Test Track sponsorship

THEMEPARKPIONEER

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
The Ram 1500 is made in Michigan along with the F150, and I also believe the GM truck duo is made in Texas which seems pretty American to me. Also Chrysler isn't foreign owned, FIAT only has a 25% stake in the company which isn't a controlling interest.

While Honda, Toyota, and Nissan have North American divisions they are still a foreign company. So please stop trying to justifying your purchase of a foreign car by saying it was built here therefore it is American. Just admit you though it was a better purchase which is why you bought it.

Back on topic, I hope GM stays at the Test Track. At least some of the vehicles they build have some passion behind them ie corvette or camaro

I dont get that LOL, why arrant the 2500's and up made in the US. Out of all the things to not be made here, even my Dakota is made in the US. The one thing I like about the GM's is that you cant go a whole day without seeing an old GM SUv or a pickup. Its to bad I am so used to dodge. I remember seeing the recent Silverado for the first time in person in the showroom at test track and I think I was more exited about that then seeing Spaceship Earth without a wand. I would love to see dodge go in there because it seems like every year the cars get a different addition option or some kind of new package. I love that showroom because you can check out the cars and test all the seats, what ever you have to do without being watched or feeling kind of funny.


I fear that if GM does leave and the pavilion is re-purposed, the result will be another Imagination (cheap, half arsed refurb )or WOL (closed completely). If finding sponsors was that easy, WOL wouldn't be sitting empty, and Imagination would have been properly updated. Sadly, its obvious Disney isn't about to spend the dollars necessary to do something really great without another investor picking up most, if not the entire tab.

I dont mean to blurt out randomly but it seems like almost all of future world has become that. I just want to know how they could dumb down imagination, Spaceship Earth, close Wonders of life and demolish Horizons but keep Universe of Energy the same. Universe of energy could use a whole new ride style and some ominax screens would help. I wouldn't worry about Test Track since it is a thrill ride, but the pre and post show could suffer. If theme parks keep there old wooden roller coasters I dont think Test Track is going anywhere. What is there to change, it would cost more money to add Mc'queen and Mater ( I am going to have nightmares now).
 

Fuzz

Member
I dont get that LOL, why arrant the 2500's and up made in the US.

Some are made here in the Warren plant as well. Luck of the draw you got one from Mexico I guess.

I don't know who mentioned it but I do not want to see Cars end up at the Test Track. Not everyone who goes on these rides are little kid.
 

THEMEPARKPIONEER

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Some are made here in the Warren plant as well. Luck of the draw you got one from Mexico I guess.

I don't know who mentioned it but I do not want to see Cars end up at the Test Track. Not everyone who goes on these rides are little kid.

ou know what makes me laugh... there are rides at Magic Kingdon that have nothing to do with the movies and are doing fine. Not only that when was the last time when you have seen a good ride change or get dumbed down. I can understand the upgrading when the world catches up to the futureistic scenes but besides that I cant figure it out. I hope they don't touch test track and pray that they dont bring back World of Motion in dumbed down form LOL.
 

TP2000

Well-Known Member
So please stop trying to justifying your purchase of a foreign car by saying it was built here therefore it is American. Just admit you though it was a better purchase which is why you bought it.

Yeah, the pesky little fact that so many consumers felt it was a better purchase for so long is exactly why the "American" car companies are in the sorry state they are in. :cool:

The Federal Government has used taxpayer money to buy more than 60% of GM stock, a majority share of the company that continues today. The US Treasury currently owns a larger share of General Motors than Hitler's Germany ever owned of state-controlled Volkswagen, and a larger share than socialist France ever owned of state-controlled Renault. You'd have to go to the old Soviet Union and their control of Volga to get a similar example of government ownership of a major automaker. :eek:

With that, it would be more appropriate for the signs at Test Track to say "TEST TRACK - Presented by Disney and the United States Treasury"

Almost a decade ago Disneyland ditched the old GM exhibit in their Innoventions. Honda has been the official car sponsor of Disneyland for five years years now, and it's a happy relationship. Disneyland's nightly fireworks show is "Presented by Honda". Honda does a fantastic job with their ever-changing exhibit in Innoventions, and presents an interesting robot show with their impressive ASIMO robot technology. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeKOGNC-aO8&feature=related

And they always have snazzy Hondas on display, most recently their hydrogen-powered Clarity currently on SoCal roads and their new hybrid sports car the CRZ.

It's a sponsorship agreement with a company who actually makes a yearly profit, and it would be nice if it expanded beyond Disneyland.

Mickey Mouse welcomes Honda's ASIMO to Disneyland!
MickeyAsimo01.jpg
 

puntagordabob

Well-Known Member
Unfortunately Ford already is a sponsor for Seaworld. GM needs to stay they've been there since 1982 let them (along with Kodak) keep their pavilions. Besides we already know what will happen once a sponsor is lost. We get pixar themed rides! Or we get an abandoned building. I rather GM stay I like them. Besides they make the camaro! Probally one of the HOTTEST cars out!


Word at EPCOT yesterday was that Kodak has decided NOT to renew their sponsorship...so when the period ends...their signs will follow.
 

THEMEPARKPIONEER

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Word at EPCOT yesterday was that Kodak has decided NOT to renew their sponsorship...so when the period ends...their signs will follow.

Good... I dont like what they did with Imagination. Maybe Siemens will perform some of their magic on the pavilion. They sure made me happy when they had that wand removed and the landscape arround Spaceship Earth was fixed up. And I believe that they payed for the Fountain of Nations and Breezway Refurbishment to, anyone know about that?
 

janoimagine

Well-Known Member
Yeah, the pesky little fact that so many consumers felt it was a better purchase for so long is exactly why the "American" car companies are in the sorry state they are in. :cool:

Whether you choose to believe it or not, it was a factual contributing factor in what happened to GM and Chrysler. Now I am not giving them a free pass with regards to the other factors which were; Stale Design, and Poor Quality, but the fact that you are so quick to dismiss that fact is ... interesting.
 

MichWolv

Born Modest. Wore Off.
Premium Member
Interesting, i like GM a lot, but considering they are in such financial troubles i feel the money could go somewhere better. I wonder what company they would target, probably an american brand.

I suspect that GM figures it gets sufficient advertising bang for its buck at Epcot that it will continue the sponsorship at least until Disney decides a major upgrade/refurb is necessary. Then GM will have to decide whether to come up with the capital dollars in addition to the standard annual fee.

Considering there are only two American automotive companies, GM being one, Ford the other...unless Ford is willing to hand over the money, it may just go un-sponsored.

Before anyone goes all postal about Chrysler being an American company...they're not. Have not been since the Daimler deal back in the '90's. Now they're mostly owned by Fiat - which, as we all know, stands for Fix It Again, Tony....

Actually, Chrysler is 55% (or 68%, depending on how you treat certain options) owned by the UAW's healthcare trust. 20% (or 35%, based on option treatment) is Fiat. About 10% is the US government, and 2% or so the Canadian government.

Each company uses their pavilion as a big advertisment. Once people see a company paired with Disney, they believe it to be a great company. I know when Innovention had the house of the future, I bought everything I saw in their because I saw it at Disney lol. People buy Kodak cameras because of Disney, people will consider a GM car because of Disney, people will buy HP products.

The one I'm confused about was United Technologies. I don't think the common folk will buy elevators for their homes lol. The Living Seas needed a better sponser.

I think United Technologies has been a fine sponsor in terms of keeping the pavilion up (excpet for a few dark years), but I agree -- I don't know what they get out of it.

If you want to buy foreign it's your choice, but the Japanese, Korean, or where ever, are not American companies whether they build vehicles in the States or not. Yes, they provide American jobs and yes they contribute to the economy but the profits go to the home country. Buy what you like (ain't America great) just don't throw your 'pretzel' logic at anyone to justify your decision.

As the automobile business, goes global (with platform, engine, component sharing), it is harder and harder to pin down who owns and/or benefits from whom. I'm old enough to remember when Detroit was king, unfortunately this is not longer the case (though there seems to be a slight resurgence of late).

Profits go to the owners of the company. For all the biggies but Chrysler, that's whoever owns the stock worldwide, including mutual funds, and those who own the mutual funds. So it's really hard to say exactly where the profits go.

But the biggest money in terms of investment generally winds up where the headquarters are.
 

ChrisFL

Premium Member
While Honda, Toyota, and Nissan have North American divisions they are still a foreign company. So please stop trying to justifying your purchase of a foreign car by saying it was built here therefore it is American. Just admit you though it was a better purchase which is why you bought it.

So using that logic, a foreign owned company could hire designers from California, parts companies from Ohio and build cars in Texas, hiring 50,000 Americans, yet since their "profits" go to another country, it's not good for the U.S.?

:shrug:
 

Fuzz

Member
So using that logic, a foreign owned company could hire designers from California, parts companies from Ohio and build cars in Texas, hiring 50,000 Americans, yet since their "profits" go to another country, it's not good for the U.S.?

:shrug:

No you are extrapolating what I said. I said stop trying to justify your purchase of a foreign car by trying to say it is American. If you drive a Mercedes Benz ML pretty much everyone will say it is a German car even thought it is built in Alabama. So while your toyota may have been built here it is a Japanese car.

I didn't say anything about the profits go to another country, you just assumed that was my argument.
 

mp2bill

Well-Known Member
Considering there are only two American automotive companies, GM being one, Ford the other...unless Ford is willing to hand over the money, it may just go un-sponsored.

Before anyone goes all postal about Chrysler being an American company...they're not. Have not been since the Daimler deal back in the '90's. Now they're mostly owned by Fiat - which, as we all know, stands for Fix It Again, Tony....

lol, I always love this one
 

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