''The Hot Rod Dogs and Cool Car Cats'' is an animated television series which aired between September 9, 1995, and June 15, 1996, on ITV kids strand

CITV CITV is a British children's morning programming block on ITV2 and formerly a free-to-air channel owned by ITV plc. CITV, then Children's ITV, launched on 3 January 1983 as a late afternoon programming block on the ITV network for children aged ...

, and was shown on May 11, 2009, on Scottish children's programme ''

wknd@stv ''wknd@stv'' was a short-lived children's programming strand on Scottish television channel, STV. The block aired on Saturdays and Sundays, usually starting at 9:25am (the first ever edition began at 9:55am). It began on Saturday 17 January 2 ...

''. The series is about

anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics to ...

automobiles that bear resemblances to cats and dogs. The main characters are

freedom fighter A freedom fighter is a person engaged in a struggle to achieve political freedom, particularly against an established government. The term is typically reserved for those who are actively involved in armed or otherwise violent rebellion. Termi ...

s trying to save their homeworld of Autopia from The Crusher. The show ran for two seasons, each consisting of 26 ten-minute episodes.

Heroes

Hot Rod: A red dog-car, and the main character of the series. He was on his way to camp when he was captured by The Crusher's forces. He managed to escape and join the

resistance movement A resistance movement is an organized group of people that tries to resist or try to overthrow a government or an occupying power, causing disruption and unrest in civil order and stability. Such a movement may seek to achieve its goals through ei ...

. He has an attraction to his best friend, Carbs. He was upgraded by the mechanic Gus (see below), gaining larger tires, a cog-firing weapon that can also be used as a buzzsaw, and the ability to fly (but only when he needs them). Gus later built an external weapons pack for Hot Rod, equipped with long-range armaments. Both Gus and The Crusher hinted that there was something "special" about Hot Rod, but it was never elaborated on. Carbs (Short for "Carburetta"): A pink cat-car, and Hot Rod's best friend. They first met when they were captured by The Crusher's forces. She seems to share the attraction between Hot Rod and herself. She too was upgraded by Gus, gaining high-intensity headlights, tire claws, and an extendable tail. Her sister, Spare Parts, later built her a weapons pack, similar to Hot Rod's. Dog-Gone: An old and wily brown dog-car. He often provides reason and wisdom for the group, when he isn't keeping his friend Benz from falling apart. Benz: A green dog-car, and Dog-Gone's best friend. In major disrepair, "Benji" is always falling apart. Gus: A light grey dog-car, and legendary mechanic. He was the one who built The Crusher, and exiled himself when his creation went out of control. He later outfitted Hot Rod and Carbs with weaponry, to better combat The Crusher's forces.

Villains

The Crusher: Originally designed to recycle the junk of Autopia, something went horribly wrong, and he became a power-hungry monster. Scarhood: A bounty hunter, and The Crusher's main henchman. A mean and nasty black Dog-car, he has gained a personal vendetta against Hot Rod for his numerous defeats. Choppers: Scarhood's idiot henchmen. A band of nasty-looking Cat-cars, equipped with a variety of weapons. They consist of their leader, Gadget (whose son, Socket, appeared in one episode), Firefur, Carpoon, and One-Eye. Gridlockers: Autopia's police force, completely under the Crusher's proverbial thumb. They are led by Number One, who is assisted by Number Two. The lower ranking officers are Number Three and Number Four.

Other characters

Sandcat: A junk merchant in the city of Catatonia. His trade was greatly increased thanks to Hot Rod and friends. Bentley Royce: A news reporter. He has an annoying habit of showing up when he's not wanted, and of getting his interviewees name's wrong. Towhead: A young dog-car who pretended to be a friend in order to infiltrate the resistance. He intended to have them lead him and Scarhood to Gus, but his plan was thwarted by Hot Rod's intervention. Baby Bumper: A baby dog-car who twice found his way into the hero's camp, leaving Hot Rod and Carbs to care for him. Spare Parts: Carbs' older sister. She appeared in a couple of episodes. An expert mechanic, on par with Gus, she built Carbs' weapons' pack. Jag: An evil cat-car with the ability to hypnotize others. She managed to infiltrate the camp, but was swiftly defeated. She expressed an "interest" in Scarhood. Hot Rod's parents: Hot Rod's mother and father who only appear in the first episode, They always try to be "carful" and they love and care for Hot Rod dearly, Hot Rod's mother is a blue dog-car with a star emblem with the number 9 in it and a red light on her head so it can only assume that she works for the police but this was not explained, Hod Rod's father is a brown dog-car with bushy eyebrows and something that looks like a green mohawk on his head.

Voice cast

*Hot Rod:

Dana Hill Dana Hill (born Dana Lynne Goetz; May 6, 1964 – July 15, 1996) was an American actress. She was known for playing Audrey Griswold in '' National Lampoon's European Vacation'', and also known for her roles in ''Shoot the Moon'' and '' Cross Cre ...

*Carbs/Jag:

Russi Taylor Russi Taylor (May 4, 1944 – July 26, 2019) was an American voice actress. She was best remembered for voicing the character of Minnie Mouse in English from 1986 to 2019, and was married to voice actor Wayne Allwine, the voice of Mickey Mouse, ...

*Dog-Gone/Benz:

Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American actor who specializes in voice acting. He began his career in the 1960s, and held around 850 film, television, and video game credits as of 2020, making him one of the most prolific v ...

*Spare Parts/Baby Bumpers:

Kath Soucie Kath Soucie (, ). is an American voice actress, known for voicing Phil, Lil and their mother Betty DeVille in '' Rugrats'', Lola Bunny in the ''Looney Tunes'' franchise, Fifi La Fume and Li'l Sneezer in ''Tiny Toon Adventures'', Maddie Fent ...

*Crusher/Scarhood:

Jim Cummings James Jonah Cummings (born November 3, 1952) is an American voice actor. Beginning his career in the 1980s, he has appeared in over 400 titles. Cummings has frequently worked with the Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros., serving as the offic ...

International

The programme was re-aired in Ireland On Den 2. In 1998-2003 and in UK On Sky One, ''

The DJ Kat Show ''The DJ Kat Show'' was a children's television programme presented by the puppet DJ Kat and his friend Linda de Mol, the sister of Endemol founder John de Mol, which ran from 1 September 1986 to 31 December 1995. The show was first broadcast t ...

'' and in Australia on Cheez TV ''

Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as the 10 Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global's Paramount Networks UK & Australia, UK & Australia division and is o ...

'' And in 2009 on ''

'' - a children's television strand on Scottish television channel, STV.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hot Rod Dogs And Cool Car Cats, The 1995 American animated television series debuts 1995 British television series debuts 1996 American television series endings 1996 British television series endings 1990s American animated comedy television series 1990s American children's comedy television series 1990s British animated television series 1990s British children's television series American automotive television series American children's animated adventure television series American children's animated comedy television series Animated television series about cats Animated television series about dogs British children's animated adventure television series British children's animated comedy television series American English-language television shows ITV children's television shows Television series by Splash Entertainment Television series by STV Studios Television shows produced by Scottish Television Works about cars ITV animated television series Television shows about rebels