In Pixar’s Cars, Radiator Springs is presented as having been founded in 1909.
The founding date appears in the town’s historical material and supports its identity as an old Route 66 community. Radiator Springs’ story spans the era before the highway was bypassed, when travelers regularly stopped for fuel, food, lodging, and repairs.
The town’s history is closely tied to Doc Hudson’s account of Route 66 and to the residents’ memories of its busier past. Pixar based the setting on real Southwestern locations and Route 66 roadside architecture, but Radiator Springs itself is fictional.
The date can be confused with the opening years of U.S. Route 66, which was officially established in 1926. Radiator Springs’ claimed founding predates that highway designation, reflecting the town’s older local history.