The Hot Rod Dogs and Cool Car Cats

Did You Know?

• The programme was re-aired in Ireland on Den 2 from 1998 to 2003.
• In the UK, it aired on Sky One as part of The DJ Kat Show.
• In Australia, it was shown on Cheez TV Network Ten.

Heroes

Hot Rod, a red dog-car, is the main character who escaped capture by The Crusher's forces and joined the resistance. He has an attraction to his best friend Carbs, a pink cat-car whose name is short for Carburetta. Both were upgraded by the legendary mechanic Gus, a light grey dog-car who built The Crusher and later exiled himself. Hot Rod received larger tires, a cog-firing weapon that doubles as a buzzsaw, and the ability to fly when needed; Gus also built him an external weapons pack. Carbs gained high-intensity headlights, tire claws, and an extendable tail, and later received a weapons pack from her sister Spare Parts. Dog-Gone, an old brown dog-car, provides wisdom to the group, while his friend Benz, a green dog-car, is perpetually in disrepair. Both Gus and The Crusher hinted that Hot Rod was somehow special, though this was never explained.

Villains

The Crusher was originally designed to recycle Autopia's junk but became a power-hungry monster. His main henchman is Scarhood, a mean black dog-car bounty hunter with a personal vendetta against Hot Rod. Scarhood commands the Choppers, a band of cat-cars including leader Gadget, Firefur, Carpoon, and One-Eye. Autopia's police force, the Gridlockers, are completely under The Crusher's control, led by Number One and assisted by Number Two, with lower-ranking officers Number Three and Number Four.

Other characters

Sandcat is a junk merchant in Catatonia whose trade increased thanks to Hot Rod and friends. Bentley Royce, a news reporter, has a habit of appearing unwanted and getting interviewees' names wrong. Towhead, a young dog-car, pretended to befriend the resistance to lead Scarhood to Gus, but Hot Rod thwarted his plan. Baby Bumper, a baby dog-car, twice wandered into the heroes' camp, leaving Hot Rod and Carbs to care for him. Spare Parts, Carbs' older sister and an expert mechanic, appeared in a couple of episodes and built Carbs' weapons pack. Jag, an evil cat-car with hypnotic abilities, infiltrated the camp but was swiftly defeated, and expressed interest in Scarhood. Hot Rod's parents appear only in the first episode; his mother is a blue dog-car with a star emblem containing the number 9 and a red light on her head, and his father is a brown dog-car with bushy eyebrows and a green mohawk-like feature.