Pixar’s original Cars trilogy contained three feature films by 2017. The films are Cars, Cars 2, and Cars 3.
Cars premiered in 2006 and introduced Lightning McQueen, Mater, Sally Carrera, Doc Hudson, and Radiator Springs. Cars 2 followed in 2011, expanding the setting into an international spy and racing adventure. Cars 3 arrived in 2017 and returned to a more personal story about Lightning’s changing career.
The word “trilogy” refers specifically to those three theatrical feature films. The franchise also includes short films, television projects, video games, merchandise, and the spin-off film Planes, which was produced by DisneyToon Studios rather than Pixar.
This distinction matters because the broader Cars brand contains much more screen content than the three Pixar features. Cars on the Road, for example, is a later streaming series featuring Lightning and Mater, but it is not a fourth Pixar theatrical feature film.