#lightning McQueen headcanons

[beetlecakes]

More brain rot lmq headcanons:

Lightning McQueen loves running as well

I think he would’ve been really good at it during track in high school or sm

He let that dream die once Harv signed him

He runs every morning when he isn’t practicing with Doc

Lightning is determined to get a fast mile time so Sheriff drives behind Lightning and goes on the intercoms saying “come on” “faster faster” “don’t let that race car be the only fast thing about ya”

Like just image Lightning bolting down the street while Sheriff is a few feet behind him with Doc in the passenger seat

[roe-and-memory]

HI (*^▽^*)┛I saw u mention in your pinned that ur ok with asks but im hoping this isnt too much trouble!!

I saw in ur headcanons post that u said Doc has a ring and i was wondering if Lightning had any little trinkets or things with backstory like Doc does??

HIYA yes actually we do! there are two specifically that come to mind (and we’ll probably come up with more later i just think these ones are silly af)

first i think he has a lanyard. its not anything pretty, its an old lanyard he got from rusteze when he was fifteen, when he was first taken in by mack (that is a whole other headcanon post for soon..). now, at the time of cars 1, its fairly worn. the rusteze logo has been essentially rubbed right off of it and now its just red with splotches of light pink/orange wherever the logo had been (he did this partially on purpose because he didnt like the logo being on it but also mack got it for free for him so he didnt want to be mean about it).

over the years its collected little gift shop keychains from all across america and canada, because when the person you live with is a truck driver thats taken a role as your older brother and the place you live is the cab of a truck, you do get to see places.. so he has keychains from different states and provinces/territories hanging off of it, and originally it only had one key. it had the spare key to the cab of macks truck. and he wasnt angry about it because at the time its not like there were any other vehicles for him to drive (and also he couldnt drive, this was just in case mack was unloading a delivery and he didnt wanna stand outside or he wanted to lay down on his bunk if mack was in s truck stop or a meeting or something) ((also have i mentioned before that mack 100% let him decorate his bunk walls with stickers and posters because thats his little brother and he deserves to have a decorated space!!!) i think he also has a laser pointer/flashlight on it because hes blind af he cant see a thing (headcanon from the other post)

when radiator springs comes along he gains more keys, specifically from sally and doc. he has the extra key to sallys car and a key to her office and her house, for obvious reasons (theyre the only couple ever tbh), and then he has docs extra key to the hornet and a key to docs house because he lives there. he doesnt use the front door often anyways, hes too busy climbing out his bedroom window thinking hes sneaky but no doc can hear him from across the hall and is very well aware of his supposed sneaking out. he does not care.

AND SECOND he has a lighter. its one of those lighters you buy at the cash register at a dollar store or a gas station and its red but clear, and he never uses it to light things on fire (sometimes), rather he just flicks it on and off. bro is stimming.

he cant help it, its either the lighter or tearing off the fake leather on docs couch and really doc would much rather he just lights the couch on fire than make it look Awful by peeling the leather off. i dont have much to say about this one but i think its silly and its so him (shaking him around)

WAA thank you for the ask though omg im so sorry i had way too much to say i hope this was what you were looking for

[disneyprincessabby]

So I've always headcanoned* (is that even a word? idfk) that after his wreck in Cars 3, Lightning has some pretty gnarly scars all over his body (but the worst ones are on his back) which make him super self-conscious.

But just now I was thinking, what if at some point, he asks Ramone to come up with a really cool tattoo design for his back to cover up the scars?

HOWEVER! here's the kicker: McQueen is known to hate needles and will do whatever he can to avoid them, so that makes Ramone a little hesitant cause he's thinking "ain't no way this kid is going to sit through multiple 4-5 hour sessions of getting stabbed in the back by a bunch of needles" but then come to find out McQueen actually sits super well for tattoos???

I'd also like to think that while this may be the biggest piece of ink he's got, it's not his first tattoo (He's got a Lightning bolt tattooed on his forearm or shoulder haven't really decided)

(My logic here is that medical needles and tattoo needles are two completely different beasts: as someone who gets blood work done regularly, and who has several tattoos I can tell you now I'd rather sit for a 10-hour tattoo session that go for blood work or a flu shot.)

[cani-bal]

first batch of cars human designs yes yes idk how i ended up here after saw but yknow.

[justvoidsdumbstuff1]

More human appledash sketch thingies

[funsized-panda]

saw someone's headcannon post and I started thinking

blame @x0stormie0x for getting me into this mess

anyway

I love the idea of Doc being so fatherly towards Lightning. Like not even just being a part of the pit crew, all of RS became for Lightning, but literally being a father.

Someone mentioned Doc having to pull Lightning out of bed every morning, and HE WOULD! you're telling me this man is a morning person? never. he gets up at 3 pm SHARP.

I can see Doc waking Lightning up like in those cliche movies. He opens the blinds and yanks the covers off him. "Rise and shine, Mcqueen! we got training today!" All cheery and Lightning just groans and rolls over, trying to go back to sleep.

I can see during the off season Lightning and Doc just having this father-son relationship like no one else, and Doc even adopts Mater into the family dynamic at one point bc that's Lightning's beat friend and they already act like brothers anyway.

During off-season, while there is training, Doc isn't as harsh. Instead, he's sweeter and a little more gentle. It's only when racing season picks back up that he gets a bit harsher on our boy, and Lightning hates it, but he knows Doc does it out of love.

When they're not training, they're hanging out at Doc's place or maybe Flo's. Doc has to rally Lightning like he's a 3 year old because he gets so caught up in everything and starts getting so excited he can't contain himself.

They get on one another's nerves all the time, but that's because they love each other like their blood, and everyone knows it. They wouldn't have it any other way, especially when they keep each other busy and in check.

[argumentativeaxolotl]

Random Human AU Cars headcanons that probably don’t make any sense before I go to bed bc I can.

Lightning McQueen:

- Has accidentally called Doc “dad” before

- Has accidentally called Strip “dad” as well

- Bro can literally not stop moving- like he will not sit still and he tries so hard

- He has the shortest attention span ever if it doesn’t have to do with his friends or racing

- He actually really enjoys American Football and plays a modified version with Mater sometimes

- He was an orphan growing up

- Bro would 100% go apeshit feral if he lost a game of Uno

- Loves carnivals

- Dog person

- Forgets he’s rich sometimes and he can make his own decisions about money

- His love language is hugs and gifts

- He bought the Hot Wheels of his car and continues to buy every variation

Chick Hicks:

- Bit other kids as a child

- Filled water guns with lemonade and shot at people’s eyes

- Daddy issues(actually this is canon isn’t it?)

- Cat person

- Frighteningly good at card games like Casino “house always wins” levels of good. Like bro will somehow know what your cards are without even looking at them

- He put rocks in snowballs

- Alcoholic

- Loves anything horror, gorey, and True Crime

- He’s notoriously bad at getting people gifts, like seriously bro is not allowed to buy anything for anyone for Christmas or their birthdays that’s how bad it is(someone usually gets it for him)

- He probably has a huge gambling problem

- His love language is giving gifts

- He gives gifts as a form of apology because he’s shit at words

- Literally the best mustache in all of cars- like he keeps that thing at top condition 101% of the time

- He never actually finished school because his dad forced him into racing as soon as he could

- Probably had rabies at one point and somehow survived

- If you somehow manage to become a good friend of his, he’ll actually be super chill w/ you

- Rich as FUCK

Strip Weathers:

- Legally adopted Cal after his parents passed away(or sumn idk)

- Has several scars on his arm from the crash during the tie-breaker race

- He, Tex, Lynda, and Cal were practically inseparable after the crash

- He and Tex are literally the bestest of buds like they are homies to the MAX

- He doesn’t hold any ill-will against Chick even if he should and is allowed to

- The “Boy Scout” of racing(think Superman or Captain America)

- He listens to “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X while working with his horses. Cal cringes every time.

- He never swears unless he’s serious about something or is extremely upset or concerned

- He almost fainted when he met Doc for the first time, almost immediately asking for an autograph

- He has a ranch full of horses and enjoys horse racing as well as car racing

- Received an apology gift of both cologne and a miniature trophy from Chick

- He let Chick sign his cast after the crash

- He’s tried to teach Lightning and Bobby how to ride horses with Cal’s help. It did not go well

- He wanted to be a doctor for a little while before switching career paths

- Racing is literally in his blood(he comes from a very VERY long line of racers)

- Weirdly good at writing. Like for no reason.

- He heavily fanboyed over Doc when he was younger

Doc Hudson:

- He loves Lightning as his son

- He thinks of Sally as a surrogate daughter

- Unironically says “back in my day” whenever he’s telling a story

- He owns a shotgun and it’s hidden away in his house, far away from Lightning(who keeps trying to find it with no luck)

- He knows the most shit out of everyone and all their backstories. Bro hears the gossip and goes “nice”

- He loves watching fruit dissection videos on YouTube for some reason

- Bro is great at knitting. Like seriously. Give him ten seconds and you’ll have a whole ass sweater with a theme and everything

- He is an alcoholic(especially after his crash)

- Never got married or had children… until Lightning and Sally lmaooo

- He nearly started crying tears of joy when Lightning called him dad the first time

- He has several large burns and scars on his legs and lower back from the crash(like shit is really bad dude)

- His favorite movie is the original ghost busters

- He is a cat person

- He is a neat freak at heart yet gave up trying to clean out his garage because of all the bad memories

[bisexualmcqueen]

finally sketched my fanparent OCs as cars!

Some of you may recognize Oliver McQueen and Donna from 2019 :3 they're awful and i've missed them <3

Oliver is a 1979 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS. A Boston native, McQueen moves to Texas in the early 80's in pursuit of his dream to become wealthy. Try as he might, his dreams are always just out of reach, and instead he's saddled with the task of raising his rambunctious, troublemaking son Montgomery by himself. Naturally, he does a piss-poor job.

Donna is a 1982 Chevrolet C3 Corvette. A small-town Texas girl meets a dashing businesscar while working at a diner. Before they know it they have a kid together, but this is a doomed narrative. Donna leaves Oliver one day when her son is small, and never sees either of them again.

Monty was born c.1981

a car's 'model year' usually lands between ages 20-25, at maturity.

[sillygoose53]

lance has the same initials as lightning mcqueen and it’s something i think about wayyy too often

[champmorado]

sally headcanon time:

she has paranoia around someone from her old life finding her

shes really scared that one day, one of her old coworkers or clients will show up to radiator springs because they recognized her from a racing newspaper or interview or paparazzi pic

so she chose not to attend mcqueen's races and any events with a lot of press. after cars 1, she did get better at managing her paranoia and by cars 3, shes okay with going to mcqueen's races :]

and mcqueen will ofc do anything to make sally comfortable and feel safe. he always asks sally what he can share about her in interviews, he always asks if he can post their pictures together, and he never makes her feel bad or "irrational" for her paranoia

additional hc: she had sarge remove her gps a few days after she got to radiator springs

also she did get scared when mcqueen got found in cars 1 and all the press appeared

[beetlecakes]

More humanized Lightning McQueen headcanons

Man’s knees pop likes he’s an old man

I read somewhere one of the most common injuries are knee injuries and back pain

Like I think he probably has chronic knee pain

Constantly wraps and has to ice it after a race or practice

Doc makes sure he is taking care of his body because he knows that Lightning will neglect it out of pride

Once Harv kept scheduling him races back to back and Lightnings completely neglected his knee due to barely having any downtime to rest

His knees completely buckled after a race, causing him to fall to the ground and Doc nearly had a damn panic attack thinking the kid passed out

Doc refused to let Lightning race or practice for a week

He complained because he said he was “bored”

Secretly he loved the free time and being able to actually relax and let his body heal

Lightning takes cooking lessons from Flo because Doc could not stand Lightning being okay with eating cereal for dinner

Doc asked Flo to give Lightning lessons so he could cook for himself when he wasn’t home

Every week he will occasionally go out and play poker or cards with Sheriff

Lightning surprisingly picked up fast and cooked a meal for Sally

He got a recipe from Luigi and it was the best thing Sally ever ate

She won’t admit it tho

Lightning is great with kids

Sally has talked about having kids but obviously is the far FAR future

Lightning won’t admit it, but he’s afraid of being a dad

His real father was horrible to him

His mom left him when he was a toddler

He knows nothing about how to be a father, only what a father isn’t

But the more time he spends with Doc, the more he realizes what a father should be

Because obviously he sees Doc as a father figure

[roe-and-memory]

this is essentially lightnings rusteze commercial in cars 1

[heartstringsbloom]

Lightning and Flo headcanons because I think they’d have a really sweet friendship <33

• Lightning gets a job at the V8 cafe after some time in RS

• he noticed how Flo was usually the one managing the cafe and rarely saw other staff

• of course he can tell how capable she is (she’s not just holding the place together, she’s making it thrive) but it doesn’t stop him from applying as a waiter

• he sheepishly tells her that he’d like to help out, despite the lack of a help wanted sign

• she’s caught off guard but is all smiles just as quickly, heart melting at his gentle stuttering and flushed cheeks at simply asking if he could help out

• she tells him he doesn’t need to but humors him, putting him on part time for late mornings to late afternoon when it’s busiest

• Flo doesn’t realize the difference it makes until she actually has the extra set of hands to take orders, run food back and forth, wipe down tables when she’s busy loading dishes into the washer or refilling coffee

• it’s also nice to have someone to talk to after the rush calms down and the cafe is mostly empty, Doc and Sheriff in a corner booth playing cards while Sally goes through the motel’s monthly expenses from where she’s half asleep on Doc’s shoulder (the only one he’d ever let in that position)

• Lightning sits at the counter during this time, sipping a strawberry milkshake despite the late hour, while Flo bags up a breakfast sandwich for Ramone (who can’t go a night without one)

• she and McQueen chat about potential new menu items and how the jukebox hasn’t worked in years, but if they could get it fixed it would just add to the lovely 50s atmosphere. He offers to get someone on that and Flo rolls her eyes, shushing him about throwing anymore money at the town after all he’s already done

• the boy, sweet as pumpkin pie, pouts as if he’ll throw a fit only to sigh dramatically and go back to his drink, mumbling about how he’d do anything for them, for her, and Flo just wants to hug him forever, knowing they’ll have the same conversation again tomorrow night

• as she closes up he hovers behind her, hands in the pockets of his too big red hoodie as he chews his lip, eyes clinging to his feet, and she asks if he wants to come with her to Ramone’s

• he perks up in such a flash Flo gets whiplash

• they walk in comfortable silence, McQueen singing something under his breath and soaking up the midnight lights with eyes so smitten and Flo thinks he looks even younger than he is

• as Ramone works on a commission Flo walks Lightning around the shop, pointing out different things her husband has done over the years and the kid blurts out how pretty she is

• Flo is *really* thrown off but laughs soon enough, absolutely tickled by this awkward little cutie who seems so different off the track

• she jokes that she’s already married and he practically falls apart, an absolute rush of apologies and denial and he just had to say it because she *is* and sometimes he just says things on his mind and—

• Flo pinches his cheek and reassures that she’s kidding, she knows he didn’t mean it that way, and he smiles and she only now notices that his tongue peeks through his teeth when he does

• they sit and chat some more after that. Flo learns that Lightning hasn’t watched many movies growing up and he wants to see every Disney Princess film ever made after watching The Little Mermaid for the first time at Doc’s. She tells him that Cinderella is one of her favorites and they make plans to have a movie night soon

• when he says goodnight and heads back to Doc’s, Ramone wraps his arms around her from behind with a kiss already in her shoulder. They watch him go, a spring in McQueen’s step, and she tells her husband that the kid is sunshine in a basket

• he gets brighter every day

[blackcatenergy247]

Have some HeadCanons of my own of certain characters.

No offense I just can’t see Nigel with a boy so yeah. It just doesn’t seem right. So he’s Straight Ally and Demiromantic. 🫤

[galacticspaceguy]

Post Cars 3 human!lightning headcanons:

(Also leans into a bit of AU territory but the AU starts after cars 3 so it’s ok)

-mid 30s

-doesn’t race with the rookies officially anymore. He holds dirt track races for him and all the older racers. People are allowed to come and watch. These races get real popular, but they quieted down after a while.

-he didn’t get a new car cause he’s to attached to his old one, and he refuses to alter it either.

-uses Docs old car a lot. He fixed it up because being a mechanic became a new hobby of his

-had a couple a scars due to the assassination attempt and the crash. he also takes a bunch of meds cause the crash messed him up real bad. A lot of people consider Lightnings crash one of the worst.

-has ADHD. It was really bad when he was younger (cars 1) but it’s calmed down now

-people talk about Cruz getting in a potential car crash due to it being almost a curse. Doc, Strip, McQueen, so people think Cruz is next. It doesn’t help that this is one of McQueens biggest fears.

-races Cruz as a part of her training

-hates it when people call him old. Everyone calls him old.

-usually wears sweatpants, a white shirt, a jacket that’s both his old logo and Dinoco themed, and his own merch (a hat and lightning glasses) as a crew chief uniform

-he let Cruz use his old racing suit (he also let her alter it a bit by adding some of her signature yellow to his red)

-lost a bit of his professionalism but not a bit of his charm

-gets a lot of appreciation from the rookies on the track (cause he’s practically a dad to everyone on the track now)

-Lightning is to Cruz like Doc is to Lightning but way more chaotic

-part time teacher at Rusteze racing center. It was a horrible idea to hire him, but the rookies love him

-Harv made him keep his hair cut short and clean, but now he lets it grow out.

-He also has a heavier accent now due to all the time he spends in radiator springs.

-Married Sally. Fans started calling her Mrs. McKing. Though there’s already a Mrs. The King. They are best friends and have their own fan base.

-Always carries a cup with him to all of Cruz’s races. None knows what’s in it, and when anyone asks, he always gives a very vague answer, so none knows. It’s become very popular online for people to guess what Cruz Ramirez’s crew chief is drinking.

-convinced all his old racing friends to help out in the pits or become crew chiefs of their own rookies

-doesn’t usually let Cruz race internationally. He knows it’s unfair, but he’s still a little wary after the whole assassination attempt. A few of the racers from the world grand pix actually reached out to him to tell him he should be less paranoid in the nicest way possible- but then again, people strapped a bomb to his best friend in a attempt to murder him

-tried to teach Sally to race. He always lets her win even if he knows he can beat her easily.

-either really rough with Cruz or really soft with her; but over all incredibly over protective of her

-casually mentions/references things that happened in movie 1/2 and the majority of the time, no one but the Radiator Spring residents what he’s talking about

-hasn’t let Cruz get an proper agent yet. He knows he should, but he and Dinoco are enough right now.

-can throw Cal over his shoulders and drag him around (no matter how much Cal screams at him to put him down)

-broke off his contract with Harv and put Harv on a no contact list. I don’t personally think Harv was physically or extremely abusive- I thinks he’s more exploit-y and mostly cares about fame and money. He was really distant with McQueen but he did have a good hold over the kid, I mean we all know how excited Lightning gets when he gets to talk to or even see Harv. The entire court case was about Harv taking more of Lightnings winnings than what’s legally allowed, and it really changed Harvs attitude towards Lighting, which led to a restraining order and a no contact order.

-I have another headcanon that Harv became Jackson Storms agent, which led to a whole other court case

-Sally was the lawyer for both those cases

[chokedonaturtle]

my humanized cars headcanons

Cereal Choice Edition

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Strip: he ain’t allowed to eat cereal it makes him hyper. Lynda makes him oatmeal instead and he throws a tantrum every time.

Cal: he ain’t allowed to eat cereal, eats POPS in moderation when supervised (he will eat the entire box)

Lynda: Oatmeal. she don’t really care for cereal.

Tex: Great Value Apple Fritters Cereal (it’s discontinued and he pays $60 on ebay each time he needs another box.) Usually just has Blanton Gold Label for breakfast (it’s whiskey).

Lightning: Cocoa puffs, Reese’s Pieces Cereal, anything incredibly sweet and borderline life threatening. The occasional Cheerio.

Mater: anything you put in front of him. whether or not it’s edible is not important.

Bobby: actually doesn’t like cereal. mostly just doesn’t like milk and won’t eat it dry.

Brick: Frosted Flakes but ONLY the ones that are travel sized. He said they don’t taste the same as the big box. Also says that if they’re bought in the store, they taste different than the ones from the hotel breakfast line.

Sally: Honey Smacks, Choco Chimps. thinks the chimp is cute. drinks a glass of orange juice with her cereal and it drives Lightning insane.

Doc: He’s a doctor and only eats Raisin Bran and Cheerios because sugary cereal is bad for you…………

Cocoa Krispies. he likes when they go *pop pop pop*

Sheriff: he’s a simple man and doesn’t ask for much.

German cereal Vitalis Schoko M��sli Klassisch, Kelloggs ICEE cereal and Peeps cereal. makes Doc cry. who tf introduced him to those.

Sarge: MRE Future Essentials Corn Flakes Cereal #10 Can. man has not shit in six years.

Fillmore: organic gluten free sugar free preservative free strange crunchy objects. no milk.

Flo: prefers granola, mixed with cream and some fruit. makes a bomb parfait.

Ramone: eats whatever Flo is eating. if Flo is not eating he WILL starve.

Red: Honey Nut Cheerios, Apple Jacks….. Gerber snacks for baby. they’re fire and he won’t tell you otherwise.

Lizzie: has literally never heard of cereal, is shocked every time she sees someone eating it. it’s been 40 years of this.

Luigi: Swissli, but hasn’t found a good enough alternative in the US. Cheerios will do.

Guido: Doesn’t care for cereal, makes a real breakfast instead.

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lmk if i forgot anyone i wasn’t looking :p

ta ta !!!

<3

bonus !!

thomasville eats cereal too

Smokey: puts straight granola in milk. adds chocolate chips and maybe some fruit.

River: Honey Bunches of Oats, Honey Nut Cheerios, anything honey flavored

Louise: There’s a discontinued brand of strawberry yogurt Cheerios that she used to love. She swears on her life it existed and the boys like to mess with her and swear otherwise.

Junior: also fucks with Gerber snacks for baby. Prefers apple sauce from the squeeze tube--

is this man an actual child ???