MK Cars-Themed Attractions at Magic Kingdom

[Disstevefan1]

Would Hollywood Studios have benefited more from a straight Cars Land (Radiator Springs) clone rather than introducing Piston Peak? Given how Galaxy’s Edge struggles with brand recognition, I really think Disney is repeating the same mistake. Granted what they are building better fits into Frontierland than a Radiator Springs clone would have, but the point is there were certainly better choices For that area.

Not to get too off topic, but I've always said DHS would have benefitted best with a Star Wars Land replacing the Echo Lake Indiana Jones area, Muppets remaining, Cars Land where Galaxy's Edge sits today, Toy Story Land as is, and then Monstropolis in the Animation Courtyard.

This would have freed up the space in Frontierland for a better IP.

Disney’s goal here was to delete RoA, TSI and the riverboat for multiple reasons; reduce maintenance costs, bring in an attraction that SELLS LLs and some social justice.

Putting Cars there makes no sense to me but it probably makes sense to the Disney spreadsheeters who actually make the decisions about the parks, NOT the creatives in the company.

The Disney spreadsheeters probably TOLD the creatives, “We want Cars here, make it work. And by the way, you only have this much money to do it so, CUT THE SCOPE as needed to fit the budget”

 

[Purduevian]

The Disney spreadsheeters probably TOLD the creatives, “We want Cars here, make it work. And by the way, you only have this much money to do it so, CUT THE SCOPE as needed to fit the budget”

 

[James Alucobond]

And by the way, you only have this much money to do it so, CUT THE SCOPE as needed to fit the budget”

That’s not what is commonly meant by scope cutting. Proposals are devised with a budget in mind, and while there might be multiple proposals to pick from with different budgets attached, scope cuts occur after a given proposal and its budget have been approved and are generally the result of overruns, unforeseen issues, etc.

 

[Disstevefan1]

That’s not what is commonly meant by scope cutting. Proposals are devised with a budget in mind, and while there might be multiple proposals to pick from with different budgets attached, scope cuts occur after a given proposal and its budget have been approved and are generally the result of overruns, unforeseen issues, etc.

I was told by folks smarter then me here that projects are scope cut when they have run out of money (or will run out ) of the money that was budgeted for a given attraction and they need to scope cut to fit the budget.

I was told its usually not due to a budget cut; they initially were given this much to do something and money was taken away.

If they are forced to stay within the budget here, I suspect there will be scope cuts to stay within budget because the longer it takes to build something, the more it costs to build.

Who knows, maybe the Disney spreadsheeters will let them spend what they need to spend to deliver a world class land and attraction?????

 

[James Alucobond]

I was told by folks smarter then me here that projects are scope cut when they have run out of money (or will run out ) of the money that was budgeted for a given attraction and they need to scope cut to fit the budget.

I was told its usually not due to a budget cut; they initially were given this much to do something and money was taken away.

If they are forced to stay within the budget here, I suspect there will be scope cuts to stay within budget because the longer it takes to build something, the more it costs to build.

The budget is devised as part of the proposal based on the expected spend. The "spreadsheeters", as you call them, do not come up with how much a specific project will cost; they allocate what they are told the budget will be by the designers when a project is approved. Budgets are supposed to account for things like research and development, the build schedule, anticipated pricing changes over time, etc., but they are obviously not always perfect. Scope cuts occur when the costs exceed the original ask.

Who knows, maybe the Disney spreadsheeters will let them spend what they need to spend to deliver a world class land and attraction?????

You act like Imagineering isn't already requesting hundreds of millions for these projects.

 

[HMF]

You act like Imagineering isn't already requesting hundreds of millions for these projects.

Yes because we know the Company is running out of money. (Sarcasm)

 

[James Alucobond]

Yes because we know the Company is running out of money. (Sarcasm)

When Jack got sent out with a cow for money and returned with beans, his parents didn't give him another cow.

That's kind of how it is when you request $500 million for Cosmic Rewind and return without the animatronics you said you were going to fetch. You don't get millions more.

 

[HMF]

When Jack got sent out with a cow for money and returned with beans, his parents didn't give him another cow.

That's kind of how it is when you request $500 million for Cosmic Rewind and return without the animatronics you said you were going to fetch. You don't get millions more.

I agree, WDI does have a bad habit of spending WAY too much money on things that are not needed,

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

It's been a while since anyone has talked about the potential ride system here. Are we thinking Test Track with texture, a la Belgium Blocks, to be "offroad?"

 

[James Alucobond]

I agree, WDI does have a bad habit of spending WAY too much money on things that are not needed,

The point is that the upthread suggestion was that the purse strings were held too tightly when, within the context of any given project, they are held exactly as tightly as requested in the proposal. You can argue that others are at fault with regard to total spend on the parks and resorts, but that's a separate issue.

 

[ChrisFL]

It's been a while since anyone has talked about the potential ride system here. Are we thinking Test Track with texture, a la Belgium Blocks, to be "offroad?"

I don't know, but whatever it is, it will probably be closed pretty frequently during the summer(rainy) months

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

I don't know, but whatever it is, it will probably be closed pretty frequently during the summer(rainy) months

Maybe they should have considered that before moving forward on this project...

 

[Disstevefan1]

The budget is devised as part of the proposal based on the expected spend. The "spreadsheeters", as you call them, do not come up with how much a specific project will cost; they allocate what they are told the budget will be by the designers when a project is approved. Budgets are supposed to account for things like research and development, the build schedule, anticipated pricing changes over time, etc., but they are obviously not always perfect. Scope cuts occur when the costs exceed the original ask.

You act like Imagineering isn't already requesting hundreds of millions for these projects.

TBH, I have no idea how it works, but if imagineering could “request” a budget, they would request way more than they need to be able to end up with enough of a budget to do something with.

I do defer to the experts on these boards, but if imagineering “requested” a budget for the world celebration area, WOW did they blow it there! I guess they used up are the money they “requested” on Moana?

Someone correct me but it’s the Disney spreadsheeters who control the budgets, not the creative folks!

Could you imagine what could be built if the creatives were allowed to build their vision with no regard to budget (kinda like Walt did it)?

We can argue about this for the next 3 to 5 years it’s going to take to build whatever they are trying to build in the former RoA area, but my guess it’s money that determines what we get and not creativity.

I can hear the Disney spreadsheeters now-
“Imagineers, you got this much money to make a Cars thing here. Get creatin’”

 

[James Alucobond]

TBH, I have no idea how it works, but if imagineering could “request” a budget, they would request way more than they need to be able to end up with enough of a budget to do something with.

...

Someone correct me but it’s the Disney spreadsheeters who control the budgets, not the creative folks!

You act like they just ask for a random dollar amount with no further elaboration. They show their work in great detail, and if something they ask for is tremendously out of step with reality, they'll of course be questioned about it. Regardless, by the time you as a layperson start seeing plan-based artwork or (especially) a model, everything shown is part of the proposal and has ostensibly been accounted for in the approved budget.

I do defer to the experts on these boards, but if imagineering “requested” a budget for the world celebration area, WOW did they blow it there! I guess they used up are the money they “requested” on Moana?

I feel like you've raised this exact topic before, but I guess the answer needs repeating. EPCOT's 40th is one of the rare instances of genuine budget cuts after project initiation, resulting from their response to COVID. While Ratatouille, Space 220, Cosmic Rewind, Journey of Water, and CommuniCore East escaped largely unscathed from the original budget plans, everything else was cancelled, delayed indefinitely, or hastily reworked to cost much less (PLAY!, Poppins, Celebration Gardens, Spaceship Earth, Festival Center, etc.). In this case, it had nothing to do with them cutting scope due to running out of the funds that were originally requested; previously allocated funds were pulled back.

 

[Incomudro]

You act like they just ask for a random dollar amount with no further elaboration. They show their work in great detail, and if something they ask for is tremendously out of step with reality, they'll of course be questioned about it. Regardless, by the time you as a layperson start seeing plan-based artwork or (especially) a model, everything shown is part of the proposal and has ostensibly been accounted for in the approved budget.

I feel like you've raised this exact topic before, but I guess the answer needs repeating. EPCOT's 40th is one of the rare instances of genuine budget cuts after project initiation, resulting from their response to COVID. While Ratatouille, Space 220, Cosmic Rewind, Journey of Water, and CommuniCore East escaped largely unscathed from the original budget plans, everything else was cancelled, delayed indefinitely, or hastily reworked to cost much less (PLAY!, Poppins, Celebration Gardens, Spaceship Earth, Festival Center, etc.). In this case, it had nothing to do with them cutting scope due to running out of the funds that were originally requested; previously allocated funds were pulled back.

This is insightful, thank you.

 

[Dreamer19]

TBH, I have no idea how it works, but if imagineering could “request” a budget, they would request way more than they need to be able to end up with enough of a budget to do something with.

I do defer to the experts on these boards, but if imagineering “requested” a budget for the world celebration area, WOW did they blow it there! I guess they used up are the money they “requested” on Moana?

Someone correct me but it’s the Disney spreadsheeters who control the budgets, not the creative folks!

Could you imagine what could be built if the creatives were allowed to build their vision with no regard to budget (kinda like Walt did it)?

We can argue about this for the next 3 to 5 years it’s going to take to build whatever they are trying to build in the former RoA area, but my guess it’s money that determines what we get and not creativity.

I can hear the Disney spreadsheeters now-
“Imagineers, you got this much money to make a Cars thing here. Get creatin’”

This is a good time to promote watching “Disneyland Handcrafted”, that excellent documentary on the construction of Disneyland. Incredible watch, even just for the sheer bravery, risk taking and overall disregard for strict budget of everyone involved. It paid off. They built something great and it only took them a year. Funny how times change and how change isn’t always a good thing.

I don’t know how Cars Land Florida will turn out, but I do know that there are no Walt Disneys working at the Walt Disney Company.

 

[lazyboy97o]

TBH, I have no idea how it works, but if imagineering could “request” a budget, they would request way more than they need to be able to end up with enough of a budget to do something with.

I do defer to the experts on these boards, but if imagineering “requested” a budget for the world celebration area, WOW did they blow it there! I guess they used up are the money they “requested” on Moana?

Someone correct me but it’s the Disney spreadsheeters who control the budgets, not the creative folks!

Could you imagine what could be built if the creatives were allowed to build their vision with no regard to budget (kinda like Walt did it)?

We can argue about this for the next 3 to 5 years it’s going to take to build whatever they are trying to build in the former RoA area, but my guess it’s money that determines what we get and not creativity.

I can hear the Disney spreadsheeters now-
“Imagineers, you got this much money to make a Cars thing here. Get creatin’”

If you have no idea how it works then why keep making comments about it?

Walt had budgets. They were painfully obvious at times. The Matterhorn didn’t get fully finished interior scenes until a decade after Walt’s death.

There is an entire phase of design called Feasibility. This phase comes after Blue Sky and Concept Design where the actual design on whether or not to build a project is made. While Walt Disney Imagineering doesn’t set or control project funding they have their own team of estimators who have already been working on and reviewing the project. The Concept Design is reviewed and vetted and Walt Disney Imagineering determines if it is feasible and requests official permission to proceed.

Fans talk about concept art and things being vague, but a full Concept Design package is a lot more than just some vague artwork. It is a comprehensive presentation of the creative intent of the project. There is of course concept art, but also written treatments, drawing packages for showset design, architecture and sometimes engineering. If there aren’t engineering drawings, there’s at least narratives describing the systems involved. Ride systems have been selected. It’s often at least a year of work.

Despite all of that work it’s still nowhere near enough information to actually build the project. The phases of design, which are not unique to Disney, progressively add more detail. A strong concept design has the creative intent and general forms determined. Any estimate when a project is approved is based on educated guesses. These are highly custom, one off projects; not a McDonald’s. Estimates are based on as close as possible comparisons. They also include contingencies as well as try to account for external factors like cost escalation.

One of the positive changes since Iger took over is that Walt Disney Imagineering was afforded greater flexibility when it came to allocating resources to specific aspects of a larger project. This is the source of big scope cuts of entire programmatic elements like an entire dining venue or ride. The determination is that it’s better to do one thing well instead of two things poorly, so something might get cut to free up funding to plus something else.

That doesn’t mean that Walt Disney Imagineering is without criticism. There’s plenty to criticism about their project management process and the bloated bureaucracy involved in completing a project. There’s also plenty to criticize about their creative decisions. But they aren’t just given a random number and told to build a ride. They are very much involved in the process.

 

[Bocabear]

https://.com/2026/01/breaking-ride-...-for-cars-and-villains-land-at-magic-kingdom/

Show buildings revealed^

non working link....

 

[Nickm2022]

Permits

 

[MisterPenguin]

https://.com/2026/01/breaking-ride-...-for-cars-and-villains-land-at-magic-kingdom/

Show buildings revealed^

Linking to "that 'news' site" on these boards is not allowed. Same with ITM.

Just about everything else is OK.