Sunstreaker/Cartoon continuity

Read about the adventures of Sunstreaker in the Generation 1 cartoon continuity!

The Transformers cartoon
Sunstreaker was part of the original crew of Autobots aboard the Ark that crashed on Earth four million years ago. When reawakened in 1984, he and his brother Sideswipe were reformatted into Lamborghini sports cars. They were both deployed during the Autobot counter-attack on a human oil rig, but didn't really do very much. After the Autobots' defeat at Sherman Dam, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe came to the rescue of Trailbreaker and their new human allies, Spike Witwicky and his father Sparkplug when they were attacked by Decepticon jets. One of the Decepticons managed to graze Sunstreaker and damage his new paint job, infuriating the vainer of the two Autobot brothers. After he forced the Decepticons to break off for repairs, Sunstreaker was still grousing about his scuffed paint, to which his brother suggested that nobody would notice if he just made left turns. The Autobot brothers were among those that volunteered to attack and totally fail to stop the Decepticon space cruiser. Sunstreaker celebrated the apparent demise of the Decepticons when their ship crashed and cheered Mirage's role in its sabotage.

Trailbreaker was part of a group of Autobots who were lured into a cave by a reprogrammed Bumblebee and ambushed by the Decepticons. (Maybe.)

When Chip Chase was kidnapped by the Decepticons and brought to the recently conquered antimatter laboratory of Dr. Alcazar, the Autobots successfully staged a rescue operation to get him back. Sunstreaker then led a second team of Autobots into the lab, declaring that they had to get the antimatter cubes before it was too late, smashing a Sunstreaker-shaped hole in the wall. Unfortunately, he and the other Autobots were damaged when Megatron threw an antimatter cube at them. After returning to the Ark, Sunstreaker was heard to complain about a 'very sensitive junction' in his elbow, but was soon repaired quickly enough to arm wrestle with Sideswipe. When the antimatter-fueled Decepticons attacked the Ark, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker took to the air to battle with the incoming Seeker jets, in a rambunctious — if ultimately ineffective — display of "jet judo." After the Decepticons were defeated, Sunstreaker congratulated Chip, declaring him a hero and gave him a ride on his shoulder.

When the munitions factory was attacked by the Decepticon jets, Sunstreaker transformed to roll out with the Autobots in Autobot Headquarters, but never actually bothered showing up. Later, while watching Ratchet and Wheeljack attempt to repair the severely damaged Optimus Prime, Sunstreaker and the remaining Autobots were rallied into repulsing a Decepticon attack by Spike. Sunstreaker was shot by Skywarp before recovering, only to be buried in a landslide by Rumble. Sunstreaker complained about Trailbreaker's force field deflecting Slag and Sludge's flame breaths into his face when the newly constructed Dinobots went haywire.

Later, when responding to a Decepticon diversionary attack on India's coast, Sunstreaker complained about the fact his newly installed water skis clashed with his base coat, but Optimus Prime told him to redecorate himself later, as they had Decepticons to worry about. When Starscream and the Decepticons escaped without taking any energy, Sunstreaker realized they had been set up. Soon after, the Autobots attacked the Decepticon undersea headquarters to rescue the captive Sparkplug, during which Sunstreaker was concerned that the salt water would damage his body enamel. After returning to base for repairs, Sunstreaker fidgeted as Ratchet attempted to repair him, worried that the medic would scorch his selenium shin guards. When Cybertron was brought into Earth's orbit as part of Megatron's latest scheme, Sunstreaker retreated with the other Autobots due to audio disruptor waves generated by Soundwave.

Sunstreaker was part of an Autobot unit sent to investigate reports of giant insect monsters attacking Bali, Indonesia. When the road to the coordinates of the attack was blocked by a local village celebration, Sunstreaker questioned his brother's knowledge of the local area, a criticism warranted when Sideswipe led them into a dead end canyon. Sunstreaker continued to criticize Sideswipe's sense of direction as Sideswipe very slowly tunneled underneath the villagers. As the Autobots made their way to a nearby oil refinery under attack from the Decepticons, Shrapnel used his override waves on both Sunstreaker and Sideswipe, taking control of their driving mechanisms and forcing them to drive headfirst into the other Autobots. Sunstreaker implored the other Autobots to shoot our their tires, but fortunately, Trailbreaker was able to interrupt the override waves. During the ensuing battle at the oil refinery, Sunstreaker was more concerned about his enamel being damaged by Wheeljack during a counterattack than enemy fire.

After Spike was critically injured in a battle between the Autobots and Decepticons, his consciousness was transferred into the body of Autobot X. However, this process proved too stressful for his mind to take, and so he lashed out in blind anger. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe attempted to restrain him, only to be tossed aside by "Autobot Spike's" enormous strength. During a Decepticon attack on a mining camp as part of an plot to capture Gears, Sunstreaker was among the Autobots who rolled out to confront them. He was hit by a boulder "energized" by Megatron (instead of just being shot, or something a logical enemy would do). When it was discovered Megatron was tapping into the Sun with his Solar Needle, the Autobots drove to the "geographical center of Africa", only to be hindered by the dense jungle, which Optimus Prime ordered Jazz and Sunstreaker to blast their way through. Jerks. Sunstreaker got to use his jet skis again when the Autobots were sent to investigate the disappearance of the Empire State Building in New York City. Sadly, the skis still clashed with his base coat. He was rather pessimistic about their chances against the Constructicons' remote-controlled taxi cabs. Wimp.

In the aftermath of Ironhide firing randomly at a hologram of Laserbeak during a demonstration of Wheeljack's latest invention, the Immobilizer, Sunstreaker had to help Bluestreak vacuum up the rubble. When the Autobots agreed to a charity race/stunt show, Sunstreaker was sure that a large audience would appreciate his performance. During the race, Sunstreaker arrogantly shoved his way past the slower Autobots, but despite all of his bluster, he was slower than Jazz and Mirage. He didn't seem to mind too much, as he was the star of a car jump stunt over the other Autobots...until he failed to finish that, as well. However, during the race, the Autobots had unwittingly been locked into their alternate modes, which freaked out Sunstreaker, as he couldn't transform back into his handsome robot form. After Chip Chase and the unaffected Autobots reversed the effects via a special grenade, Sunstreaker was the first to regain the ability to transform and was very pleased to see his true beauty. When the Decepticons allied themselves with the underwater kingdom of Sub-Atlantica, Sunstreaker was present during the battle in Washington, D.C. and on the sub-sea city itself, but didn't actually do anything. Jerk.

Sunstreaker was present when the Autobots were confronted with the dilemma of two Optimus Primes. Though he didn't put forward any helpful suggestions, he observed the inconclusive results of the tests that the Autobots ran on the two Primes and later rolled out to investigate energy readings coming from a crevasse filled with korlonium crystals. Sunstreaker got his chance to command a team of Autobots investigating a missing river, when they stumbled on a Decepticon operation to drill into the Earth. Unfortunately, they were spotted and attacked by Devastator, though they were able to defeat the giant through teamwork. Sunstreaker was part of a subsequent mission to plant dominator disks on the Constructicons, and he managed to attach one to Bonecrusher by hiding in a hole. During the next battle, the Autobots were able to use the disks to take control of Devastator. They used the giant to attack the Decepticon drilling operation in the caves, and during this fight, Sunstreaker had to rescue Chip Chase when the boy was caught in a cave-in. Megatron eventually regained control of Devastator, and the combiner turned on Sunstreaker and Ironhide.

When the Dinobots again ran wild at Autobot Headquarters, Sunstreaker was on hand, and at least this time didn't get his paint job scorched. He and Sideswipe were part of the response team when a time warp opened near the city library, and they had to cope with barbarians on woolly mammoths. Though the unwashed primitives almost damaged his finish, they were soon contained, and he used his gun to hold the warp open long enough to return the barbarians to their own time. Sunstreaker took part in the Autobot Day parade in Central City, reflecting that he never knew that humans had "such exquisite taste". Unfortunately, things soon turned sour, as a video was played incriminating the Autobots in energy theft, and the humans turned against their former allies. Sunstreaker commented that he always knew that humans would turn on the Autobots and declared them an inferior lifeform...right as Chip, Spike, and Sparkplug Witwicky were in the control room. They probably shouldn't have been too insulted, as Sunstreaker considers everyone else an inferior lifeform.

The Autobots were put on trial and, to their dismay, found guilty and ordered to leave the planet on a spaceship supplied by Shawn Berger. The ship was locked on a course into the Sun by Megatron, leaving the Autobots in dire peril. Utilizing Trailbreaker's force fields and Cosmos, not to mention some unwitting help from Thrust, they were able to escape before the heat crazed Sunstreaker's body work, and they returned to Earth to depose the Decepticons from their position of power. Like the rest of the Autobots, Sunstreaker suffered from Cybertonium depletion, preventing him from functioning until Spike, Carly and the Dinobots were able to obtain some more.

Sunstreaker transformed to roll out and investigate the Decepticon theft of the Voltronic Galaxer, but disappeared at some point before the response team reached the observatory. He later rolled out again to help humans who were experiencing difficulty as a result of Megatron jamming the world's radio signals. When the first group of Autobots to face the electrum-coated Decepticons reported failure, Sunstreaker told them to let a pro handle it. Unfortunately, his weapon proved just as ineffective, and it wasn't until the Autobots found the golden lagoon and coated themselves in electrum that the Decepticons were overcome.

Sunstreaker was one of several Autobots who glommed onto Hoist's job as a Hollywood extra in the hopes of becoming a movie star. After he, Powerglide and Warpath crashed the filming, the director employed them all as stunt vehicles, which involved Sunstreaker doing some literal crashing—into a burning building. The movie was soon reworked into Attack of the Alien Robots, leading to Sunstreaker having to wear a ridiculous alien mask and spout out stilted, wooden dialog—and goose-step, for some reason. During one of the shoots, an out-of-control explosion almost wiped out the four Autobots, and they discovered that the Decepticons were working behind the scenes to cover up an operation. After everything was resolved, Sunstreaker and the others decided to stay out of the movie business.