing the World Grand Prix in Cars 2. Yes, that means more “boogity, boogity, boogity,” whether you like it or not.
It’s no secret who’s providing the voice for this character. F1 driver and former champion Lewis Hamilton is reverse-anthropomorphized into a McLaren MP4-12C–esque sports coupe for Cars 2, complete with his trademark tooth gap. Like his namesake, the British car came up through karting, and he wears the flag of Grenada in honor of his familial roots. Hamilton joins Michael Schumacher, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., and Mario Andretti on the list of racers who’ve kept their names in the transfer from human to cartoon for the Cars franchise.
The movie's director and Pixar chief creative officer, John Lasseter, makes his digital debut playing a pickup truck who, fittingly, works as a crew chief. Lasseter was encouraged by his own crew to voice the character.
Max is a DTM-style racing sedan who originally rolled off of a Stuttgart, Germany, assembly line. He grew up on the Black Forest's back roads. This racer also is an engineer, having "used his logic and analytics to refine his build," including increasing his horsepower and incorporating carbon fiber. Sounds German to us—all he's missing is a three-pointed star and an AMG badge. Max holds the World Torque Champion League record for race wins at the Motorheimring and is another World Grand Prix contender.
Miguel is not, in fact, a Chevy El Camino. This Spanish race car hails from Pamplona, where he participated in the Running of the Bulldozers. The toreador is quick on his, uh, wheels, which has led him to a racing career and a run at the World Grand Prix. Miguel is another nondescript racer, although his headlights appear to be lifted from a Ferrari 458 Italia.
Okuni is a kei car dressed in a kimono and full kabuki garb. She performs in a Tokyo theater. Kei cars are cute.
Another self-explanatory name, Zen Master is a little three-wheeled Japanese pickup who tends to a Zen garden. We get the feeling that a portion of the movie will take place in Tokyo.
This microvan is paradoxically a sumo wrestler. Pinion wears a teal wrap called a mawashi. Like Pinion Tanaka, Kingpin Nobunaga is a sumo-wrestling van. He is differentiated from his twin by a purple mawashi.
Voiced by Vanessa Redgrave and painted a nice shade of royal blue (get it?), the Queen is another race fan who's excited for the World Grand Prix to come to London. She appears to be a classic Roller wearing a bespoke crown.
The Prince is Cars-ified into a Bentley Continental GT, possibly a Speed model—check out his blacked-out Union Jack wheels. He's a racing fan and as such will be rooting for Nigel Gearsley and Lewis Hamilton in the World Grand Prix's final race, which takes place in London.
The imperturbable Sgt. Highgear is the Land Rover Defender version of a Buckingham Palace guard, complete with bearskin cap and bayonet-topped gun. Chances are he won't say much in the movie.
This classic double-decker bus will appear in the London portion of the movie. He runs the Killswitch route, which passes through Petroldilly Circus. Be sure to read all of the advertisements plastered on him.
Chauncy is a traditional London taxi—either an LTI TXII or TX4—who knows his way around the city.
Sharing announcing duties with Darrell Cartrip and David Hobbscap is Brent Mustangburger. The 1964½ Mustang coupe claims to have the "best stall in the garage." Oh, and he's voiced by sportscasting great Brent Musburger. But you probably figured that out.
