Autopia (Ride) Disneyland HD (POV)

Disneyland Autopia History




An overhead view, looking down at an Autopia car in 2003.
The Disneyland Autopia, in one form or another, is one of the few current attractions that opened with the park on July 17, 1955. When it opened, it represented the future of what would become America's multilane limited-access highways, which were still being developed. President Eisenhower had yet to sign the Interstate Highway legislation at the time Disneyland opened.

Before the park opened, the cars were tested without the bumpers, and were almost completely destroyed by the test drivers. Bumpers were fitted around the vehicle, but there were still problems with collisions, as a guide rail had yet to be implemented on the ride. Eventually the vehicles were fitted with spring-loaded bumpers to discourage collisions. The first fleet of Autopia cars were dubbed "Mark I." Throughout Disneyland's first few years, Autopia went through a few fleets, as the cars took a hard beating. Though basically the same look, they went through Mark I,II,III, and IV by 1958. When the Monorail, Submarine Voyage, and Matterhorn debuted in 1959, so did a new fleet with an all-new look - the "Mark Vs." The next design, Mark VI, came in 1964. It was at this time the center guide rail was first installed. 1968 brought another new design, the Mark VIIs. They would remain in service through 1999, till a breed of Mark VIIIs would hit the Autopia roadway.

The Tomorrowland version was not the only form of Autopia to exist at Disneyland. Other versions, separate from the Tomorrowland version, included the Midget Autopia, Fantasyland Autopia (Rescue Rangers Raceway), and Junior Autopia. Of these, the Tomorrowland Autopia existed the longest.

The Midget Autopia opened in 1957. It was the smallest and was the third Autopia track, after the Tomorrowland Autopia (1955) and the Junior Autopia in Fantasyland (1956). It was located next to the Storybook Land Canal Boats and the Motor Boat Cruise at the very edge of Fantasyland. It was closed in 1966 and dismantled to make way for 'it's a small world'. The ride was donated to the city of Marceline, Missouri, where it operated for a few years.




Autopia in 1996, before its complete remodel in 2000. The Autopia cars at this time closely resembled the Corvette Stingray.
The Fantasyland Autopia began originally as the Junior Autopia in 1956. It closed in 1958, and reopened in 1959 as the expanded Fantasyland Autopia. It was a duplicate version of the Tomorrowland Autopia and featured the same theme of the original until 1991, when part of the Disney's Afternoon Avenue makeover of Fantasyland, the ride was transformed into the Rescue Rangers Raceway. The theming was kept until 1992, when the promotion ended. The ride remained open on an interim basis until 1999, when both the Tomorrowland and Fantasyland Autopias were closed.




A 1967-era Corvette Stingray-style Autopia car on display in the Disneyland Hotel.
In 2000, Disneyland replaced both existing Autopia tracks with a new, much larger Autopia sponsored by Chevron. The colorful Chevrolet Corvette Stingray-style cars were replaced by three different kinds of cars: Dusty, an off-road style car; Sparky, a sports car; and Suzy, a Volkswagen Beetle-style car. Each was designed to be tied into the Chevron line of animated 'Chevron Cars', and 4 versions of the Autopia cars were sold as toys during the 2000 summer season at Chevron stations nationwide. The voice of Dusty the Autopia car is voiced by Matthew Howard. He is said to be the youngest Disney ride announcer as of 2004. The ride safety spiel was rerecorded in 2004 to remind parents to watch their children due to several minor incidents.[1]

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[theaterqueen95]

I have never been to Disneyland, but I've been to Disney World many times and while I absolutely ADORE the place, the scenery, cars and track loop on it's counterpart of this ride, the Tomorrowland Indy Speedway, pale in comparison to this ride :)

[788cami]

i love this ride! i bumped so many ppl on this ride.

[peanutbuttaluv754]

When I was on this ride my car broke down and there was a large traffic jam lol :)

[97aceracer]

do u drive it yourself?

[NYCgirl55]

once me and my brother were on this ride, sharing the same car and he was driving. lets just say the bumpers saved our lives

[SlitMouthWoman]

The 3D burnnnns!!