In today's review of Transformers Classics Mirage, yo mentioned that the car is covered in sponsor stickers, but didn't have the good common sense to tell you what any of them are. So here, for your information, are the jokes that you have to be extra-geeky to get. Impress your friends!
- The number 26: this one doesn't actually mean anything - it's just the same number the Generation 1 Mirage had.
- Lithonian Drivetrain: in Transformers: The Movie, before he got to Unicron was seen eating another planet inhabited by transforming robots - that was the planet Lithone.
- Plasma Injection Energy: while this may sound like some futuristic fuel system, it's actually an acronymatic joke. You see, like many of us, Mirage runs on pie. Mmmm, pie.
- F.P. Racing: this is a personal reference for Joe Kyde, the guy who designed the paint decos. It refers to the RPG group he's in, and the checkered flags next to the name were originally supposed to be in his guild's colors, though they apparently got changed at some point.
- Witwicky Sparkplugs: this joke is as deep as you want it to be. "Witwicky" is the last name of the Autobots' human friends in both the G1 and 2007 movie continuities - Spike and Sam, respectively - so you could stop right there if you wanted to. However, in G1, Spike's dad William (or Irving, sometimes) also went by the nickname "Sparkplug," so maybe this is a two-stage joke.
Back in G1, Mirage's stickers included the car's manufacturer (Ligier), a fuel company (elf) and, of all things, a cigarette company (Gitanes, deliberately corrupted to "Citanes," much like the similar "Marlboor" Wheeljack), so this sort of thing is really nothing new - just a fun throwback.