MK Cars-Themed Attractions at Magic Kingdom

[lazyboy97o]

The budget and “program requirement” dictates the design!

“Biggest budgets in the industry” means nothing on its own. 7DMT was not originally designed for what we have now. It went through a series of cuts before they landed on the current ride. Whose idea was it to build a Star Wars area set in a time period where the popular characters can’t appear and the bare minimum amount of attractions, wasn’t engineering.



This is pretty close to me as an engineer. Hate when the customer asks me why their build doesn’t have this or that, similar to what I designed for another customer. Well, you didn’t want to pay for that, so you didn’t get it.

Why is “program requirement” in scare quotes?

If the budget and program are the design, why do they waste years working through the phases of design?

Disney’s budgets are orders of magnitude larger than anyone else’s except Universal. There are cases like Slinky Dog Dash where cost comparisons can rather easily be made (compare Slinky to Time Traveler) and Disney spends multiples more with little to show. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train went through a series of cuts to keep it within a very high budget. Nothing about the sequel trilogy dictates the lousy organization of Galaxy’s Edge or the stupidity of designing around entertainment offers.

 

[Gusey]

Oh I forgot about this! That really doesn’t match with the vehicles in the art - which means the arts is very very “concept” if this is what we are actually getting.

The Indiana jones vehicles have never been used outdoors though correct?

It was a test model, so I think they were still deciding on. Looking back at the concept art from D23, some of the vehicles have 4 people

But this one has 4-8 in each car (Particulalry the blue one in the distance had 4 people in the front)

 

[lazyboy97o]

It was a test model, so I think they were still deciding on. Looking back at the concept art from D23, some of the vehicles have 4 people
View attachment 872782
But this one has 4-8 in each car (Particulalry the blue one in the distance had 4 people in the front)
View attachment 872783

The blue car has four people in both images. The other circles in the bottom image are the lights on top of windshield which can also be seen in the top image.

 

[Disney Analyst]

I wonder… is this new area, with cars rides… what unlocks Speedway for future development?

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

I wonder… is this new area, with cars rides… what unlocks Speedway for future development?

I don’t think so - speedway will always be popular with kids. It’s a shame we didn’t get the tron cosmetic update. Electric cars and some scenery is all it needs.

 

[MisterPenguin]

This might not mean anything but the Disney section of our Target just added a few shelves of Lightning McQueen merchandise. Kind of interesting as nothing Cars related has been out recently - wonder if they’re building up to a Cars 4 announcement?

For two years, people connected to the Cars Franchise have talked about the possibility of Cars4.

However, if they do announce something soon, it won't hit theaters soon.

In the queue is...

• Hoppers -- Mar 6, 2026
• Toy Story 5 -- Jun 19, 2026
• Gatto -- Jun 18, 2026

Also, Incredibles3 and Coco2 have been announced as being worked on.

If Cars4 is in the works, it will be interesting. Pixar, the studio, doesn't want to stop working on original films. But if the sequels are the only ones that are profitable at the B.O., well....

 

[MisterPenguin]

The blue car has four people in both images. The other circles in the bottom image are the lights on top of windshield which can also be seen in the top image.

Ya need the spotlights for night-huntin'! Yeehah!!

 

[DisneyHead123]

For two years, people connected to the Cars Franchise have talked about the possibility of Cars4.

However, if they do announce something soon, it won't hit theaters soon.

In the queue is...

• Hoppers -- Mar 6, 2026
• Toy Story 5 -- Jun 19, 2026
• Gatto -- Jun 18, 2026

Also, Incredibles3 and Coco2 have been announced as being worked on.

If Cars4 is in the works, it will be interesting. Pixar, the studio, doesn't want to stop working on original films. But if the sequels are the only ones that are profitable at the B.O., well....

Just my opinion but since they’re going with this mini Cars land, they absolutely need a Cars 4 so kids know who the heck Lightning McQueen is. (Also a lounge with Piston Cup glasses of wine as a consolation prize for having to look at the area where RoA was decimated, lol.)

I know it’s a bit of a controversial topic, but I still say I don’t hear kids talking about Cars these days. Right now I keep hearing about these Brain Rot characters with names like Tralalero Tralala, Tung Tung Tung Sahur, and Ballerina Cappuccino. Gen Alpha is like on one long LSD trip but sans drugs, it’s the weirdest thing. For the boys at least, it’s like they’re speaking to each other in a made up language (my niece likes stuff that I can relate to more, like Disney Zombies and K Pop Demon Hunters).

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I don’t think so - speedway will always be popular with kids. It’s a shame we didn’t get the tron cosmetic update. Electric cars and some scenery is all it needs.

I got to ride the one in Hong Kong before they closed it and it had been converted to electric and the cars would make fun futuristic sounds when you accelerated, had fun road signs, etc. was such a better experience than the one at MK

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

I got to ride the one in Hong Kong before they closed it and it had been converted to electric and the cars would make fun futuristic sounds when you accelerated, had fun road signs, etc. was such a better experience than the one at MK

Oh for sure. Autopia at Disneyland is of course the most charming (as is the entire park) - but the one in Paris is quite nice as well.

They either need to go retro and make it an Autopia with some retro theming - or do the tron makeover. Just do something - it’s so easy. But of course if they leave it as is, it’s easier to say “look at how sad this looks, it’s going away and no one is sad!”

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

Oh for sure. Autopia at Disneyland is of course the most charming (as is the entire park) - but the one in Paris is quite nice as well.

They either need to go retro and make it an Autopia with some retro theming - or do the tron makeover. Just do something - it’s so easy. But of course if they leave it as is, it’s easier to say “look at how sad this looks, it’s going away and no one is sad!”

Or attach the obvious IP to it, Wreck it Ralph would kinda be a layup IMO. It also has aspects of both Tomorrowland and Fantasyland with the video game aesthetic matching Tron and the Candyland Sugar Rush matching Fantasyland

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

Or attach the obvious IP to it, Wreck it Ralph would kinda be a layup IMO. It also has aspects of both Tomorrowland and Fantasyland with the video game aesthetic matching Tron and the Candyland Sugar Rush matching Fantasyland

I almost mentioned that when I wrote my post but I feel like Ralph is kinda over?

Bringing back the arcade and tying both tron and sugar rush would have been brilliant and yes, sugar rush could have added perfect scenery to compliment both Tomorrowland and Fantasyland.

 

[n2hifi]

If the budget and program are the design, why do they waste years working through the phases of design?

Because the budget and the program rarely align. It takes time to reconcile both, then years to develop and detail a cohesive set of documents that can be bid and constructed properly. By then, early estimates are often off due to market conditions. Worse yet, stocks or politics can alter the owner's confidence and change the budget halfway through design development.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Because the budget and the program rarely align. It takes time to reconcile both, then years to develop and detail a cohesive set of documents that can be bid and constructed properly. By then, early estimates are often off due to market conditions. Worse yet, stocks or politics can alter the owner's confidence and change the budget halfway through design development.

It was a rhetorical question. I wasn’t the one saying management is more responsible for the outcome than the designers.

Also, Disney doesn’t generally use design-bid-build for large projects and Disney under Iger has been [surprisingly] committed to not cutting budgets mid-project.

 

[UNCgolf]

I wonder… is this new area, with cars rides… what unlocks Speedway for future development?

They can't do too much with the Speedway spot now thanks to TRON.

I mean, they could still do something better than the Speedway, but TRON's placement significantly hinders what can be done on that plot.

 

[Disney Analyst]

They can't do too much with the Speedway spot now thanks to TRON.

I mean, they could still do something better than the Speedway, but TRON's placement significantly hinders what can be done on that plot.

I feel like a new dark ride could fit there?

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

I almost mentioned that when I wrote my post but I feel like Ralph is kinda over?

Bringing back the arcade and tying both tron and sugar rush would have been brilliant and yes, sugar rush could have added perfect scenery to compliment both Tomorrowland and Fantasyland.

Maybe but Tokyo is getting a new Ralph ride (retheme of Buzz Lightyear iirc but still)

Cars was able to survive a bad movie and its age, i think they can do it for Ralph

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

Cars was able to survive a bad movie and its age, i think they can do it for Ralph

I’m all for it… but to be fair. Cars only survives cause of the merch it moves.

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

I’m all for it… but to be fair. Cars only survives cause of the merch it moves.

Definitely true but then again this would be honestly a fairly cheap and fast turn over that could keep everything else in place besides maybe moving some of the track around

 

[MisterPenguin]

They can't do too much with the Speedway spot now thanks to TRON.

What if there were two helices at either end?