Please Refurbish This Ride — Tomorrowland Speedway!

Saturday, January 7, 2012 Mike 22 Comments

Tags: Magic Kingdom, Tomorrowland, Tomorrowland Speedway, Walt Disney Company, Walt Disney World, Walt Disney World Resort

As part of a series of posts, I’m going to be tackling the challenge that many of us think about, but not all of us are afraid to speak out about. To be honest, I’m all ready to get flamed here by lovers of attractions, and those that don’t want to see anything change at all at Walt Disney World, and believe me, I don’t like change all that much either. I’m still bummed about Mickey’s Toontown Fair closing! But there are some attractions that really do need to change in my opinion, and for me, Tomorrowland Speedway is one of those attractions.

Tomorrowland Speedway is a safe, fun way for kids of all ages to be able to enjoy “driving” and get their feet wet at it at the Magic Kingdom. But to me, the Tomorrowland Speedway is about the slowest, most boring ride in all of Walt Disney World, and on top of it, often the lines are astronomically long! I don’t know what can realistically be done to improve the Tomorrowland Speedway. It is an attraction that appeals to many generations of Walt Disney World travelers, for kids of all ages; my niece even enjoyed driving a car on the speedway, as you can see here!

Please Refurbish This Ride Tomorrowland Speedway!

Stephanie Driving at Tomorrowland Speedway

So help me out here, people. Am I crazy for having these thoughts? Should I have not admitted my “Please Refurbish This Ride” attraction? Please tell me what you think of the Tomorrowland Speedway! If you were going to change it in any way, what would you change? Or, if you think it is great the way it is, tell me why you think this? Thanks for reading!

Ride Restrictions – A Kid’s Guide (chipandco.com)
Oldies But Goodies – Becoming A Kid Again At Walt Disney World (chipandco.com)

Mike (162 Posts)

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Posted in: Original Articles, Tips &Tricks Tags: Magic Kingdom, Tomorrowland, Tomorrowland Speedway, Walt Disney Company, Walt Disney World, Walt Disney World Resort

Christy
This ride is one of the very few at WDW that I truly HATE! We have skipped it 3 of our last 4 trips because of the long, hot wait and the terrible fumes. Disney should be ashamed to let such an antiquated, environmentally unfriendly ride continue to have a place in the Magic Kingdom. Apparently, emmissions standards don’t apply to go-carts!
Wendy La
Anytime.
Wendy La
I concur.
Beth Anne Saves
I totally agree! I rode this last week and I couldn’t even get the car to turn I kept hitting the middle of the track and it was really ANNOYING! I also think that this is no longer a “ride of tomorrow” it needs to be upgraded to be like the jetson flying cars! I really am not sure it’s an AWFUL RIDE!
Onequik1
We have been there with our kids 4-5 times in the last 6 years, their ages are 4 & 6. They seem to love the ride mostly because they get the opportunity to drive or steer the car and fight over which kid gets to go with which parent. I like it because it brings me back to when I was a kid and went with my family. My wife dislikes it because standing in line the exhaust fumes get to her.
We were just there 2 weeks ago and truthfully while we were there I was thinking about the name Tomorrowland Speedway and was wondering with all the advancement in electric cars if at some point they would convert the ride to electric cars of some sort. The ride hasn’t changed since I was there in the late 70′s or early 80′s.
There obviously needs to be some sort of balance where it draws parents back because it brings them back to their childhood (and the fact that we’re the ones paying) versus how much the kids enjoy the rides. I think an interesting comparison can be made when you look at the lines for Small World and Buzz Lightyear attractions. Although our kids will go on Small World they would much rather go on Buzz Lightyear.
In my opinion with new technology and advancements in the last 30 years I think the newer attractions done well will keep our family coming back more so than nostalgia. I personally would welcome a cars based theme with electric cars of some sort.
Jonandrenee
I was told that they are working on a cars town for the California park. Maybe that will be there test before changing MK’s?
Usachick4
I personally cant stand it. We skip it now (have since first trip) unless its dead and we are killing time
Jensor06
I agree it needs to be updated. Have been 3 times with my son and he has never been on it for various reasons. It was either too hot to be standing in that long line with no shade, or the line was simply way too long and smelly (you know, from the cars)
Waterbabi770
Maybe update the que line so that there is more shade and breeze on those summer days that it gets so hot you start sweating the minute you walk out of the hotel. Maybe update the cars as well to reflect maybe not Radiator Springs, but the race cars from Cars 2….
Swimmomblog
I am sooooo SICK of Cars theming! I love Cars, great movies, but what happens when they are not as cool? Look what happened to the Tiki Room – “revamped” to include Zazu and Llago, now changed back to the original. Based on the lines alone this is obviously NOT a waste of theme park space. 4 generations of my family have loved the speedway and continue to look forward to it each trip. I hope they leave this ride alone!
Lourdes
We love this ride! They could make it more environmentally friendly – I don’t know how the staff members can stand there for hours. My twin 6-year olds LOVED being able to drive. My husband was able to take his ECV in. We much preferred to ride it at night – way too hot and sunny during the day to sit among the fumes and metal.
http://dizzneemomma.com/ Lucinda
We only visit this attraction when the lines are very short but I don’t want to see it gone because we do enjoy it when we are able to ride. Updating would be great. A better queue and more visual appeal on the course are good places to start. I think they could really spruce this up nicely if it were a priority. The Cars theme sounds like a great idea! But maybe “Meet the Robinsons” would be a better fit for Tomorrowland.
http://twitter.com/tazlikesrobots Robert Acosta
May be a good site for a slimmed down version of Radiator Springs Racers…..
Gaylin Chev
I have been saying for quite awhile, it is a waste of valuable theme park land! They could have left Toon Town where it was and done the expansion where the Speedway is. The fumes, the line, the noise, the amount of space, yes, I agree with you.
http://www.mydreamsofdisney.com Mickey
Thank you Wendy for pointing out my insanity!
I respect your memories, and those of your Dad, and when the attraction opened it was much cooler than it is now. I just think it has fallen behind, but I love the memory you shared with us, so thank you for doing so! I hope you’ll keep reading Chip & Company!
Princesslindsaykai
They need to make it green!
Liz Harman
I’d like to see the cars go electric. The fumes were horrible when we were there in June. And knowing how gas prices keep rising, I can’t imagine what they pay just for the attraction. The cars need an overhaul as well. I know they aren’t supposed to be fast; but I had it floored and we were barely moving. If I let up at all we came to a complete stop.
Steve
I agree! Tear it out and replace it with something truly forthcoming or at least contemporary. This ride was supposed to highlight the way of the future (the automobile and vast highways), but today is no more exciting than a coin-operated arcade ride.
Wendy La
Yes. You are crazy.
On his first visit, my Dad traded all of his D and E tickets to his classmates for C tickets so he could ride the Grand Prix Raceway over and over.
Greeneducks
The least they could do would be to theme it out Cars style! It would also be fun if it was like a mini-Test Track, with simulated crashes or bumps and hills. I agree it’s slow and a bit old-fashioned, but it would be sad if it was eliminated entirely. I hate it when Disney changes anything about the parks, but then I’ve loved every change that they’ve ever done, so I guess they know what they’re doing. In my opinion they should replace the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse, that is a true waste of space and not at all accessible for wheelchairs (not that we’d even bother if it was)!!
Mnlsanford
I agree that this ride needs something… I remember when the track was longer and a bit more exciting… I dont know what can be done but i would love to have the track longer and made different somehow…
Renea
my gripe about this ride: It is slow,and they have too many cars out at once. It was busy when we went, and i understand that, but we didn’t even get halfway around the track until we were stuck in a “traffic” jam, and it was stop and go for the rest of the ride. We sat in one spot for a good 2 minutes without moving, which wasn’t a huge deal for me..but my three year old wasn’t having it!