Toughie Treadwell

Toughie Treadwell is a minor character in Speed Racer: The Next Generation. He is the father of Trixie and the maternal grandfather to Speed and X. His untimely death led to Trixie’s descent into madness, which ultimately triggered the events of the series.

Biography
Toughie was an engineer known for making and modifying cars. He was seen in the “Family Reunion” arc during a flashback where Speed Sr. told his sons the story of how Trixie turned evil. It was during an argument that Speed and Toughie had about the prototype Mach 6’s readiness. Speed Sr. had just built the gasless engine for the Mach 6 through Toughie's funding of the project. Toughie wanted to unveil the car at the race Speed would be participating in, but Speed refused Toughie’s request after claiming the car “wasn’t ready” and that it was “too dangerous.”

Toughie was angry at Speed’s refusal and decided to drive the prototype Mach 6 in the race instead, much to Speed’s surprise and dismay. The race between Speed and Toughie was close, but during the final lap, the Mach 6 malfunctioned and Toughie lost control. Speed tried to save him by deflecting the car away from the stands but it instead deflected towards Trixie’s strategy station, crashing upon impact. Toughie was killed in the impact and Trixie was left with injuries (both physical and emotional). It took months for Trixie to heal from her physical injuries, but once she did, she inherited her father’s international corporation and created the Shadow Committee to help in her act of vengeance against Speed Sr. (for whom she blames for Toughie’s death.)

Timeline Change
Speed, Conor, Lucy, X, and Chim Chim, traveled back in time (with the hourglass) to prevent Toughie’s death. It was revealed that the prototype Mach 6’s malfunction happened because the car was sabotaged by Zile and Stan. With the race in motion, the Mach 6 malfunctions and Speed Sr. deflects the car away from the stands. The car then spirals out of control towards Trixie’s station, but is then prevented from crashing into it due to Speed Jr. coming to aid with Spritle’s car and pushing the Mach 6 into the Mach 5 in order to stop its acceleration. With Toughie’s life now saved, the Shadow Committee is never formed and X notably tells Speed that their grandfather will now die of “old age.”

Description
Toughie is a light skinned man with a round physique. He wears a red shirt with his company’s logo on the left side, there’s also a yellow collar and sleeve stripe. His pants and shoes are brown and he has a mixture of brown and white hair.

Trivia

 * He wanted Speed Sr. to drive the Mach 6 because he had investors pressuring him to show results.
 * Trixie describes her father as "stubborn."
 * X and Speed Jr. were present at Toughie and Speed's argument, but were too young to remember the details.
 * Toughie's death (pre-timeline change) occurred 16 years prior to the events of the series.