Jay Limo dans Cars : le clin d'œil à Jay Leno

Jay Limo in Cars: The Jay Leno Nod

815 words | Reading time: 5 minutes

Behind the scenesJay LimoJay Leno

One of the world's biggest car collectors lends his voice… to a car. Jay Limo, a blue luxury limousine derived from a stretched Lincoln Town Car, hosts a talk show in Cars (2006) that parodies the Tonight Show. His name blends “Jay Leno” and “limo”, and Leno voices him in the original version. On air, he jokes about Lightning McQueen's disappearance, in the tradition of commentators Darrell Cartrip and Bob Cutlass. This profile details the character's role and the irony of the cameo, since Leno collects around 180 cars in real life.

Summary

Who is Jay Limo?

Jay Limo is a secondary character in Cars (2006): a luxurious blue limousine (derived from a stretched Lincoln Town Car) who hosts a TV talk show, an obvious parody of the Tonight Show. His name is a pun on "Jay Leno" and "limo" (limousine), and he is voiced in the original version by Jay Leno himself.

A long white limousine with a black roof, a stretched Lincoln Town Car, parked in an empty car park
A real Lincoln Town Car stretched into a limousine: it is from this silhouette that Jay Limo derives, repainted by the film in a luxurious blue. Photo: Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA, CC BY 2.0.

🚗 Under Jay Limo's luxurious blue there is a real Lincoln Town Car stretched into a limousine; your own car is surely shorter, but its cabin will very happily take our Cars car floor mats.

His role in the film

He is seen on television when Lightning McQueen mysteriously disappeared (stuck in Radiator Springs before the final race). Like any good presenter, Jay Limo jokes about the situation and comments on the matter live — a nod to the media's treatment of sports, in line with commentators Darrell Cartrip and Bob Cutlass.

Two Rust-eze team vehicles surrounded by a forest of boom mics and cameras, in front of a Rust-eze-coloured banner; the PSI Television logo is painted on a press car in the foreground
Mics and cameras trained on the Rust-eze pit: in Cars, the race is covered like a major media event, and the Jay Limo Show is its studio extension.

📺 The Jay Limo Show carries on in the studio a race already covered by the mics and cameras trained on the Rust-eze pit; you will follow it from the sofa instead, ideally under one of our Cars blankets.

The Jay Leno irony

In real life, Jay Leno hosted the Tonight Show on NBC from 1992 to 2009, then from 2010 to 2014. But he is also one of the world's biggest car collectors — his famous collection ("Jay Leno's Garage") comprises around 180 cars. The irony of the cameo lies there: one of the biggest real-life car enthusiasts lends his voice to... a car.

Jay Leno, white hair and denim shirt, poses next to another man in front of a red supercar, in a workshop lined with vintage racing posters
The real Jay Leno, here in front of a red supercar: the Tonight Show host is also one of the world’s biggest car collectors, with around 180 models. Photo: SSCNA, CC BY-SA 4.0.

🧰 Jay Leno's Garage lines up some 180 full-size cars; your own collection will fit on a bedroom shelf, with our Disney Pixar Cars 3 toy cars.

A celebrity among others

Jay Limo joins the gallery of real-life personalities that Pixar slipped into Cars, like the legend Mario Andretti. A way to anchor the film in popular culture and the real world of racing.

In front of the entrance to the Los Angeles International Speedway and its packed stands, a black security car, an old rusty pickup and a blue number 11 sedan bearing Mario Andretti’s signature
Mario Andretti, the blue number 11 sedan, at the entrance to the Los Angeles International Speedway: like Jay Leno, the racing legend lends his voice to his sheet-metal double.

Summary table

Element Detail
Vehicle Type Luxury blue limousine (derived from a stretched Lincoln Town Car)
Role Talk show host (Tonight Show parody)
Film Cars (2006)
Original Voice Jay Leno
Nod to Jay Leno, host and major car collector

FAQ — Frequently Asked Questions

  • Who is Jay Limo in Cars?
    A TV talk show host, a cameo voiced by Jay Leno, who comments on Lightning McQueen's disappearance.
  • Who voices Jay Limo?
    Jay Leno himself, in the original version.
  • Why is this cameo ironic?
    Because Jay Leno is, in real life, one of the world's biggest car collectors — and here he lends his voice to a car.
  • What is Jay Limo's role in the film?
    A minor role: he appears on television to cover Lightning McQueen's disappearance.
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