Speed is relative. Lightning McQueen learned that the hard way when a sleek, black-and-blue blur named Jackson Storm zoomed past him at 214 mph during the Dinoco 400. That moment wasn't just a plot point; it was a shift in the entire Pixar universe. Honestly, the next gen racers Cars 3 introduced weren't just faster cars—they were a commentary on how technology displaces experience.
Fans sometimes forget that Cars 3 (2017) was basically a sports drama disguised as a kid's movie. It mirrors the real-life struggles of aging athletes like Jeff Gordon or Dale Earnhardt Jr. who had to face younger, data-driven competitors. When we talk about the next gen racers Cars 3 brought to the screen, we’re talking about a group of rookies who fundamentally changed the rules of the Piston Cup. They didn't just race on asphalt. They raced in simulators.
What makes the next gen racers different?
It's all about the specs. While Lightning McQueen is a custom-built 2006 stock car with a V8 engine pushing roughly 750 horsepower, the next gen models are engineering marvels. Jackson Storm, the poster child for this era, features a carbon fiber and metal composite chassis. His maximum speed is clocked at 214 mph. Compare that to McQueen's peak of about 198 mph. It’s not even a contest.
The design of these cars was handled by Jay Shuster, Pixar’s production designer. He wanted them to look aggressive. Sharp angles. Low profiles. They look like they’re moving even when they’re parked. If you look at Storm next to the older veterans like Bobby Swift or Brick Yardley, the physical difference is jarring. The older cars have rounded fenders and high greenhouse heights. The next gen racers Cars 3 debuted are flat, wide, and aerodynamically "perfect."
Simulators vs. Dirt Tracks
The shift wasn't just physical. It was mental. Storm and his peers, like Danny Swervez and Chase Racelott, spent their lives in high-tech simulators. They didn't feel the grit of the track or the "will" of the car. To them, racing is a math problem.
This is where the movie gets real. In the real NASCAR world, the "Next Gen" car (the Gen-7) debuted in 2022. It brought independent rear suspension and rack-and-pinion steering. Pixar actually beat reality to the punch by exploring these themes years earlier. They showed how the "old guard" felt alienated by a sport that suddenly prioritized data points over "seat-of-the-pants" driving.
🔗 Read more: Anjelica Huston in The Addams Family: What You Didn't Know About Morticia
The roster of the elite
You can't talk about the next gen racers Cars 3 era without mentioning the specific models that took over the leaderboard. It wasn't just Jackson Storm. By the middle of the film, the entire Piston Cup field had been replaced.
- Jackson Storm (No. 2.0): The antagonist. He represents the peak of performance. He’s voiced by Armie Hammer and sponsored by IGNTR.
- Danny Swervez (No. 19): Taking over for Bobby Swift. He’s a purple Octane Gain racer.
- Chase Racelott (No. 24): Replacing Jeff Gorvette. He’s sponsored by Vitoline.
- Ryan "Inside" Laney (No. 21): A Blinkr-sponsored rookie.
There are dozens of others, like Bubba Wheelhouse and J.P. Drive, who fill out the grid. The turnover was brutal. It wasn't a slow transition. It was an overnight replacement. One day, Lightning is winning trophies; the next, he’s a relic.
Why the "Gen 2" cars failed to compete
Wait, why couldn't the veterans just tune their engines? It doesn't work like that.
The veterans were built for a different era of aerodynamics. You can put a massive engine in an old car, but if the downforce isn't there, the car will just lift off the track at 200 mph. The next gen racers Cars 3 introduced were designed from the ground up to manipulate airflow. They have active aerodynamics. Their spoilers adjust. Their side skirts are lower to the ground to create a vacuum effect.
McQueen tried to push his body to 200 mph at the Cooper Canyon Speedway and ended up in a horrific wreck. It was a physical limitation of his frame. You can’t out-train physics. This is why Cruz Ramirez was so vital—she was a trainer who understood the new tech but still had the heart of a racer.
💡 You might also like: Isaiah Washington Movies and Shows: Why the Star Still Matters
The Cruz Ramirez factor
Cruz is the "stealth" next gen racer. Initially, she’s a trainer at the Rust-eze Racing Center. She uses DPE (Digital Performance Evaluation). But when she finally hits the track at Florida 500, we see that she has the same technical potential as Storm. She’s a 2017 CRS Sports Coupe. She’s sleek. She’s fast. But she had the mentorship of an old-school legend. That’s the secret sauce of the movie: combining next-gen hardware with old-school grit.
How Pixar built these cars
Pixar didn't just draw cool shapes. They consulted with automotive designers and NASCAR crew chiefs. Ray Evernham, a legendary crew chief, was a consultant. They wanted to ensure that the suspension movement and the way the cars leaned into turns looked authentic.
If you watch closely, the next gen racers Cars 3 fleet moves differently. They don't "roll" as much in the corners. They stay flat. This is because of their stiffer, modern suspension setups. It’s a level of detail most kids won't notice, but car nerds (like us) definitely do.
The sounds are different, too. Storm’s engine doesn't have the throaty, carbureted growl of McQueen. It’s a high-pitched, tuned, electronic-assisted whine. It sounds like the future. It sounds cold.
The impact on the Piston Cup lore
Looking back, Cars 3 is basically the "death" of the classic era. The ending, where Cruz takes over for McQueen, isn't just a passing of the torch. It’s an admission that the sport has moved on. The Piston Cup went from a dirt-track heritage series to a global tech showcase.
📖 Related: Temuera Morrison as Boba Fett: Why Fans Are Still Divided Over the Daimyo of Tatooine
Some fans hate this. They miss the days of the King and Chick Hicks. But that’s exactly the point of the film. Sports change. Technology evolves. If you don't adapt, you become a museum piece.
What you should do next if you're a fan
If you want to dive deeper into the world of the next gen racers Cars 3 established, there are a few things you can actually do to see the tech in action.
Check out the die-cast details. Mattel released a "Next Gen" line of 1:55 scale cars. If you compare the Jackson Storm die-cast to the Lightning McQueen one, you can actually see the difference in the wheel wells and the underbody diffusers. It’s a great way to see the aero-design Pixar was talking about.
Watch the "Generating Cars 3" documentary. It’s available on Disney+ and some Blu-ray versions. It goes into the CAD (Computer-Aided Design) models they used to build the new racers. You get to see the wireframes and how they calculated the wind resistance for the fictional cars.
Play the game. Cars 3: Driven to Win lets you actually drive these next-gen models. You’ll notice the handling difference immediately. The next-gen cars feel "snappier" and have a higher top-end speed in the game’s physics engine compared to the veteran characters.
Compare to real NASCAR. Look up the 2022-2026 NASCAR Next Gen (Gen-7) specs. You’ll see shocking similarities to what Pixar predicted back in 2017. Specifically, look at the transition to a single center-lock lug nut and the shift to carbon fiber body panels. Pixar was way ahead of the curve.
The next gen racers Cars 3 introduced weren't just the "bad guys." They were the inevitable future. Understanding them helps you appreciate why McQueen’s final act—becoming a crew chief—was his most legendary move. He couldn't beat the future, so he decided to mentor it.