Cars 2 Turntable "Rod "Torque" Redline"
Rod "Torque" Redline was the American agent that Finn McMissile and Holley Shiftwell were supposed to meet until circumstances forced him to pass crucial information to Mater, whom the two British spies mistook for Redline wearing a "clever" disguise.
History
Cars 2
Rod Redline is considered by many as the greatest American spy in the world. Recruited after the Cold War for both his brains and brawn, Torque is a tough-as-nails Detroit muscle car with a mastery of disguises. In his latest deep-cover operation, he obtained vital information about the plot to sabotage the World Grand Prix. So Rod plans a rendezvous with his British counterparts to share his discoveries at the World Grand Prix welcome reception in Tokyo, Japan. But with the bad guys hot on his tailpipe, Rod is forced to ditch the intel early and with the first party guest he sees — a rusty American tow truck named Mater.
He was first seen on the oil rig (at the beginning of Cars 2) disguised as a Gremlin. Rod later came to the Tokyo party to exchange info with Finn McMissile, but his plan was infiltrated, and he was ambushed by Acer and Grem, who damage him heavily. When Mater comes across them, Rod passes the device with the info onto Mater's undercarriage when no one was looking.
After doing this, Rod was captured by Grem and Acer, who brought him to Professor Z in their secret lair, where he was restrained with three Denver boots. He was then pumped with the fuel "Allinol", which he claimed was good for cars. However, Professor Z demonstrated, on the agent himself, what happens when cars fueled with Allinol are exposed to an electromagnetic pulse generator disguised as a camera. As Allinol began to react, the lemons demanded to know who Rod passed the intel to, putting up a slideshow of all the cars he made contact with. Rod resists, but he has an involuntary reaction at an image of Mater, which Professor Z catches. Rod could only show horror at allowing an oblivious civilian tow truck to become a target, before he was killed from the spontaneous explosion of Allinol.
After his engine was blown, his corpse is visible slightly among flames in the reflection of the screen.
Cars 2: The Video Game
In Cars 2: The Video Game, Rod is a playable character that can only be used in the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game, as he needs to be purchased from one of the corresponding stores. He is a heavy weight, and utilizes more power than speed. He can also be downloaded in his Gremlin disguise.
Personality
Rod has a cool manner. He does not worry even though he knows there is no chance for him to live even after the encounter with the lemons. Instead of worrying, he tries to keep up a smile and even insults the lemons.
Under his disguise, he is seen smiling at everyone he talks to except when meeting with the lemons.
Livery
Rod was painted blue, with black lining, chrome rims and two tiny mirrors.
Model
Rod's design is a mix of a 2005 Ford Mustang GT and a Dodge Challenger R/T. His top speed was 145 mph, with a 0-60 of 4.4 seconds. His engine was a 5.5-liter V-8, with a horsepower of 550. According to the Meet the Cars book, he is a 2006 Deringer DXR.
His license plate was M1911A1, which is also the name of a gun.
Occupation
Rod was an American spy.
Weaponry and Gadgets
Rod's status bar
- Gremlin disguise: Rod had an integrated disguise of an ocre AMC Gremlin which is not a hologram but composed of physical pieces, unlike the disguises of his British colleagues.
Rod removing his Gremlin disguise
- Concealed gun: Located in the front left wheel.
- Telescoping utility arm: A small screwdriver-like arm, located in the right wheel. Rod used this to attach a small device on Mater that was containing top-secret information.
- Status bar: Right under his eyes, Rod had a screen in the form of a bar that gave him his sitrep, notably giving the amount of fuel, and several other parameters.
Behind the Scenes
Rod's interrogation scene has been criticized as surprising or even inappropriate. In an interview, John Lasseter said that the scene was necessary to explain efficiently and visually the working and high danger of Professor Z's camera.
It also enabled to get in the movie a certain tone of the spy genre. Story Supervisor Nathan Stanton said that while "watching spy films, where your character is basically tortured and it can be a really horrifying scene, I remember thinking if we could just get five-percent of this in one of our scenes, [...] if we could just get a little of this in what we want, it would be great. It would go a long way."
Both Lasseter and Supervising Animator Dave Mullins mentioned that the scene as it had originally been conceived was much more dark and cruel, and that several people at the studio reacted to it. They say in consequence that they "backed off tremendously." Lasseter mentions that the changes included making Rod a "tough guy".
Appearances
Feature Films
Video Games
- Cars 2: The Video Game (as a downloadable character)
Trivia
- G4 DXR labels on Rod may be stating the fictional name of his car model.
- According to his license plate, he is from Michigan. Michigan is the birthplace of actor Bruce Campbell, who voiced Rod.
- A Toys "R" Us Lego exclusive of Rod was released for free on October 15, 2011 in the US.
- Rod was seen talking to Shigeko while in his Gremlin disguise.
- When Rod had his Gremlin disguise on, his eyes were brown instead of blue.
- Rod is downloadable in Cars 2: The Video Game, even though he was killed in the film. However, since all the tracks are just simulations, it's possible that Rod is part of the simulations.
- In the yet to be released Cars Toons short, To Protect and Serve, the sheriffs Mike 07 and Didi 05 will use Rod's basis.
- Rod is the third known Cars character to die in the movie franchise.
Gallery
- For this subject's image gallery, see Rod Redline/Gallery.
Quotes
- "Okay, McMissile. I'm here. It's time for the drop."
- "I'm fine."
- "Well, you know. I was just wearing a disguise. You guys are stuck looking like that!"
- "Allinol? Thanks, fellas! I hear this stuff is good for you."
- "Oh, a TV camera. What does it actually do?"
- "Whatever you say, Professor."
- "Your mother. Oh, no, I'm sorry, it was your sister! You know, I can't tell them apart these days!"
- "What do I care? I can replace an engine block!"
- "No!" (his last word, after the lemons find out he put his intel on Mater)