Cars is an animated feature film. It is produced by Pixar Animation Studios and was released by Walt Disney Pictures on June 9, 2006.

Directed by John Lasseter (Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2), the film features the voices of Owen Wilson, Bonnie Hunt, Paul Newman, Cheech Marin, Tony Shalhoub, John Ratzenberger, George Carlin, Larry the Cable Guy, Richard Petty, and Darrell Waltrip. The film has been rated G by the MPAA.

The film premiered on May 26, 2006 at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, with 30,000 tickets sold.

En route across the country to the big Piston Cup Championship in California, Lightning McQueen, a hotshot rookie race car driven to succeed, finds himself unexpectedly detoured. He ends up in the largely-abandoned town of Radiator Springs on Route 66, which parallels the real-life town of Amboy, California. McQueen gets to know the town's offbeat characters, who help him realize that there are more important things than trophies, fame, and sponsorship. McQueen discovers that life is about the journey, not the finish line.

It all starts with the final Piston Cup race of the year. Lightning McQueen (a hotshot rookie), The King (a respected veteran), and Chick Hicks (a ruthless cheater) are all tied for the series championship. A photo-finish tie between the three competitors leads to a final tie-breaker race scheduled one week later in California.

After the race, Lightning and his transport truck, Mack, begin an all-night journey across the country towards California. With Lightning sleeping in the trailer, four custom racers play a prank on Mack, causing the sleepy truck to doze off and Lightning to slip off the back onto the interstate highway. Lightning tries deperately to race after Mack but finds himself lost and alone in the middle of the night on rural Route 66. Lightning tries to make it back to the interstate but finds it difficult without any headlights. This speeding car with no headlights soon catches the eye of a small town sheriff. A wild police pursuit ensues, resulting in Lightning tearing up the pavement of the main street in a forgotten little desert town named Radiator Springs. Lightning is caught, impounded, taken to court, and sentenced to repair the street which he destroyed.

At first Lightning McQueen remains arrogant and self-centered, obsessed with nothing else but leaving Radiator Springs and getting to the race in California. After an escape attempt and sloppy road repair, Doc Hudson, the elderly local judge challenges Lightning to a race in the desert. If Lightning wins the race he gets to leave town. If Doc wins the race, Lightning has to complete his sentence and do the work Doc's way. Lightning laughs off this challenge as easy and races to a huge lead while Doc remains at the starting line. Lightning tries to take a tight turn in the dirt and flies off a bluff, getting stuck in a cactus patch just as Doc knew he would. Doc wins the race.

Over the next several days Lightning gradually learns more about the town and its residents. He becomes friends with a dim-witted but loyal tow truck named Mater and with a beautiful Porsche named Sally. Sally shows Lightning why she loves Radiator Springs. She also tells Lightning the story of how Radiator Springs once thrived on Route 66's bustling tourist industry that vanished after the interstate highway was built.

Lightning begins to like Radiator Springs but he remains obsessed with making that sharp dirt turn in the desert. Doc offers his advice but Lightning dismisses the old man's ridiculous notions. Then Lightning discovers that Doc Hudson used to be a great racecar, a three-time Piston Cup champion in the 1950s until a bad wreck ended his career prematurely. Once Lightning discovers Doc's secret, Doc tips off the media as to where Lighning McQueen has been all week and Lightning is quickly wisked away to California in a public frenzy.

Racing for the championship in California, Lightning can't focus as his mind keeps wandering back to Sally and Radiator Springs. He begins the race poorly but becomes revitalized after he discovers that many of his friends from Radiator Springs have come to the race to help him as his pit crew, with Doc Hudson (painted as his old #51 "Fabulous" Hudson Hornet) as his crew chief. Lightning races back into contention and pulls into the lead on the final lap thanks to finally understanding Doc's advice about making that sharp turn back in the desert. With the championship in sight for Lightning, Chick Hicks intentionally causes The King to spin into a horrific wreck. Lightning, remembering how Doc's accident ended his career, slams on his brakes just before the finish line and goes back to help The King. Chick Hicks wins the Piston Cup, but he is booed by the audience and Lightning McQueen wins the admiration of the fans.

Lightning decides to move to Radiator Springs, along with all of his racing operations. Thanks to Lightning's endorsement, Radiator Springs sees a huge boost in tourism and the town is saved.

Initial critical reaction was generally positive. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film three stars and said, "The movie is great to look at and a lot of fun, but somehow lacks the extra push of the other Pixar films." Stephen Hunter of the Washington Post called the film "great fun" and gave it four stars. However, Manohla Dargis of the New York Times reviewed the film unfavorably criticizing its emphasis on mechanical characters and landscape and lack of living creatures. It is currently seen as the least critically successful of the Pixar films, but still boasts a solid 77% rating at Rotten Tomatoes.

During the end credits, scenes from previous Pixar films are re-enacted with cars. There is a scene from "Toy Car Story" featuring Tom Hanks and Tim Allen, one from "A Bug's Life" featuring Dave Foley, and one from "Monster Cars, Inc." featuring John Goodman and Billy Crystal. John Ratzenberger is also featured in all three scenes and his Cars character Mack comments on the recurrence.

The birds from the Pixar short For the Birds can be seen on the "Life is a Highway" sequence.

The Pizza Planet Truck from Toy Story can be seen in the booth on the final race sequence.