In Pixar's 2006 film Cars, Lightning McQueen becomes stranded in the small Arizona town of Radiator Springs.
McQueen is accidentally separated from his transport truck, Mack, after falling asleep during a journey to California. While trying to catch up, he damages the town's road and is ordered to repair it. The work introduces him to the residents and changes his priorities.
Radiator Springs is a fictional community on historic U.S. Route 66. Its decline reflects the construction of Interstate 40, which diverted traffic away from many real Route 66 towns. The film uses the town to explore friendship, community, and the costs of constant competition.
The name is sometimes confused with Carburetor County, the fictional county where the town is located. Radiator Springs is the town itself, not the wider county.