Dawsonville inspires the fictional racing community of Thomasville in Pixar’s Cars 3.
Dawsonville, Georgia, is associated with stock-car racing and is the hometown of NASCAR driver Bill Elliott. The town’s racing heritage helped shape Thomasville, where Lightning McQueen trains with the retired racer Smokey and meets members of Doc Hudson’s earlier racing circle.
Thomasville is not presented as a literal version of Dawsonville. It is a fictional setting that combines Southern racing history, old track culture, and the idea of communities built around motorsport. The film uses it to connect McQueen’s present with Doc Hudson’s past.
The Georgia connection is easy to miss because Cars 3 also features racing locations inspired by other parts of the United States. Dawsonville’s importance comes from its strong stock-car identity and its connection with the Elliott racing family, rather than from being the film’s named fictional town.