In Pixar’s Cars, which town does Lightning McQueen become stranded in?

In Pixar’s Cars, Lightning McQueen becomes stranded in Radiator Springs.

After accidentally damaging the road during a night chase, McQueen is ordered to remain in the desert town while he repairs the pavement. The experience introduces him to residents including Doc Hudson, Sally Carrera, Mater, and Ramone. At first, McQueen sees the community as an inconvenience, but his relationships there change his priorities.

Radiator Springs is presented as a once-busy roadside town whose fortunes declined after Interstate 40 diverted traffic away from the old road. Its residents preserve memories of an earlier era of American road travel, including the town’s connection with Route 66.

The name is sometimes mixed up with Carburetor County, the larger fictional county where the town is located. Wheel Well is a different place mentioned in Cars 2, so it is not the town where McQueen serves his road-repair sentence.