Cars Land

Image: Disney / Pixar

Hang a right at the Carthay Circle Theater and make your way alongside Grizzy Peak – Radiator Springs is the second exit on your left... you can't miss it! But really, you can't.

From your first glimpse of Cars Land, you may be instantly converted to the belief that the town of Radiator Springs incarnate here is indeed the most spectacular land at any Disney Park – or maybe any theme park in the United States. It's not just that the 12-acre land (technically, the largest at Disneyland Resort) appears as a shot-for-shot recreation of the town from the film, it's that it feels entirely real. 

Each and every location along Route 66 appears in surprisingly well-scaled form, even as two family flat rides fit in without being intrusive. It's all here – Mater's tow yard, Fillmore's Taste-In, Sarge's Supply Hut, Ramone's, Luigi's... 

Image: Disney

Stepping down the street, you can stop by the Cozy Cone Motel, with each cone-shaped sleepaway garage serving a different kind of cone-related treat (pop-cone, chili cone queso, ice cream cones... and Red's Apple Freeze, a sort of "Butterbeer" equivalent for this vehicular world. (You can get Coca-Cola here, but that's probably fair given that the cars from the film only drink motor oil.)

But the land's most beloved eatery must be Flo's V-8 Cafe, right at the corner of Route 66 and Cross Street.

Image: Disney

This is the land's go-to diner, serving diner favorites.

While Radiator Springs is one of the most surprisingly spectacular projects in Imagineering's portfolio, it's somehow not even the highlight of Cars Land. Because they don't call Radiator Springs the "Gatway to Ornament Valley" for nothing.

Image: Disney

It may truly be that Disney has never tackled a project as breathtaking as this. The backdrop to Cars Land is Ornament Valley, a seemingly endless expanse of Southwestern desert cliffs covered in 300,000 square feet of rockwork. A masterpiece of forced perspective, the world-enveloping mountain range is – to say the least – as breathtaking as most actual natural wonders. And like those true feats of Mother Nature, its scale is simply impossible to capture in photographs. That's why it ranked high on our list of the Seven "Natural" Wonders of the Theme Park World.

Most prominently, the legendary "Cadillac Range" reigns over the town, forever obscured in a distant, dusty desert haze. The six peaks, by the way, are Cadillac tail fins representing the car models from 1957 - 1962 (with 1959 as the pinnacle). Yet somehow, they feel convincingly... possible? 

All encompassing, the Ornament Valley literally wraps around Radiator Springs and acts as a backdrop for all of the new Disney California Adventure.

Image: Disney

And it's in the winding desert roads through and around the natural landforms of Ornament Valley that today's Modern Marvel resides... As you walk along Cross Street, the sudden hum of energy breaks the desert's still silence as suddenly, two vehicles come tearing over the bleached blacktop, leaping over the hilly terrain and racing off into the deep desert.

It's race day in Radiator Springs...! And it's time to put the pedal to the metal.

Radiator Springs Racers

Image: Ken Lund, Flickr (license)

Just past the Radiator Springs Fire Station that sits at the far end of town lies the entrance to Radiator Springs Racers. But to get there is quite a hike. Literally. The queue for this high-octane adventure passes through the acres of desert that make up Ornament Valley, with revving cars bolting by alongside and overhead waiting guests. Weaving through the desert buttes and bluffs, the line even leads through the remnants of Radiator Springs as it was established by the lovable Stanley the steam car.

And it's only here at Disney California Adventure that we can also glimpse the Radiator Spring from which the town was named! It's a curiously-shaped natural wellspring that created this town by serving as an engine-cooling stopover in the midst of the endless desert.

Finally, the weaving queue makes its way toward a spectacular natural cavern carved away into the foot of Ornament Valley's iron-rich red rock faces. And there in the naturally cooled Comfy Caverns Motor Court, a line-up of friendly faces are waiting for us.

Image: Disney

Radiator Springs Racers makes use of the same technology that powered TEST TRACK, including the six-passenger vehicles (seated three-by-three). And with ballet-like choreography, they all advance, bumper-to-bumper, and invite us to step inside. After all, it's Race Day... And we're not quite ready for the starting line yet.

Advancing out of the Comfy Caverns, the idyllic and acoustic tunes of Randy Newman's score from the film, our car hums its way up through the desert landscape, providing unparalleled views of Radiator Springs and  – with a flourish of strings – turns to reveal a magnificent waterfall pouring down from a cliff face. This first 30 seconds of Radiator Springs Racers alone is a breathtaking and tranquil journey through the desert perhaps on par with Disneyland's long-lost Mine Train Thru Nature's Wonderland, rising higher and higher against the red rocked backdrop.

But now, the vehicle diverts into a cliff-side cavern, enveloped in darkness with the familiar Wisconsin-tinged voices of the perenially lost couple, Van and Minnie, in the darkness. "Van, are we lost again?"

Suddenly, ahead, the headlights of Mack the 18-wheeler illuminate as he looks on in shock and blares his horn. The car darts to the right to avoid the near-collision. (It's a classic dark ride gag, and one used even on TEST TRACK!) Swerving momentarily through the darkened desert and between a startled Van and Minnie, we narrowly avoid a close call with a train and find ourselves surrounded with the sound of a police claxon, as Sheriff himself pulls out from behind a billboard. 

Image: Disney / Pixar

The fluidity of Sheriff and the rest of the Cars cast we'll see earned them a spot in our must-read Countdown: Best Animatronics on Earth, but there's no time to celebrate. "Whoa!" Sheriff halts us, "Slow down! You're not racin' yet! Follow Mater into town to get ready!"

Naturally, Mater ensures we have a little fun first, by inviting us tractor-tipping. "Just don't let Frank catch ya!" Oops. With a honk, we awaken Frank the red combine harvester, and with a screech, the car bolts away from the fields and back toward town. Racing under the trees and through the night, we round the corner and find ourselves in Radiator Springs once more, alight with neon.

Image: Disney

Each of the town's residents is here, but our true destination is ahead, where Lightning and Sally await. This is where our journey to Race Day takes a turn. Luigi's Casa della Tire is ahead on the left; Ramone's Body Shop on the right. And Lightning and Sally are on hand to send us in the right direction by way of a fork in the road.

"A champion needs speed..." "...and style!" "Luigi! Give our friends your best!"

As the car peels to the left, it pulls into Luigi's shop alongside a large mirror. "Buongiorno! For you, my friends? Only the best!" Luigi cries as a dramatic red curtain falls to block the mirror. "Pitstop!" Guido calls, descending into the floor with a lug wrench. The parked car rumbled and wiggles for a moment, then the red curtain parts once more, displaying in our reflection our brand-new whitewall tires! "Now you looka like-a real race car! Guido? To the starting line!"

(In the alternate scene – Ramone's – the car gets a new, fresh coat of paint. After all, "you don't just need to be fast, you need to look fast!")

But now, advancing out of Luigi's, the car enters a garage with Doc Hudson on a lift. "It takes more than shiny paint to win a race," he offers as his voice transfers to our in-car speakers. "Now get out there and do us proud!"

Image: Disney

Luigi and Guido are indeed waiting at the Starting Line, as another car joins alongside us... It's time to put the pedal to the metal. "Now you will have the chance to make this the most glorious race of your lives! Uno for the money; due for the show; tre to get ready and quattro to... go!"

Read to ride? Take a virtual race through Radiator Springs in the point of view video here:

Naturally, the adventure concludes randomly each time, with each car of passengers cheering as its vehicle pulls ahead along the winding, racing desert course at speeds reportedly up to 45 miles per hour. Ultimately, both vehicles end up in the picturesque Tail Light Caverns for a final touch base with Lightning and Mater.

Somewhat predictably, our take-home message from the duo? We're all winners because we're friends. Though secretly, you and I know we're literally winners given that the car next to us lost.

Image: Disney 

Radiator Springs Racers is one of the most spectacular dark rides Disney has ever designed, and its place in Disney California Adventure's line-up is essential. It's a wild family adventure that literally saved Disneyland's sinking second gate and finally gave the Californian resort a "must-see" E-Ticket of its own. 

The Future

Image: Disney

When Cars Land was announced as the keystone land that would save Disney California Adventure, fans fought against the Pixar proposal with nearly as much fervor and fury as they had with AVATAR's inclusion in Animal Kingdom. An entire themed land dedicated to Pixar's 15th most successful animated film? An American southwest town – though observably not a Californian one – as the anchor of California Adventure? If this was Disney's coup to save Disneyland's second gate, they'd better think bigger! Right?!

Now we can safely see that Cars Land feels like a piece of the puzzle California Adventure was missing. Not only does it give the park a much-needed anchoring headliner for families, but it also represents some of the best combined efforts of Imagineering ever. Picturesque, larger-than-life, and headlined by the E-Ticket Radiator Springs Racers, there's simply no doubt that Cars Land has become a must-see icon of Imagineering across the globe.

At least so far, it appears that Radiator Springs Racers (and all of Cars Land) is set to remain a California Adventure exclusive... and that's a spectacular finish line win for a park that's spent much of its short life trying to catch up.

Image: Disney

As for Disney California Adventure and its transformation? That's a story that's still being written. But we picked up on the must-read story of Disneyland's second gate after its grand re-opening in Declassified Disaster: Disney California Adventure – Part II exploring the way that Disney might just be actively undoing the $1.2 billion they just spent crafting a distinctly Californian narrative for the reborn park... That's just one of the must-read stories in our In-Depth Collection Library, stocked with still more full features for Disney Parks enthusiasts. Make the jump there to set course for another Modern Marvel, Lost Legend, or Declassified Disaster's tale.

Then, use the comments below to share your thoughts on Radiator Springs Racers and how it fits (or fumbles) Disney California Adventure's story.