In Pixar’s Cars 2, Miles Axlerod is the former oil tycoon behind the World Grand Prix.
Axlerod presents himself as an environmentally minded inventor who has converted to electric power and created the World Grand Prix to promote Allinol. He appears to be a wealthy philanthropist supporting cleaner fuel, but the film later reveals that his public identity is part of a larger scheme.
The plot connects Axlerod to a group of lemons, or cars regarded as unreliable and unsuccessful. Their plan involves sabotaging Allinol and discrediting alternative fuel by making race cars explode when exposed to electromagnetic weapons. Axlerod is ultimately revealed as the mastermind.
Miles Axlerod is often confused with Professor Zündapp, the German scientist and criminal collaborator involved in the plot. Finn McMissile, by contrast, is a British spy investigating the conspiracy. Axlerod’s transformation from oil baron to environmental advocate is one of the film’s deliberate deceptions.