Radiator Springs

### Inhabitants

Sally Carrera, Sarge, Fillmore, Ramone, Flo, Luigi, Guido, Lizzie, Mater, Red, Sheriff, Frank, Lightning McQueen, Mack, Mia and Tia, Otis (possibly), Doc Hudson †, Stanley †, Big Al (formerly), Knick (in Lizzie's snowglobe), Cruz Ramirez

### Visitors

Chick Hicks, The King, Lynda Weathers, Darrell Cartrip, Boost, DJ, Wingo, Snot Rod, Screamin' Banshee, Van, Minny, Finn McMissile, Holley Shiftwell, Siddeley, Francesco Bernoulli, Jeff Gorvette, Lewis Hamilton, Miguel Camino, Raoul ÇaRoule, Max Schnell, Carla Veloso, Nigel Gearsley, Smokey, Junior Moon, River Scott, Louise Nash

### Status

Still standing, but reopens and has some changes

“*You're in Radiator Springs, the cutest little town in Carburetor County.*”

―Mater introducing the town to Lightning McQueen.
**Radiator Springs, Arizona** is the primary setting of the Disney/Pixar *Cars* franchise. Located in Carburetor County, gateway to Ornament Valley and the Cadillac Range, Radiator Springs is a town along Route 66 that was greatly diminished when a new interstate bypassed the town completely. However, with the events of the film, the town is revived and turned into Lightning McQueen's racing base.

## Town history

Radiator Springs was founded by a steam car named Stanley on May 9, 1909, and a statue of him is outside the town courthouse. Stanley, who was selling radiator caps in Ornament Valley, found an oasis of water, later called Stanley's Oasis. There he also found new customers, so he decided to build a town there.mHe named it "Radiator Springs". Later, Stanley married Lizzie. After Stanley's death, more people came to live in Radiator Springs, and the town grew. It was a popular rest area where almost all cars would stop to shop and fill their gas tank. However, in the early 1980s, Interstate 40 was built near Radiator Springs, which greatly decreased traffic for Radiator Springs, since the Interstate bypassed the town in 1983. Finally, in the mid 1980s, Route 66 was decommissioned.

In 1954, famous Piston Cup racer Doc Hudson suffered a massive accident that found him in a hospital for several years. Around the 1970s, Hudson fully recovered and returned to the Piston Cup; but found that the sport had left him behind because of new-comers, sponsors, the money had been spent, and the competitiveness in the races had grown. Hudson felt like nobody appreciated him anymore and retired completely from the Piston Cup before vanishing off the face of the Earth. Eventually, Doc Hudson found shelter in Radiator Springs. His wisdom tough grandpa-like attitude earned him respect from the town enough that in the late 1980s, Hudson was hired as the mayor, judge, and CEO of the town.

In 2006, rookie racecar Lightning McQueen destroyed the town's main road in a hurry to get to a Piston Cup race in Los Angeles, California, and was arrested for five days to fix the road. He soon became friends with the Radiator Springs populace, and after his race, he set up a racing headquarters in the town, and the town started to grow again.

## Location

Radiator Springs is located within Carburetor County, right on the edge of the county line. The town is nestled in between Cadillac Range and Ornament Valley.

Radiator Springs is along Route 66, which travels from Los Angeles, California, to Chicago, Illinois. According to *The Art of Cars*, Radiator Springs is located in between Gallup, New Mexico, and Kingman, Arizona (which both can be heard in the end credits song). Gallup is very close to New Mexico's western border; therefore Radiator Springs is likely situated in Arizona. Radiator Springs is likely in the eastern part of Arizona, while the the truck stop, they pass by would be in New Mexico.

This means that Radiator Springs is likely a reference to Peach Springs, Arizona, where Route 66 follows the valley, and I-40 bypasses the town. But the few minutes of driving referenced to by Sally are in reality closer to 30 minutes.

## Residents

### Current Residents

* Sally Carrera
* Sheriff
* Sarge
* Fillmore
* Ramone
* Flo
* Luigi
* Guido
* Lizzie
* Mater
* Red
* Frank
* Lightning McQueen
* Mack
* Mia and Tia
* Otis (possible resident)
* Cruz Ramirez (possible resident)
* Strip Weathers (possible resident)
* Cal Weathers (possible resident)
* Tex Dinoco (possible resident)
* Lynda Weathers (possible resident)
* Gray (possible resident)

### Former Residents

* Doc Hudson, deceased between the events of *Cars: Race-O-Rama* and *Cars 2*
* Stanley, deceased
* Big Al, whereabouts unknown

## Buildings & Attractions

* Budville Trading Company (Closed)
* Carburetor Repairs Emporium (Closed)
* The Cozy Cone Motel
* Eat (Closed)
* Fillmore's Taste-In
* Flo's V8 Cafe
* Foggy Windshield (Closed)
* Glenrio Motel (Closed - building became the Racing Museum)
* Hudson Hornet Racing Museum (Previously Ornament Valley Mechanical Clinic) (In *Cars 2*)
* Lightning McQueen's Racing Headquarters (Formerly known as Luigi's Racing Headquarters in Australia)
* Lube O Rama (Closed)
* Luigi's Casa Della Tires
* Miss Piston (Closed)
* Mr. Curb Feeler (Closed)
* Mrs. Muffler (Closed)
* Muddy's Mudflaps (Closed)
* The Oil Pan (closed)
* Ornament Valley Mechanical Clinic (Doctor Hudson: Dr. of Internal Combustion) (In *Cars*)
* Pop N Patch Tire Repair (Closed)
* The Racing Museum (Building was previously the closed Glenrio Motel)
* Radiator Springs Courthouse & Fire Department
* Radiator Springs Curios Shop
* Radiator Springs Drive-In Theatre
* Radiator Springs Garage (Closed)
* Radiator Springs Municipal Impound
* Ramone's House of Body Art
* Sarge's Surplus Hut
* Sarge's SUV Boot Camp
* Sparky's Spark Plugs (Closed)
* Stanley's Oasis (In *Time Travel Mater*) (Removed)
* Tow Mater Towing & Salvage
* Tractor Pasture
* Willy's Butte
* Wimpy's Wipers (Closed)

### Nearby

* Cadillac Range
* Ornament Valley
* Wheel Well Motel