Disney has shared new concept art for the ride vehicles set to debut in Magic Kingdom’s upcoming Cars-themed land. First announced at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event, this new expansion will see Lightning McQueen and friends leave Radiator Springs behind to take on rugged frontier terrain.
During The Future of World-Building at Disney panel at SXSW, Pixar Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter and Imagineer Michael Hundgen offered new details about the attraction’s innovative ride vehicles. According to Hundgen, the Imagineering team is designing a brand-new type of ride vehicle specifically for this experience.
“Our primary goal is creating an emotional experience for our guests,” Hundgen explained. “For this Cars attraction, we need to invent a new type of ride vehicle. No one builds these in a factory because it has to do so much more than just carrying you from one place to another. We have to create a car that conveys a feeling when you ride in it.”
To bring that feeling to life, Imagineers took inspiration from real-world off-road vehicles. The team traveled to the Arizona desert to test-drive rugged vehicles over rocky terrain, simulating the conditions guests will experience on the new attraction. This hands-on research helped the team understand how a ride vehicle should handle obstacles like bumpy trails, sharp turns, and steep climbs — all while maintaining the signature Cars charm.
In their next step, Imagineers worked with a motocross company to build a dirt track and test a customized vehicle equipped with sensors to gather real-time data. The information collected will help shape how the ride vehicles move and respond to terrain.
“We’re using a customized production vehicle,” Hundgen added. “It has sensors all over it, and we’re taking it for test drives on our dirt track to gather data on how the vehicle responds to different terrain. This is where we turn that feeling we want into real-world engineering.”
Pixar’s Pete Docter revealed that the ride vehicles won’t just feel exciting — they’ll also feature their own unique personalities. Concept art shared during the panel showcased race car-inspired designs, with each vehicle having its own name and number, just like a real race car.
A proof of concept model was also shown, which seems to suggest that the ride will follow a track, and will not be trackless as originally thought.
Construction is set to begin in 2025, with more details expected to emerge in the coming months.
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