Mater (Cars)

Mater owns, operates, and lives in his own salvage yard called "Tow Mater - Towing & Salvage" and is the first car to befriend and support Lightning McQueen during his stay in Radiator Springs. In the film, Mater bonds with Lightning and teaches him how to play "tractor tipping". After tractor tipping, Lightning tells Mater about the Piston Cup and the benefits he would receive in racing for Dinoco. When Lightning agrees to let Mater fly in a helicopter if he wins the tiebreaker race, Mater states that he knew he made a good choice in choosing Lightning as his best-friend.

During the tiebreaker race, Mater serves as a part of Lightning's pit-crew and witnesses Lightning drive backwards to counter Chick Hicks' dirty racing, a move which Mater taught him earlier. After the race, Mater can be seen riding in a Dinoco helicopter above Radiator Springs like Lightning promised him.

Mater replica in Phoenix, Arizona

Mater's friendship with McQueen has grown stronger over time, with a lengthy best-friend handshake to prove it. In an attempt to defend McQueen against racing rival Francesco Bernoulli, Mater inadvertently gets McQueen to race in the World Grand Prix. McQueen in turn invites Mater to join him, and they set out from Radiator Springs to Tokyo for the first race. Mater is soon mistaken for an American spy by British Agent Holley Shiftwell. Mater is mesmerized by her beauty and falls for her immediately.

During the first race, Mater accidentally causes a miscommunication that costs McQueen the win, resulting in McQueen lashing out at Mater and telling him that he doesn't need or want his help any more. Feeling rejected, Mater decides to return home, only to be taken back into the spy mission by Shiftwell's partner Finn McMissile. Mater ultimately solves the mystery of the World Grand Prix during the final race in London and is granted an honorary knighthood, and McQueen apologizes to Mater, telling him that he can come to all of his races from now on. At the end of the film, Mater decides to compete in the unofficial Radiator Springs Grand Prix with McQueen after retaining a pair of rocket jets, part of the weapons arsenal he acquired from McMissile and Shiftwell.[10]

Mater remains McQueen's best friend and supporter, going as far as wearing over-the-top novelty hats to encourage McQueen during his races. He is there with Sally to comfort McQueen after he crashes, and is among the rest of the Radiator Springs residents to witness McQueen make the decision to continue racing. Mater decides to stay with the other cars in Radiator Springs while McQueen heads to the Rust-eze Training Center to prepare for the Florida 500, and asks McQueen to call him after he has arrived there.

Later in the film McQueen video calls Mater, and they both have a heart-to-heart conversation. McQueen asks Mater for help after seeing that nextgen racer Jackson Storm has set a new speed record. In response, Mater helps McQueen remember Doc Hudson's mentor and crew chief Smokey, and he decides to locate him and ask for his advice. During the Florida 500, Mater becomes aware of Sterling's selfish plans and buys McQueen some time by distracting Sterling, allowing McQueen to get Cruz Ramirez to replace him during the race. Mater later returns with everyone to Radiator Springs, and is there when McQueen reveals that he would continue racing but first spend the rest of the season as Cruz's crew chief. In a post-credits scene, Mater is seen singing in his junkyard. He receives a call but accidentally knocks his stand over.

Mater and the Ghostlight takes place after the events of Cars and follows Mater's new hobby of pranking various residents of Radiator Springs at night. His final prank is his most successful: Lightning McQueen sees a tow hook hanging from behind a stack of cans and, assuming that Mater is hiding behind it, approaches to foil the prank. Mater then jumps off of the roof of Flo's café, screaming behind McQueen, who becomes startled and knocks over the pile of cans, revealing that the hook was actually the sign for Mater's salvage yard. Everyone starts laughing at McQueen, and Mater teases him by saying that he looked like he had seen the Ghostlight.

Sheriff admonishes Mater for "mocking the Ghostlight," a character of urban legend amongst the cars. The Ghostlight is described as a "glowing orb of blue, translucent light" that haunts Radiator Springs, and hates nothing more than the sound of clanking metal. Sheriff continues to tell the story of a young couple who supposedly encountered the Ghostlight while lost in the area, and whose only remains were "two out-of-state license plates." He concludes with an overly cheerful "Well, g'night!" The population of Radiator Springs then leaves within seconds, leaving a very nervous Mater by himself.

After Mater reaches his home, he is frightened by a "lightning bug" (a tiny flying Volkswagen Beetle with bright headlights). As he relaxes, a bright blue glow suddenly appears behind him and, thinking it is the Ghostlight, goes into a blind panic, racing around Radiator Springs until he is exhausted. The Ghostlight, however, turns out to be a glowing blue lantern placed on Mater's tow hook by McQueen and Guido.

In a post-credits scene, Mater finds that he has a huge construction vehicle behind him, snarling and carrying the license plate "Banshee." Mater does not realize what is though and warns it of the Screaming Banshee before driving off, bidding the confused vehicle a good night.

In Cars Toon: Mater's Tall Tales, Mater returns as the main character with Larry the Cable Guy reprising his role. Each tale begins with Mater telling a far-fetched story of his past. In the story, Mater finds himself in an inescapable predicament. When McQueen questions Mater over whether the events in the story actually occurred, Mater responds, "Don't you remember? You was there too!", and continues the story including McQueen's sudden participation. The short series end with Mater leaving the conversation, often followed by characters or references to the story that was being told, putting up a possibility that the story might have been real.

After the events of Cars 3, Mater reveals that he has an older sister living at his childhood house in the eastern United States, much to the awe of Lightning McQueen and the other residents of Radiator Springs. He spontaneously announces his decision to drive across the country to attend her wedding, but laments that he has not seen her in ages and is not looking forward to the trip. To make Mater feel better, Lightning offers to go with him and make it a road trip; Mater happily agrees. During the trip, Lightning and Mater make stops at various events and landmarks across the country, including a dino-park, a haunted hotel, and a movie production. Mater is often more open to meeting new cars and trying new experiences than Lightning, which often tends to lead to something unexpected and uncomfortable for him.

When Mater and Lightning finally arrive at Mater's childhood house, Lightning is immediately shocked at the enormous size of the house and the obvious wealthy upbringing of Mater. Lightning and Mater soon discover that Cruz Ramirez is also at the wedding; her cousin, Mateo, is the groom, meaning Mater and Ramirez will become family. When Mater and his sister, revealed to be named Mato, finally see each other, their appearances and personalities sharply contrast from one another. Mato prods Mater on and reveals their competitive rivalry over who is better. They initiate several competitions with one another, delaying the wedding. With help from Cruz, Mater and Mato are able to work out their differences, and the wedding proceeds. At the dinner, Mater gives an inspirational toast. This prompts Lightning to think about the time he and Mater spent together during the road trip, and that taking the road back with Mater would be a better decision than to take an airplane home. The series ends with Mater and Lightning beginning the drive back to Radiator Springs.

Mater appears in all Cars video games with Larry the Cable Guy reprising his role in all games to date (with the exception of Cars 3: Driven to Win). In Cars, Mater is a playable character in Arcade Mode, "Tractor Tipping", and "Rustbucket Race-O-Rama" levels. He does commentary for the "Radiator Springs Grand Prix" and the "Radiator Springs GP". He teaches McQueen how to drive backwards in "Mater's Backwards Lesson". Mater is also a playable character in both the Story and Arcade Mode of Cars Mater-National Championship. Cars Race-O-Rama introduces three new rivals to Mater: Bubba, Tater and Tater Jr., all of them tow trucks, who challenge Mater to a race for the towing rights to Radiator Springs. Mater also makes an appearance as a playable character in Cars 2: the Video Game as well as Disney Infinity, Disney Infinity 2.0, and Disney Infinity 3.0 as a playable character and a figure.