Celebrating the 20th anniversary of Sally Carrera from the animated film Cars, her original designers are reviving the model with the newest Porsche 911 generation.

Fresh off its recent announcement of a three-year cooperation agreement with South by Southwest® (SXSW®)–the annual festival of tech and culture which brings tens of thousands of attendees to Austin, Texas each year–Porsche announced a new project working alongside Pixar. Marking the 20th anniversary of the 2002 Porsche 911 on which Sally Carrera is based, Cars Production Designer, Bob Pauley, and Creative Director, Jay Ward presented the story of how Sally first came to life, in a conversation led by Porsche Cars North America Spokesperson Jade Logan. On display during this event was the actual running model of Sally Carrera, meticulously restored by the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, following her longtime hibernation after being a touring celebrity during the years of three Cars films being released.

The discussion with Logan, Pauley, and Ward took attendees along the path from the idea of a character in Cars to be the love interest of the film’s star, Lightning McQueen. Telling the tale of Sally Carrera, the presenters described the character that is based on a 2002 Porsche 911 Carrera. Sally is from California, and grew tired of life in the fast lane. She made a new start in the small town of Radiator Springs, and is the town’s attorney on a mission to help get Radiator Springs “back on the map.” She strived, always, to make a difference – to help.

A unique insight into the creative process of sketching, modeling, and rendering an animated character showed how the California-based Pixar Animation Studios team paired with Porsche to bring a road-going icon to the animated film world. From arrival of the 996, the Pixar team painstakingly captured photos of the 911 to then understand key features of the sportscar, but to adapt the design into a character with expressions and a personality. Over several months, designers and engineers took part in dissecting the Porsche 911 and rebuilding it to resemble the on-screen character Sally Carrera. The body was cut in half, overall length shortened by seven inches, A pillar raised, and the fascia remodeled to give Sally a mouth. To pair with the Southern California landscape and sunset colors, Sally is painted a unique shade of blue, which helps her character stand out next to her co-star Lightning McQueen (a bright red race car).

Accelerating a special charitable project intended to benefit the well-being and education of children, Porsche and Pixar have been investing months into developing a new version of the character Sally Carrera from the animated film Cars which will be auctioned for charity with RM Sotheby’s. Porsche followed up the announcement the following morning, stating that proceeds from the auction will support life-changing programs for girls and young women through Girls Inc. as well as the USA for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, to provide aid to children and their families affected by the conflict in Ukraine.

For the 2022 Sally Carrera model, a team from Pixar Animation Studios led by Pauley and Ward will work alongside Style Porsche in Weissach and Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur in Stuttgart to commemorate this milestone. Different from the initial Sally Carrera, the 992 version will be a street-legal model that the new owner will be able to enjoy along their favorite stretch of twisty road. The designers showed concept sketches and idea drafts around what this new 992-based Sally should be like, and what new features she had to possess. There was also the hint of the new model being featured on the big screen.

To accompany the new 992 variant of Sally Carrera, Porsche Design will be creating a one-off timepiece to accompany the 911 when it’s auctioned. Expect the chronograph to incorporate plenty of Porsche Design’s stunning features, but the team indicated that this unique watch will intertwine Sally Carrera details and many bespoke parts to craft a truly special piece to accompany this remarkable sportscar.

Hosted in downtown Austin, Porsche described the motto of the venue as “A Creator’s Mind” that demonstrates the secret sketch pad of its design department. Outside the venue, Porsche had its 911 Vision Safari on display. Once you step inside the space, you instantly feel small, as Porsche filled the room with massive scale versions of items you’d expect to find around a Porsche designer’s desk. While this studio was a cool interactive experience, Porsche also presented the “Porsche Unseen” studies which include a handful of Porsche concept cars few people have seen in person.

Placed throughout the room, Porsche put its Vision Gran Turismo concept car in its most prominent spot, which gamers will recognize as the model featured in the Sony Playstation game Gran Turismo 7. Also on display are the Porsche Vision Spyder, Vision Turismo, and 904 Living Legend. Attendees of this year’s South by Southwest festival will be able to take in all the stunning concepts while exchanging ideas with designers and engineers from the brand and with team members from Porsche Digital from March 11-20, 2022. For those who can’t make it, enjoy a sampling of the cars I was able to capture.