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Epcot’s Test Track 2012 Overhaul & Retheme

Posted on by Posted in Epcot, Park News 14 Comments

Latest from the rumor mill: General Motors is ready to ink a deal to sponsor their Epcot pavilion for a further 10 years until 2022. As part of the deal the Test Track attraction would essentially be gutted, leaving only the ride path and vehicles chassis in place.Other areas of the pavilion would also be completely redone as they were during the transition from World of Motion to Test Track.

The new ride-thru attraction that Disney is in talks with GM to fund would involve new vehicle bodies for the Test Track vehicles designed not by Imagineering but rather GM’s own design, research, and development unit. Upgraded interiors and new electronics and show elements (screens, etc..) would be the fruit of this collaboration. For the ride scenes the pavilion would become a sort of hybrid version of the original World of Motion and the current Test Track attraction, detailing vehicle design, production, fabrication, and testing with a nod toward its history and the future. Apparently currently iterations of the design have a distinctly forward-looking emphasis with grand splashes of futurism to boot.

Final details are being worked out between the companies before any formal announcement is going to be made. This information is subject to change. Two timelines for a possible closure of the attraction have been discussed, starting in either January or April. As always, the full history of the Transportation pavilion at Epcot, including its conceptual origins as a two-ride attraction with both a high-speed test track and a history ride-thru, can be found in the Epcot Explorer’s Enyclopedia.

  • http://pixeldujour.com/ Mike

    Interesting, not sure I like GM being solely responsible for the ride vehicles. I imagine WDI will end up having some say / approval in the end (hopefully). I do like the idea of converting the inside into more of a dark-ride. It sort of is that already, but is definitely showing it’s age. I also think it’s funny that they want to focus on in-vehicle video elements since the original’s seemed to deteriorate at an alarmingly fast rate. Within a year I don’t think I saw a single vehicle that didn’t have at least fuzzy video (most of them seemed to have none, just a logo instead).

  • http://twitter.com/JeenyusJane Jane Novacane

    I want Concept cars in the Showroom after you leave the ride!!! I want them now!

  • http://twitter.com/johnhensler johnhensler

    Sounds promising. Guess I better get a few rides in of TT version 1.0 while I’m down there for Food & Wine next month…

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  • http://www.facebook.com/joseph.kastner Joseph Kastner

    “ Disney is in talks with GM to fund would involve new vehicle bodies for the Test Track vehicles designed not by Imagineering but rather GM’s own design, research, and development unit … ”

    Do I really want the people who came up with the CHEVY VOLT and drove (no pun intended) their company into bankruptcy designing a vehicle I have to ride in? No thanks.

  • NoChesterHester

    If true.. great. Much more then I had hoped.

    Great research! Thanks for the info.

  • Brian

    Did you say “World of Motion?”  Did you say “Grand Splashes of Futurism?”

    Can we get something that’s at least within earshot of the quality of the SSE redo a couple of years ago?  That Would Be Excellent.

  • Blaine

    Where did you get all this info from? 

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  • B2creative475

    As someone who is a fan of both the original World of Motion and Test Track, this is sounds fantastic to me! Especially, if it has similar elements to the original pavilion and “Grand splashes of futurism!”

  • Peterwaldraff

    Why change the best pavilion at Epcot ??? They should first overhaul the Journey To Imagination pavilion and/or the empty pavilion between Test Track and Mission Space !!!

    • Technopadawan2

      WHERE?  possibly you are referring to the old Wonders of Life Pavillion b/t UoE and Mission:SPACE

  • Madshell

    Hurrah!!  I have always been so much of an EPCOT Center purist who really thought that Test Track was more about the NOW of cars and not the Future.  It would be great to have the dark ride historical elements back, and better scenery than the weird 2D signs.  To integrate a great Disney show with a zooming 60 mph run would be an answer to my long time WDI prayers!   Like Walt would say, come on guys, let’s get to work on this show and make something great!   

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