What Kind of Car is Lightning McQueen from ‘Cars’?
Disney’s Lightning McQueen was inspired by the Chevrolet Corvette C1 and C6.
Written by Alexandra Maloney
Reviewed by Kathleen Flear
The Cars franchise is a classic for kids, adults, car lovers,
movie lovers
, and everyone in between. Following its original debut in 2006, main character Lightning McQueen (who is a car himself) and his automobile friends have been on our screens for three movies over the years, the latest of which premiered in 2017.As you watched
Lightning McQueen
race down the track on your TV, you might have been wondering what kind of real-life car brand
he was supposed to be. As it turns out, Lightning McQueen was modeled after a few different Chevrolet Corvettes. A rundown on the movie ‘Cars’
Lightning McQueen is the main character in the Cars movies, voiced by Owen Wilson. The family friendly film for
Disney fans
opens as we watch Lightning, a rookie race car, fly across the finish line at the exact same time as two other cars. Because of the three-way tie, it's announced that in exactly one week a final tiebreaker race will be held to determine the best race car. But, in the days leading up to the big race, Lightning McQueen gets pulled over on the road by the sheriff of a town called Radiator Springs. As a punishment, he’s made to pave the roads of the town. During his punishment, he starts to befriend the cars and other vehicles of Radiator Springs. Lightning McQueen builds a bond with the residents of Radiator Springs, and they help him prepare for his big race.
Before he can say goodbye, or even thank you, he is whisked away from the town that taught him so many lessons. Then, it’s time for the big race. But, to know how Lightning McQueen does there, you’ll have to watch the movie yourself.
In Cars 2 and 3, we still follow Lightning McQueen and all the friends he made in life after the race.
What kind of car is Lightning McQueen?
After watching Lightning McQueen’s exciting races while discovering himself in the process, many viewers were wondering what kind of car he was.
DriveTribe
writer stated after watching Cars, “My immediate thought was that there is some Chevrolet in there, specifically a sprinkling of Corvette lines.” Plus, the writer deduced Lightning McQueen had to be a stock car, because he races around in ovals, has a short-track rear spoiler, huge NASCAR wheels, and of course, a lightning bolt across his side.
The specific answer to this question is that Lightning McQueen isn’t just one type of car. He’s actually modeled after two cars—the Chevrolet Corvette C6 and Corvette C1, according to
Endurance Warranty
. The Corvettes that inspired Lightning McQueen
The earlier model Corvette that inspired Lightning McQueen, the Corvette C1, debuted in 1953. According to
Car and Driver
, the C1 was a two seat roadster that used fiberglass panels and a six-cylinder engine producing just 115 horsepower. All C1s were painted white with a red interior. Although only 183 C1s were ever sold, this classic car was a perfect one to model Lightning McQueen after. The second car that drew inspiration for Lightning McQueen was a later model, the Corvette C6.
According to Car and Driver, the C6 was unveiled at the 2004 Detroit Auto Show. It was a monumental model, because it didn’t feature the hidden headlights. Instead, it had exposed front lamps, like we see on Lightning McQueen. Plus, it had bigger wheels than previous models, like Lightning McQueen does in Cars.
While Lightning McQueen drew inspiration from these two Corvettes, do you know where the car got its name? According to
Fatherly
, Lightning McQueen got his famous name as a tribute to Pixar animator Glenn McQueen, who passed away when he was 41 years old. 
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