The upcoming animated feature
CARS by Pixar Animations Studio impresses us more and more by the minute. When the studio approached Porsche back in
2002 to obtain the rights to use a 911 in its next film, Porsche agreed and quickly got swept up in the fun. The
company wanted to build full scale running models of some of the film’s characters, including the lead
“car-acter’s” love interester Sally Carrera, and it wasn’t until a chance encounter with Jay
Leno that they were turned on to the fabricating talents of Eddie Paul.
Eddie Paul took possession of a
1999 Porsche 911 and began by cutting the car in half behind the front seats. In order to recreate the exact dimensions
of Pixar’s CG car, Paul removed seven inches from the car’s wheelbase, raised the roof by three inches and
added a more upright windshield… with eyes. New front fenders, headlights, taillights, rocker panels and a front
bumper sporting the mischievous smile of Sally Carrera make the working model a dead ringer for its digital
counterpart.
Paul’s previous credits include building John Travolta’s hot rod in
“Grease”, as well as 50 other vehicles for that movie, and also many of the sport compacts in “The
Fast and the Furious”. After a promotional marketing tour, sheetmetal Sally, as well as versions of Lightning
McQueen and Mater from the movie, will take up residence in the lobby of Pixar’s studio in Emeryville, CA.
[Source: Gizmag]