The Truth About Autopia 

What do you think about Autopia? Take it, leave it, or hardly ever think about it?

Driving their own car is such a huge novelty for children that I can easily see why it's stayed so popular, but I do agree *something* needs to be done to change it

I liked when autopia had chevron as a sponsor. I miss the cars with eyeballs.

“if i wanted a broken back i’d ride the matterhorn” 😂😂

i just want that sweet sweet 60s retrofuturism aesthetic back for tomorrowland. and the kinetic energy of things constantly moving!

I love the fumes!! Whenever I smell them anywhere other than Disneyland I say, "Hey, that smells like Autopia!" and it brings me back good memories.

“I forgot my keys” *got in the car*

I like autopia bc its one of the only disneyland rides that puts you in control, wich is a very "undisney" thing to do. Also, it separates you from your group and its kinda neat to be on your own.

I just want the people mover back!!

“ it just sits there, year after year, unloved. “ 🤣🤣🤣

I remember when I went on the autopia in Disney World. I had this orange car which wreaked of gas fumes, and was constantly smacking against the side of the tracks. Oh yeah and the motor kept cutting out. But, that wasn’t the best part! As I got back to the loading/unloading area for the ride, I grabbed my steering wheel to get out of the car. In doing so, I accidentally yanked the steering wheel out of the car; a bunch of nuts and bolts fell to the floor. I stood there with the steering wheel in my hand, then gave it to a dumbfounded cast member. Best ride experience ever 😂 🚗

EPCOT: “We’re committed to no emissions and an eco friendly park by 2022” Disneyland/MK: “lol gas car go vroom”

I like the Autopia well enough, but I always tell myself that the reason it exists is not for me, but for the kids... kids at 7 or 8 years old are able to drive their own cars long before they are able to get a driver's license, which is exciting for them. I know it was exciting for me when I was that age. As an adult, it is fun and relaxing exploration of the area around Tomorrowland. Perhaps it is not an E-ticket attraction, but for someone (like me) who doesn't like roller coasters, it will do just fine :)

Monorails are expensive it's why so many cities have built light rails/trams instead

Fantastic video!! Love Autopia

Finding Nemo IS an reminder of a ex-attraction, Submarine Voyage. So if they remove Finding Nemo they remove a reminder of submarine voyage and if they removed finding Nemo then they remove a bunch of little kids or old people’s favorite ride. And autopia is good time taker for fast pass’s

You know, with your recent stuff, I'm kind of surprised you haven't gotten a job at Disneyland as an Imagineer.

Binge offhand disney and take a drink every time he mentions the people mover

The fumes are so strong, I smelt them throughout this whole vid

You should do a video covering the evolution of monorails in Disneyland and WDW! I just got into a huge research hole after you talked about it in this video, and that stuff is INTERESTING. Great video dude:))

Let’s all be Honest as we all know offhand has Carried Quarantine content Thank you for giving us interesting things to watch

I have a 5 year old who loves Autopia. I love it for nostalgic reasons. I would die if the lagoon ever disappeared. David from Fresh Baked would appreciate this video (and he'd want to keep it)

“I forgot my keys!” 🤣🤣🤣🤣

My kids LOVED autopia. They’re kids, they can’t drive themselves but at Autopia they can. It’s loud, a bit rough and that’s super exciting for alot of kids.

Autopia has a special place in my heart. I don't care about what the adults say. Most of the kids that have been to Disneyland love this attraction. When I was younger, I loved rides that you can control. And I still love rides like that now as a teenager. Thats why I loved the idea for the smuggler run attraction. The thing I dont understand is that when HK Disneyland still had their Autopia ride, it was electric and had hills and really cool bridges that go up and down.

I can't wait to listen to your podcast when it starts

Happy New Year and CONGRATS on the HM podcast, Dallin!!!

This will probably get buried, but having grown up in Florida, I was quite impressed with Autopia when I first rode it compared to the underwhelming Tomorrowland Speedway at the Magic Kingdom. That being said, I'm of the opinion that not only should these attractions be converted to electric cars and have guidance systems to avoid bumping as you've stated, but that they should be brought indoors into multilevel structures. Turn Autopia type attractions into sci-fi themed dark rides where you control the car. To fit into Tomorrowland, the theme would be driving a car and traveling along alien planets with a series of animatronic heavy scenes featuring aliens. I'm thinking of something along the artistic lines of the exit travel scenes in Magic Kingdom's Space Mountain. I know it's unlikely to ever happen, but it would clear up a lot of space while still keeping the fundamental idea of driving your own car into the future intact.

A new Offhand video? Starting the new year off right.

I took my family in 2019. My daughter was 5 during that visit. She loved Autopia. You cannot judge the ride through adult eyes.

I’d be okay with losing Finding Nemo, but I wouldn’t want to lose the lagoon.

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="617">10:17</a> I think Disney should bring back the People Mover

Just bring back the Rocket Rods and call it a day

Honestly dude your production value is so good and just the right amout of cheese to make it amazing!

I first went on the Disney bumper cars in the 70's and then took my kids for the 50th, and it's such a wonderful place, almost better to see it through your kids eyes, and I looked cool in a Jack Sparrow hat and Motorhead t-shirt hahaha

i love both yours and dan's content and i love the mansion so i'm very excited for the podcast!

As a child I loved it because I could DRIVE! It has to stay.

This video was good. But I didn’t hear you say anything about bringing back the peoplemover.

autopia has always been one of my favorites! i do agree though, it is a little outdated.

So excited for the new podcast!!

Your videos are my favorite especially after a long day at work:)

You have never padded time with the introduction. It's always straight to the novel stuff. Pretty cool.

Autopia is like The People Mover that wasn't removed. Nobody was really head-over-heels for The People Mover while in operation, but once it was removed, well, we all know what everyone thought. Autopia is a piece of nostalgia for many and that includes the sounds coming from the old gas engines. It's part of the ambiance for that corner of Tomorrow Land. It's also fun for kids who want to know what driving is like.

I can't believe you made a video based off of my comment from reddit. Haha, crazy stuff man. Great video.

can't wait for your podcast!

A timely and thoughtfully off-hand report! (I noticed you casually slipped in the concept of "self parking" Autopia Cars... oh you're a sneaky dogglette!) Yay Dallin! Awe-fully great idea about the HM podcast, I must say! PS: 5 stars for masterful use of The Matching Sweater Gambit!

I’m from Missouri, and my wife and I have been up to Marceline quite a few times to visit the Walt Disney Family Museum! The Disneyland day one ride, Midget Autopia, was actually taken out of Disneyland and brought to Marceline for the children of Walts hometown to enjoy, and was actually used for longer in Marceline than it was in Disneyland! The ride is not still there and functioning like it was in the 60s when it was originally brought there, but they do still have a place in the park commemorating the area where the original tracks laid. As far as I know, this was the only instance of a ride to ever be entirely relocated, theming and all, from a Disney park to somewhere else in the world!

Autopia is the reason I love the smell of car fumes and find the smell nostalgic

Didn’t know I needed this

I love autopia, it’s old school Disney and there isn’t much left.

Autopia is definitely a take it or leave it ride. That was always the one my friends and I would go on when there was nothing else to do. Like "oh hey, autopia is a 10 minute wait! We can do that!" It's one of those rides that I have very distinct memories of.....or at least I have memories of waiting in line lol. The ride itself is whatever. It's fun for kids and teens and not really for adults. I'm always a bit flabbergasted when I see the line longer than 30 minutes. I feel like yelling out, "ITS NOT WORTH IT MY DUDES!!" Has the magic candle company come out with a "car ride gas" scent yet? Lol it's iconic

I remember riding it with my dad. I thought I was amazingly cool driving a car.

So I'm someone who went to disney frequently from 85-2000, and had family who worked at the Disney store in the 90's. I had heard about the electric car test on autopia back then. This means two things 1) The electric cars were using lead acid batteries: Heavy, slow, low powered... 2) They were using golf car motors and controllers most likely which makes sense that the cars couldn't go up hills or last all day. Electric conversion tech has changed a lot since then. I'd love to see them try again with modern lithium batteries or even Toyota's new solid state battery that comes out this year.

As much as I don't like Autopia, I think that there are far worse things in Tomorrowland that need to be fixed before any discussion over those cars. Autopia is like number 5 or 6 on the list.

honestly if they took out autopia and the subs and put in the lightcycle ride I would be so dang happy. I have so many memories with autopia like everyone else, but I think its showing its age increasingly over the years

Autopia is a great memory with my family at Disneyland because my dad loves it, but if it went away and we got something good in return I could easily live without it and cherish the memory of it while it existed.

I always love how you throw in the people mover. It is an enjoyable ride. But never rode the Disneyland version

Props for using the best atmospheric music in all the Disney Parks.

Growing up I always felt like autopia was in Tomorrowland because as a kid it was my tomorrow. Of course I found out later it was futuristic in the 50s

I enjoy Autopia, but it is a bit outdated and takes a lot of space. But, I do really enjoy it

Yes!! another upload by the best Disney channel :)

I love your videos i am a Disneyland fan and the walt disney history i love

Finding Nemo is probably the least safe ride to be on during this pandemic, maybe replacing it along with autopia when the park reopens wouldn’t be the worst thing 😂

*sarcasm* At this rate, Mr Toad's Wild Ride, Pinocchio's Daring Journey, and Snow White's Scary Adventures will get self-driving electric vehicles before Autopia. wait...

I really think Tomorrowland would benefit from changing the star wars museum into an ever changing exhibition, like the consumer electronics show, where companies rent space to show off their coolest new tech. It becomes self updating, an income flow for disney, and CES is really awesome. It is like a mini version of the fully sponsored Tomorrowland that disney started with and could help fund fixing the land

YES bring back the People Mover. It was a great way to relax and see the beauty of Disneyland. Great for photos also

Looking forward to the podcast

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="617">10:17</a> so the people mover is a must?

When my family went to Disneyland in 2018 for my daughters birthday our least liked attractions were Autopia and the Finding Nemo ride. We hope to be going back in 2022. These rides will be ignored, the time spent on them and waiting in the queue lines is better used elsewhere in the park. It wouldn't hurt my feelings one bit if they did away with them in favor of something new.

Good video! I would like to see electric cars be implemented for Autopia. Perhaps even some "futuristic" highways too! The lagoon is also wonderful! (Video idea: Another theory video, somewhat like your Fantasyland update one, talking about how Pixar is slowly infiltrating every Disney park. Obviously, Pixar is Disney owned, but I would love to see a joke video about how it will slowly overtake every park until it is a Pixar-palooza!)

As Old as So many people think this is it is easy to forget that the audio is ride appeals to children. It was great as a seven year old to be able to drive cars. The smells. The sound. The vibration all add to the greatness of the ride in the eyes of a child.

Offhand Disney’s update is everything to me

Autopia is one of my favorite rides because as a kid it was such a cool concept to be able to "drive" my mom around. I think it would be a shame if they took it out, however changing the vehicles to electric at some point would be fun. I always kinda loved the smell of the diesel XD lol. The loud noise from the ride has always been such a nice ambient representation of kids excitement in my opinion. Missing the smell AND the clanking/driving noises from that ride right now.

Happy 2021, Offhand!

I can't help but think they will actually do a California version of the Tron coaster, and just not telling anyone.

I had a friend growing up who's favorite ride was autopia. I believe it was the driving thing. She loved it from 8-14. But once she got her permit she moved on to other favorites.

I like your guided vehicle idea. I like it so much I've been saying the same thing for a decade! ;)

It's always a great day when Offhand Disney uploads ! Happy new year

I for one loved the addition of the Asimo robot from the Honda sponsorship and actually love Autopia. It kicks Tomorrowland Speedway’s ass so hard. Autopia has a pleasant ambience at night so I really appreciate it. I would be in favor of upgrading the cars though if it is possible in the future and keeping the submarine as is if possible

I hate everything about autopia. My sensory issues don’t *jive* with it. But I adore the subs so much! Finding Nemo was the first movie I saw in theaters and holds a soft spot in my heart!

Autopia was my favorite ride for the LONGEST TIME. Still is in my top favorite rides at Disneyland (although I think I like Splash Mountain and Thunder Mountain just a bit more.) I would be suuuper sad to see it go but I totally agree that it needs an upgrade!

They should do some re-landscaping. Maybe add a scenic waterfall that the cars could drive past or something. The Tomorrowland Speedway in Magic Kingdom has WAY more against it, and really needs a refurb or removal. Unlike California, having an open-air outdoor ride in Florida makes much less sense due to the frequent rain.

I forgot how much I loved Autopia as a kid until i visited in n out burger for the first time and found myself routed around and in n out of the parking lot to just get to the order window.

you can always counf on offhand disney to love 2 things: Haunted Mansion & the People Mover.

Speedway in WDW, is exactly like autopia in Disneyland-however, the cars on both coasts, can be scrapped and reused as another attraction

Autopia is the most popular ride in HK Disneyland. This is based on my observations in 2007 & 2013, who saw ride wait times of 45 mins, whereas a typical ride would be 5-10 mins

My sister and I are Die Hards. When we go to Disneyland we try to ride every single ride, and make opening day attractions the priority. BUT we always skip Autopia. And looking at a map, you're right it takes up so much space! I like the Tesla idea though. #bringbackpeoplemoverDCA

This is exactly what I needed today. You never fail to get the endorphins going. Thanks Dallin!

I loved Autopia! I was like 5 or something the first time I rode it with my Dad. I think I was 7 when I drove it with my Dad in the car. By the time I was twelve, I was able to run the whole track without bumping anybody and staying square in the track to never touch the center safety bar even once. Even at the end when it widens and you don't have to steer. I can easily drive the whole track without safety devices getting in the way. Naturally, when I became 16 I had my drivers license and the ride lost a whole lot of appeal. I think this ride is ideal for the 7-8 to 15 year olds who do not yet drive the real thing to get the idea. Disneyland... Please do not remove it.

Whenever I so much as look at Autopia it makes me feel like I'm in a significantly worse park than Disneyland. The track looks like something they bought from Action Park, the area feels overgrown, and whenever I ride it all the cars keep breaking down

I like autopia, but I would be happy with something like that tron ride that you were talking about. I also agree that the lagoon looks awesome and should stay.

Something I've thought of for many years Autopia and the Tommorowland Speedway in WDW could do to bring the attraction into the future is to replace the physical track and cars with motion racing simulators. A very industrialized version of a motion simulator (that's available to the public) costs around $5,000. Getting the wheels, pedals, and hardware to run the simulation adds to the cost but opens up the possibility space. Instead of using one car on one track, they could open it up to choose between two or three types of cars and even three to five different tracks they could race on. The simulators could run on timers that would allow the guests to only complete a certain amount of laps or create a checkpoint system that could limit playtime. And as an added bonus to Disney, they could split the simulators into the more agressive feeling ones and the ones safer for families/children. Either way, converting to simulators would reduce the footprint that Autopia and the Tomorrowland Speedway currently take up. Which could remove the need for shutting down multiple attractions and possibly moving the Monorail system. Creating an attraction like this could future proof the ride and bridge the gap that is between Autopia and Test Track.

Honestly the Autopia is one of the few day 1 rides I wouldn't mind seeing go. I just never bother with the ride and pass it every time I go. That said, I have fond memories as a kid being able to "drive" a "car" at DIsneyland, an experience I wouldn't have been able to do outside the park. I'm sure kids today have the same feeling I did when I was a kid. I also never considered the issues with the land for the monorail and Nemo. All this said, I feel if it were to stay it could go for some sort of refresh at the very least.

Podcast hype!

There is little room in my heart for Autopia or the Subs. When they announced that WDW was closing the Tomorrowland Speedway for the Tron coaster my family threw a party in celebration. I agree that to close these attractions right now would be foolish for the business side of the parks, but they are doing very little to bring Disney magic to life. Your note about the lagoon’s ambiance is on point, but I can’t say it’s enough to save the attractions. It wouldn’t surprise me if they were on the to-do list, but at the very bottom due to the other space and construction constraints.

I have so many thoughts as a former Autopia cast member (worked there starting in 2019, was laid off last month, I miss it terribly.) I've personally dreamed up a redesign that would require a complete overhaul in order to make an indoor/outdoor (part driving, part racing simulation) Sugar Rush ride. I think a Wreck-it Ralph themed attraction could work in Tomorrowland as a representation of video game technology, both old and new. Although, now that I have such fond memories of working there, I would be sad to see it go. I worked really hard to learn Auto, and I had such a good experience with my fellow cast members. I even saw a few of them in this video! I'm annoyed I never got a good picture of myself in the costume lol

I like to imagine a world where Autopia kept the track but replaced the cars with the rocket rods and the peoplemover is still alive and well

Yes! That Autopia track is on the roof of the show building 4 Nemo. I'm surprised you didn't suggest that Autopia be changed to People Mover. LOL! But then there is that whole roof thing again and how you would get a beam way over it. It could have theming an tunnels, models or visions of the future and be covered like Orlando's. Yeah! Let Honda sponsor THAT!

All is right in the world now that d has uploaded

Hong Kong Disneyland used electric cars. They got rid of them to install the Antman attraction. They could have shipped the cars to the states. But lot of theme parks have electric "autopias", such as Gilroy Gardens an apparently Dollywood. You can use the same simple tech like they have on the Disney dark rides. Disney overthinks it sometimes when the simplest solution is best.