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In several scenes in both Iron Man 1 and 2, there are several scenes with references to hot rods throughout both movies.

Whether it be the screen savers on the computers, Tony constantly working on one, or the influence in the final Iron Man color Toss in a little hot rod red.

What is the significance of this car in relation to either the movies or perhaps Iron Man in general? Or is this some kind of inside joke tossed about within the production team?

5 Answers 5

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Showing Tony's infatuation with Hot Rods is a very efficient storytelling tool. And through show-not-tell you can immediately deduce that:

  1. Tony loves to tinker with machines.
  2. Lives life in the fast lane.
  3. Has oodles of money (and time) to spare on pet projects.
  4. He has a very obsessive (and possessive) personality.

All of these are core to the character of Tony Stark.

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    I would also include that the possession of "hot rods" is a trope of wealthy men i.e. Bruce Wayne(Batman), Jay Leno, all rappers
    – chcuk
    Jul 6, 2012 at 19:18
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I would personally think that this is a subtle reference to the type of person that Tony Stark is, he is what would commonly be referred to as a 'Hot-Rod' in that he has a firey temper and is quite reckless in his life.

Also, it gives him the inspiration for the colour of the Iron Man suit.

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    From the collection of cars and bikes that Tony has, and the fact that he's shown tinkering with Hot Rods, I always just assumed that it was his favourite car Jul 6, 2012 at 10:50
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I think it's surely the "show, don't tell" aspect of his ingenuity and hobby. It shows us his probable rebellious past, maybe his first car. And since he's so mechanically inclined, the car probabbly portrays this side of Stark in a raw unrefined form of his past self. Hot Rodders are always tinkering with their cars and the deep cultural history behind Hot Rodding and post WW2 American culture has a very improvisational engineering pioneer aspect to it. So I'm sure this all comes into play.

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It was actually one of the cars that he and his father worked on when he was younger. (image source)

Tony working on a car

From Never Felt Better:

It’s interesting that he looks to the car. Remember, once again, that car has a greater significance to Tony than just being a fancy toy. It’s something he and his father worked on together, and the only image we have of him and Tony in the same place is them working on it when Tony was just a boy, an image Tony singled out for saving earlier. In many ways, Iron Man is a story about the legacy of Howard Stark, and whether it will be his son Tony carrying it forward with confidence, vigour and humanitarian interests in mind, or the cold hard bottom line philosophy of Obadiah Stane.

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  • The question is not about one specific car, but about hot rods in general. Aug 16, 2018 at 21:15
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Hot rods are typically American cars with large engines modified for linear speed. Ironman is American...a True American Hero. Hots Rodding is a true American hobby and being Starks hobby....inspired the colour red for his suit.

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