Windbreaker

Windbreaker is an Autobot Axelerator from the Generation 1 continuity family

Why are you guys alwayzh dissing me? I've got powerzh.

Windbreaker (aka Zap) seems to be the ultimate car warrior. He's strong, he's smart, he's fierce and brave. He's absurdly fast. He can rev up his engine and convert it into his silent and deadly partner, a powerful handgun. Nothing makes him happier than bursting through a tightly held perimeter, blasting away at the stunned enemy, or roaring into the quiet Autobot base to warn of a deadly danger blowing in the wind.

He seems completely invincible...and yet he's a simple scout. It's because his circuits have a tendency to overclock due to the Cybertronian equivalent of adrenaline that constantly runs through them. Though normally he moves and thinks at top speeds, he will find himself randomly exhausted by the smallest of exertions due to his systems being overtaxed. At these times he stalls out, leaving him completely useless, unable even to retreat back to Autobot territory.^[1]

Fiction

Dreamwave Generation One continuity

He had to listen to it, we had to read it.

Windbreaker, standing beside Aero Raid and Rapido, was among a group of Autobots on Cybertron who pestered Prowl with innumerable questions during a public address, following the toppling of Shockwave's government. Skyfire

2005 IDW continuity

Windbreaker was one of the Autobot soldiers serving under the command of Fortress Maximus at the Garrus-9 penal colony. He and his fellow Autobots attempted to repel Banzai-Tron's forces when they attacked, but he was most likely blown away... Spotlight: Arcee

Wings Universe

Windbreaker was among the "second generation" of Transformers born on Earth, and followed in the footsteps of a deceased relative in being one of the fastest Autobots on land. Windbreaker bio He joined Pyro's Autobots when the initially faction-less generation fell to infighting like their ancestors and was present during the battle that liberated the Large Hadron Collider from Clench's Decepticon Syndicate. Generation 2: Redux

Not trusting these strange new powers, Cliffjumper made Windbreaker demonstrate his new wind power on Decepticon dummy targets alongside a number of other Autobots. A Flash Forward, Part 2 He joined Pyro's team as they left on a shuttle to investigate the Quantum Laboratories break-in. A Flash Forward, Part 3 A clue on Nebulos led them to Qre, which Windbreaker was surprised to find has been cyberformed. They were attacked by a training system and then captured by Jhiaxus and his Sharkticons. A Flash Forward, Part 4 Imprisoned, they were forced to listen to Jhiaxus's speeches. A Flash Forward, Part 5 After Sideswipe released them, Windbreaker used his abilities to take out the Firecons. The Autobots went on to rescue Hi-Q and destroy the base before returning triumphant to Earth. A Flash Forward, Part 6

Regeneration One

It just slips out when you die.

Windbreaker, Turbofire, and Meanstreak were among the Autobots on Cybertron that responded to the invasion of Bludgeon's Blitz Engines. It didn't go well for Windbreaker and he was taken out of the action with a comic sound effect. Destiny, Part Four

Legends comic

In the year 2038, Zap was stationed on Cybertron when Violengiguar attacked. Using the possessed bodies of the Powered Masters, Violengiguar fought the real Dai Atlas while Windbreaker helplessly looked on. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 2

Toys

The Transformers

Do my car-bits make me look fat?

• Zap (Axelerator, 1993)

• Accessories: Engine-block rifle
• Known designers: Takio Ejima (TakaraTomy), Masakatsu Saito (concept artist)

Sold as part of the Axelerator assortment, Zap transforms into an orange and blue Chevrolet Camaro Z28. His chrome-silver engine block becomes a hand-held rifle for robot mode.

This toy is gang-molded with Skram.

He was initially released in the European market in 1993, during the "transitional" time when the Transformers toys took on the new Generation 2 sigils, but the packaging lacked the "Generation 2" line-name.

• More information on Windbreaker at TFU.info

Generation 2

• Windbreaker (Autobot Car, 1993) / Zap (Axelerator, 1994)

• Accessories: Engine-block rifle

Released concurrently with the "Generation 1" Zap, Generation 2 Windbreaker is almost identical to the European toy, save the pink clear-plastic being replaced with smoky-black, and his "AUTOBOT" tampograph is now yellow.

Zap was re-released in the European Generation 2 line the following year, retaining his clear-pink plastics.

Windbreaker was planned for use by Takara as Carzap in the Block Town line, but that release was scrapped.

Notes

• On his original UK release as Zap, his Function was "Advance Intelligence Scout". His U.S. release removed his Intelligence (it was the '90s) and rendered him merely an "Advance Scout."
• Like all of the toys carried over from the European line for Generation 2, Windbreaker got entirely new artwork for his US release. His original artwork, for reasons unknown, has a scary freakin' vent-thing in place of his mouth.
• Unlike most of the toys carried over from the European line for Generation 2, the United States releases of the "Small Cars" kept the mottos and bios of the 1993 European Axelerators mostly unchanged, though the European 1994 Generation 2 releases omitted the bios and only featured the mottos in multiple languages.
• Though Windbreaker was never released in Japan, he did gain a Japanese name via a BotCon Japan 1997 exclusive poster, which featured bios for all of the new Generation 2 characters released in the US who weren't part of the Japanese line: the Axelerators, the Skyscorchers, Rotor Force, four of the Go-Bots, and the Color Changers.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Carzap (カーザップ Kāzappu)
• Dutch: Rush
• French: Rush
• Italian: Folgor^[2]
• Spanish: Zap

References