Cars was the first film we took my younger brother to see in the cinema, and he loved it so much that we had to go back and watch it another three times. So I suppose I have him to thank for my Lightning McQueen mega-fan status. 

In case you’re unfamiliar, this Golden Globe-winning 2006 Pixar film tells the story of an arrogant, anthropomorphic Nascar-esque oval racer who’s in with a shout of winning the prestigious ‘Piston Cup’ in his rookie season.

After an unlikely three-way tie for the title in the final race, the series organisers hastily arrange a decider the following week on the other side of the country, and hero McQueen duly sets off in his truck, Mack, to head to the fictional Los Angeles International Motor Speedway. 

During the night, Lightning is separated from Mack after he rolls out of the back of the truck, leaving him stranded on the famous Route 66, and while frantically trying to find his way back to the interstate, inadvertently rips up the high street of a backwater town called Radiator Springs.

Forced to stay until he repairs it, he begrudgingly gets to work, keen to make it to Los Angeles in time for the race. During his quasi-confinement, he meets Doc Hudson, the cantankerous town mayor who turns out to be legendary three-time Piston Cup winner Hudson Hornet. After a fractious start, Doc becomes McQueen’s mentor - and later his crew chief at the tiebreaker race, where McQueen nobly sacrifices a guaranteed win to attend to one of his rivals after a crash - his short small-town sojourn having taught him the values of empathy and kindness. 

Sorry for the spoilers, but you really should have watched it by now.

The notion of a stuck-up "cooler-than-everyone-else" athlete type – complete with obnoxious “Kachow” catchphrase – being humbled by a tight-knit community of misfits, and learning how they thrive by relying on each other is just so wholesome. It leaves my heart full every time I watch it. 

Let’s not forget the phenomenal soundtrack either, which features hits such as Life is a Highway by Rascal Flatts (a fantastic karaoke choice), the iconic Route 66 by John Mayer and the mood-boosting opener, Real Gone performed by Sheryl Crow. Truly one of the best movie scores out there, and you bet it was a mainstay of my iPod Nano playlist. 

Everything about the film holds real nostalgic value for me, and watching it brings back happy memories of the mini Radiator Springs my dad made for my brother one Christmas. It contained die-cast models of all the Radiator Springs sitting next to their respective businesses. Luigi the Fiat 500 was manning his tyre shop alongside Guido the forklift, Sarge the Willys Jeep proudly guarded his army surplus store, and of course Sally the 996-generation Porsche 911 was waiting to welcome guests to her traffic cone-themed motel. 

Probably the main reason that I love this Disney classic, though, is that it reminds me of the good old days when I didn't have adult responsibilities and all I had to worry about was beating my brother's high score on the accompanying Playstation 2 videogame (an oft-overlooked gem). But I owe its creators a debt of gratitude for instilling in me at an early age the notion that cars can have personalities and fantastic stories to tell - even if they don’t have eyes and tongues in real life. Oh, and true to form, Cars 2 is definitely nowhere near as good as the first one, and I will die on that hill.