Cars is the first film in Pixar’s Cars franchise. Released in 2006, it introduces Lightning McQueen, Mater, Sally Carrera, Doc Hudson, Radiator Springs, and the Piston Cup racing world.
The story begins with Lightning McQueen as a talented but self-centered rookie competing in a three-way tie for the Piston Cup. While traveling to the tiebreaker race in California, he is separated from his transport truck and accidentally reaches Radiator Springs.
Cars established the franchise’s central contrast between speed and community. Lightning wants fame and victory, but his time in Radiator Springs teaches him to value friendship, responsibility, and the stories of older characters such as Doc Hudson.
The franchise continued with Cars 2 in 2011 and Cars 3 in 2017. It also expanded through short films, television projects, video games, merchandise, and theme-park attractions. The title Cars refers specifically to the 2006 original, not the series as a whole.