When Michael (Jason Bateman) returns after the first surprise party, Gob (Will Arnett) and Lindsay (Portia de Rossi) are watching television. The theme to the television series My Mother the Car (1965) is playing.
Although this episode originally aired after episode 1.7, In God We Trust (2003), it appears before it on the Season One DVD. "My Mother, the Car" makes logical sense to come first as Buster (Tony Hale) and Lucille Austero (Liza Minnelli) start their relationship in this episode.
The title of this episode refers to both Lucille (Jessica Walter)'s car accident and the sitcom My Mother the Car (1965).