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Lightning Artwork
Lightning McQueen
Character Information
Playable?

Yes

Gender

Male

Make Model

Handmade, One-of-a-Kind 2006 Race Car

Alignment

Good

Body Color

Red/yellow (Cars: The Video Game), maroon/white (other games)

Eye Color

Blue

Occupation

Piston Cup Racer

Performer

Owen Wilson (Cars: The Video Game, Cars: Fast as Lightning), Keith Ferguson (mostother games), Ben Rausch

Lightning McQueen is the main protagonist in all three main installments before Cars 2 (which he is still a very prominent character), and is usable in Arcade Mode.

Roles

Main Series Games

In all Cars: The Video GameCars: Mater-National Championship, and Cars: Race-O-Rama, he is the main character of the story mode. More about his roles can be read on the respective articles of the games, their events, and other characters.

Cars: Fast as Lightning

Although Lightning is controlled in the first two tutorial races, he is actually then not playable again until he is unlocked as the final playable character.

Cars:IGNITE Remake

Lightning was a confirmed character. His 3D model for the game was showcased, and he later appeared in the 25-second pre-alpha clip where he was being played as against an AI-controlled Luigi on a demo track. There also was some questioning that Sarge might have been the main character instead of him, but no light ever came of this before the project faded into obscurity.

Stats

Cars: The Video Game

  • Speed: 5
  • Acceleration: 4
  • Handling: 3
  • Stability: 3

Cars: Mater-National Championship

  • Boost: 3
  • Acceleration: 4
  • Handling: 4
  • Stability: 3

Cars 2: The Video Game

  • Speed: 50
  • Power: 50

Livery

Lightning's livery has changed throughout the series, in Cars: The Video Game, he is painted red with a yellow bolt, but in the next two games, he is a more maroon color with a design similar to Philip. After Cars 2, he was changed to his "WorldGrandPrix" design, losing his Rust-Eze decals and having his spoiler changed, although after Cars 3, he would mostly revert back to his normal self (although he still kept his real headlights), with a somewhat altered red and yellow design.

Personality

Lightning was originally (and in a sense in Cars: The Video Game) depicted as a self-centered "One-Man Show", but he has later changed and has friends other than his fans and Mack. Changes like these also happen to most other main protagonists in their respective series.

Abilities

Lightning is shown to have a very large number of abilities, such as Powersliding, Boosting, Jumping, and even Driving Backwards. But he is shown to have had to be tutored these moves by older, wiser cars such as Doc, Fillmore, Sarge, and Mater. There also are some abilities he has normally, such as being able to picture cars he has not seen yet in his dreams and tilting. He has a total of 900 horsepower.

Lightning is also shown to have good scavenging skills, as he was shown to have tracked down all of Lizzie's 20 postcards scattered from Radiator Springs, Ornament Valley, and all the way to Tailfin Pass.

Gallery

Trivia

  • Lightning and Chick are the only Piston Cup Racers to have their numbers printed on their right taillight, while every other one either lacks it or has it on their left taillight.
  • Lightning and Vince are the only cars who have a 100% confirmed horsepower.
  • Lightning and Fletcher are the only cars to appear in both the Xbox 360 version of Cars: The Video Game and the PC version of Cars: Mater-National Championship, but not use the same 3D model in both games.
  • In Cars: The Video Game, if the player controls Monster McQueen in any Road Race event (except the ones that have "fixed" opponents), one of the AI racers may be normal Lightning.
  • In Cars: The Video Game, Lightning's default paint job is his Rookie paint job from the movie, but he still has the rookie stripe on his rear, which he should no longer have due to already having had a full Season of Piston Cup experience prior to the game.
Characters

Playable
LightningMaterSallyDocRamoneFloSheriffFillmoreSargeLuigiGuidoLizzieChick HicksKingDarrell CartripGudmundOttoKojiGiovanniEmmaCandiceEl MachismoStingerBoostWingoDJSnot RodDH StudentCH StudentVINTater & Tater Jr.BubbaTrophy GirlMikeNot ChuckHTB PittyDH PittyMotorCo. PittySulleyCount SpatulaMack

Not Playable
Mia and TiaFletcherGeraldEl GuapoPapoPhilipYuriVinceBarrySonnyLennyFredTommy JoeLewisJuddCletusBufordZekeTractorsStanleyThe CripplerGinormousBanksCortlandBuckTurnerGuentherBashmanHendersonMcCoyHollisterClarksonJoltsenMastersonMedfordRileySuregripAikensZebLee JrKabutoFrankRedTouristsAl OftBulldozers

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