WDWNT Reporter Dirk Wallen visited the Magic Kingdom on Saturday and has some fantastic pictures of new progress on the Big Thunder Mountain interactive queue, A Pirate’s Life: Treasures of the Seven Seas, the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and more, so let’s take a look:

While the Main Street Bakery is closed, guests can head to the Tomorrowland Terrace

Plenty of options at Tomorrowland Terrace, including beignets!

The flowers in the hub have gone to Valentine’s Day colors and the ducks love it…

Valentine’s Day cupcakes available at Big Top Treats

I’ve heard of panning for gold…

More props and interactive elements have been installed in the queue at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

The “exploding” crates are no longer under tarps

These huge machines popped up in the second-half of the queue over the weekend

It looks like guests will play some sort of game where they turn a lever

Spinning handles on the back of another machine

The refurbishment of Splash Mountain continues

Lots of painting going on

Golden Oak Outpost is closed again

Work continues on the Adventureland Veranda building

Another area of the building is also walled-off

The Crow’s Nest is out from behind tarps and it looks quite different… we expect it to play a role in “A Pirate’s Adventure”

More props for “A Pirate’s Adventure” have been installed throughout Adventureland

Jack Sparrow’s compass

This was the first prop installed a few months ago

A cannon

Ball and chains

Some props by the Jungle Cruise

Nearby, a pirate skeleton lies under the water near a treasure chest

It appears these skulls near the Pirates of the Caribbean entrance will talk

Another strange set of props

Gun powder

Sleepy Hollow Refreshments is open while the exterior is refurbished

Walls up outside of the Haunted Mansion and Yankee Trader

Tarps still up on Columbia Harbour House

The latest progress on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

Valentine’s Day and St. Patrick’s Day lanyards are out

As is the new Test Track logo pin

Over at The Villas at the Grand Floridian, we can start to make out windows

Test Track presented by Chevrolet is now officially open at Epcot and if you haven’t had a chance to check out this great new offering, well, we have you covered. First up, we take an in-depth look at the car and truck design process:

Then we have video of the on-ride portion where you take your car for a ride on the Sim Track:

One of the post show features that was added a few days later was the Driving Tables, where you take you car you designed and race it against other guests:

To top it all off, we have a comprehensive video that includes all the video from above, but also the facade, queue, loading area, and more post-show elements. Enjoy this comprehensive look at Test Track presented by Chevrolet:

So, what do you think of the new Test Track?

With Test Track presented by Chevrolet officially opening tomorrow, we decided it might be a good idea to prepare you for thr rigors of designing your own custom car for ther Sim-Track. The following video will take you through the design process for both a car and a truck and will show you how each decision you make can affect your final score. Enjoy:

Wednesday night, I had the privilege of taking a sneak preview ride on the all new Test Track.  What I saw can easily be described in one word: breathtaking.  Before I go into further detail, I should warn you that this review will be very spoiler heavy, so if you want to be surprised, please read no more.  There is no shame in wanting to experience the attraction with no knowledge of it – in fact, it’s my preferred way to do it.  But if spoilers aren’t a concern to you, then welcome to the SimTrack!

The entrance plaza is sleek.  Plenty of blues and silvers set the tone for your experience, and the whole thing is very futuristic.  It’s amazing how much I thought I was back in the 80′s.  The Fastpass machines were covered, so I can’t report on those, but they are in the same location as the old machines.

That’s about the only thing left over in the entrance plaza.  Gone are the old warehouse doors at the entrance to the building, replaced by two large portals that extend from the building.  The door on the right is for the standby queue, which is long enough to handle a – get ready – eight hour long queue.  Overkill, perhaps…but it’s nice to know that they’re prepared.  I didn’t actually go into the standby queue, as I was directed into the door on the left, which is for both single riders and guests with Fastpass.  I should note at this point that Test Track is equipped with the hardware for Fastpass+.  This in itself is unsurprising, but the posts at the entrance are a different shape than the ones we’ve seen at Magic Kingdom attractions. They’re a sleek, futuristic design – very much in line with everything else in this attraction.

The entrance plaza also contains our first Easter egg of sorts – Test Track has a specific trash can design.  I know, I know, pretty minute detail…but it’s one worth pointing out, as it has the old World of Motion symbol prominently featured on it.  Nods to former attractions are always nice, and resurrecting an old pavilion symbol is even better. Keep your eyes open – you’ll see a lot of Motion symbols in this building.

The queue is full of shiny silver tones, making it look like a futuristic showroom floor.  There’s a Chevrolet concept vehicle on display, and from the looks of what I saw, there are plenty of exhibits and screens to occupy those waiting in the Standby queue.  At the end of all three queues are the design stations.

The single rider and Fastpass design stations are in one room, separated by a railing.  The much larger Standby room is on a slightly lower level, with the back wall made up of windows that look into the Fastpass/single rider queue.  The design process wasn’t working at the time of my preview, so I can’t comment on how it is, but I do know how it works – you get an RFID card on a rubber band that will store your design.  You’ll take this card with you along your journey, scanning it at different points along the way.  It’s worth noting that the RFID scanning point has the new “TT” logo on it rather than the Mickey head we’ve been seeing on things like the Be Our Guest ordering kiosks.

A sign directing us to the SimTrack ushers in the first truly recognizable location from the old ride – the load station.  It’s still four cars long, with rows 1-8.  The difference is that just before each set of air gates are six RFID scanners – one for each rider in the car.  You’ll scan your card before you ride, and see the results of your prototype vehicle as you experience the attraction.

The cars themselves are the same as before, it seems.  They’re all blue, and look exactly like the three “Tron cars” we saw being tested on the old ride.  The seat belts still have the traditional yellow strap, and once you’re all buckled up, the ride begins.  A computerized voice greets you, informing that the seat belt check is around the corner.  Once the check is complete, a different computerized voice – female this time – officially welcomes you to the SimTrack.

The old hill climb and rough road tests serve little purpose other than introducing you to the new track…and boy does it look spiffy.  It’s like the inside of a computer…the only way I can describe it is that it’s as if you’re entering The Grid.  The walls seem alive around you as you quickly ascend and descend the hill leading to the first test, Responsiveness.

The Responsiveness Test is designed to see how well your designs respond to inclement weather.  The first leg is in the old “no ABS” test area, and tests your vehicle’s response to rain.  A virtual rainstorm appears on your left as your car skids off the road in a very convincing effect.  As you move into the old “ABS reactivated” test, your SimCar will face an avalanche and a lightning bolt.  Rounding the corner, we come to the area where the old ABS replay screens were.  There’s still a screen there, but this time it shows the Responsiveness Test results for each of the six vehicles designed by everyone in your SimCar.  This is a neat feature, allowing you to keep track of your design throughout the show.  Next to the scoreboard is something really cool – a small model of a futuristic city with projections on it depicting motion – a very cool tribute to the old CenterCore in World of Motion.

The old environmental chambers now play host to the Efficiency Test.  I can’t go on too much about these, as it wasn’t working properly when I rode it.  The windows from the old ride have been replaced by one way mirrors.  I could see a giant screen behind the mirror, but it wasn’t working properly and all I saw was someone working on a Windows desktop.  I imagine that this will be a Pepper’s Ghost-sequel effect, but I honestly don’t know.  Another screen at the end of the old corrosive chamber shows your Efficiency scores as this test wraps up.

The former Track Course A is home to the Capability Test, which is probably the most breathtaking of the four tests.  Blue lasers line the road and the landscape (laser trees!) as your car goes through some hairpin turns, down a dip, and into a tunnel, where you’re still almost hit by a semi (and yes, the semi is outlined in lasers too).  The whole test is one of the most fun parts of the ride, and it’s neat how the near accident in the tunnel is written off as a “crash avoiding system test.”  There’s a cool Easter egg in this test as well – a road sign directs you to three locations.  You pass it very quickly, so the only location I saw was “General Motorway,” but I’m sure the other two are just as chuckle-worthy.

As your SimCar enters the old Barrier Test area, you see a recap of the three tests you just experienced, as well as the six scores for each concept vehicle.  A computer voice tells you that only one test remains – the Power Test.  Four lit neon purple arches lead to a solid wall with the “TT” logo, and as you speed towards this wall, it splits open leading you to the exterior track.  This portion of the ride seems unchanged – you still go incredibly fast and it’s definitely the most thrilling part of the attraction.  The brakes are still jolting, however, so if this part of the ride gave you trouble on the old version, don’t hope for anything different.  The speedometer is still there and lit up, but it wasn’t showing speeds when I rode.  I assume this will be operational soon.  The reentry tunnel has another scoreboard in place of the old thermal imaging camera.  As you come to the bottom of the hill, you’re back at the load station, and will exit the vehicle on your left.

You’ll go down the same hallway to the old photo view stations. Gone are the old self-scan Photopass stations, replaced by a counter at the end of the room where you can purchase the photo.  You then exit into the postshow, of which I only saw one room.  There’s a huge screen (and I do mean huge) on the wall behind a railing.  The screen shows a map of the track layout, with dots representing SimCars currently on the ride.  The railing in front has about a dozen RFID scanning points.  If you scan your card at the railing, a popup window will show in front of you on the screen displaying your vehicle’s results on the SimTrack.  I was also told that this screen will show the best scoring cars of the day, similar to the leader boards at Toy Story Midway Mania.

Habit Heroes – still closed

The exterior of Test Track is making quick progress as we race towards soft openings

Signage about to go up

They finally painted the exit

A look over the walls

Epcot Christmas tree

Food and Wine is now over, but at least we have the memories…

The temporary Epcot Character Spot is in the old Epcot 25th Anniversary exhibit space

The backdrop is retro-tastic…

Some remnants of the exhibit remain

The actual Character Spot in down for a lengthy refurbishment

Looks like it is going to be a while

Still using the same entrance

Walls still up near Electric Umbrella

The Epcot 30th window display is still up at Art of Disney

FastPass Plus at Spaceship Earth

The podium was uncovered

BYE!

It’s Christmas at the Magic Kingdom

Some tarps up on the Adventureland Veranda

The Magic Carpets of Aladdin refurbishment is done

The old steel drum bandstand is behind tarps, probably related to the upcoming Pirates interactive game being installed in Adventureland

Work continues on the new Fantasyland restrooms

Let’s check-in on New Fantasyland

The Seven Dwarfs’ Mine Train

New tarps are up on Princess Fairytale Hall

Looks like these 5 princesses will be greeting guests when it opens in late-2013

Mesh for the rock-work going up on Mine Train

Cinderella Castle Dreamlights are back

The exit test is back in use

Goodnight Magic Kingdom!

DETROIT – Chevrolet designers and Walt Disney Imagineers have joined forces to give Walt Disney World Resort guests a deep look inside a professional design studio creating a first-of-its-kind multi-sensory virtual experience in automotive design.

Chevrolet and Disney tapped their best design talent with expertise ranging from industrial and automotive design to architecture and animation. The design collaboration began 18 months ago with a few guiding principles – create an experience that is personal, future-focused and optimistic.

The two teams met regularly throughout the development process in both GM’s Design studios in Warren, Mich., and at Test Track in Epcot in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. The collaboration allowed for the greatest level of innovation yet ensured the values of both brands were accurately represented in the new attraction, while allowing both teams to learn from each other’s expertise.

“At Chevrolet, the diversity of talent on our team allows us to consistently produce sophisticated, refined and detailed design – but we don’t typically design through the eyes of a 12-year-old,” said Jeff Mylenek, GM Design manager, Global Exhibit and Merchandising Design. “Working with Walt Disney Imagineering, we were inspired to see our brand story from a more youthful perspective and really opened the parameters on how to approach this design challenge.”

The result is a unique experience that gives an authentic, inside-the-studio look at the actual automotive design process, while empowering guests themselves to create their own designs, possibly inspiring the next generation of automotive designers.

“The re-imagined Test Track portrays an optimistic view of the future, and reflects the deep collaboration between Disney and Chevrolet on both the design and the overall experience,” said Eric Jacobson, senior vice president, Walt Disney Imagineering. “It’s a thrilling attraction supported by rich exhibit displays and interactive elements that bring guests directly into the design process – with a few surprises thrown in.”

The teams used multiple mediums throughout the re-imagined attraction for storytelling, including:

• Visual cues inspired by Chevrolet’s expressive vehicle design language throughout the architectural elements in the space as well as in the interactive displays; speed forms and concept vehicle displays, like EN-V and Miray, provide a glimpse into the future of Chevrolet design.
• Advanced computer technology – similar to that used by Chevrolet designers every day – powers the guest design experience, while radio frequency technology allows them to take their unique vehicle design with them through the entire ride.
• A thrill-ride that provides the test experience where each guest’s vehicle design is evaluated.
• Social media sharing extends the experience beyond the day at the park.
• Test Track Presented by Chevrolet offers Disney guests a three-part experience:
• First, guests will have the opportunity to design their own vehicle – car, truck or crossover – with some helpful hints from the Chevrolet designers built into the process.  “Designing a successful vehicle requires some careful thought about how to balance capability, efficiency, responsiveness and power – some of the key elements that Chevrolet designers must consider with every new vehicle they imagine,” said Mylenek.
• Next, they will have the chance to test drive their vehicle design, through the ride, on track surfaces that simulate the actual vehicle validation process that Chevrolet engineers use to ensure every new vehicle meets the highest performance standards.  Each guest’s vehicle design will be evaluated and scored based on how well their design balanced the core attributes.
• Finally, guests have the opportunity to race their vehicle over changing terrain and extreme conditions on a digital driving table, produce and share a TV commercial starring their custom vehicle and pose for action shots in front of their design.

The re-imagined Test Track Presented by Chevrolet will open on Dec. 6, 2012.

The really interesting part is the new concept art and press photos released today:

The queue

More queue and design studio

More queue

More queue

The SimCar which we already familiar with

A little bit of the Test Track we know mixed with the one we do not

Design stations

Driving tables in the post show

More driving tables… reminds me a bit of the World of Motion finale scene

A glimpse of what the showroom will look like, including what appears to be a game called “Showroom Showdown”

Imagineers and GM officials confer around the model

I have to admit I wasn’t sold on this project for a while, but this new batch of concept art has me pretty excited. What do you think?

UPDATE: Some additional press photos were released by Disney later in the day -

 Exterior

 What is will look like when your vehicle gets scored

A scene where a vehicle gets tested for efficiency

It’s Autumn

Pins available for Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid

Casey Jr. Splash ‘N’ Soak has a pin

Holiday pins are out

Walls still up near the Haunted Mansion

Tarps up on Columbia Harbor House

The Yankee Trader is still behind tarps

Work continues on the new restrooms in Fantasyland

The Village Haus balcony is still closed, but tarps have started coming down

Looks nice

The souvenir cups from Gaston’s Tavern are also at Village Haus

Seven Dwarfs’ Mine Train construction continues

Wow…

Fun “character” apples

Storybook Circus has its own specialty cupcakes

Pete’s Silly Sideshow

Finishing touches keep being added, the eyes on the snakes now have a spinning effect

There is some large construction happening between the TTC and the Magic Kingdom bus loop

At the All-Star Resorts, the lobby has been redecorated with large pictures to replace the old small ones

All-Star Sports

All-Star Music

The game cards at most of the arcades are now Wreck-It Ralph themed

Moving over to Animal Kingdom

Enjoy Camp Minnie-Mickey while you can

Pocohontas and Her Forrest Friends has been closed since September 2008 and is now being used for stroller parking

Beastly Bazaar is closed as it is being turned into a character meet and greet

That’s why we are here…

NO ZEBRAS!

They weren’t out at the time…

Test Track is coming along nicely (as seen from the monorail)

You can see the outline of the two Ts on the canopy

Digging the spot where the sign will go

Not much visible progress by the exit

The Epcot Character Spot is being refurbished

Work continues on the new IBM exhibit in Innoventions

Some Epcot 30th merchandise remains

Christmas merchandise in abundance

Neat…

If you look closely, you’ll even see the World of Motion pavilion logo in the giant T on the canopy. Test Track presented by Chevrolet opens December 6th at Epcot.

So, what do you think of the new look for Test Track?

Seven Dwarfs’ Mine Train construction

Princess Fairytale Hall

Work continues on the upper-level of Village Haus

Work continues on the new restrooms coming to the former Skyway site

Modifications are taking place at “it’s a small world” related to new guest flow for when stroller parking once again moves next door at the old Skyway site

More metal guardrails are being installed on the Tomorrowland bridges

Magic Carpets of Aladdin is closed for refurbishment

Work continues on the Grand Floridian DVC wing

EVEN THE WALLS HAVE WALLS!

Moving to Epcot, work continues on in Innoventions central

Still nothing up on the canopy at Test Track

Moving over to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the facade of Legend of Jack Sparrow is looking much better than when we first checked in

A large mural of the circular map from “At World’s End” covers most of the soundstage

Wreck-It Ralph and Vanellope will start greeting guests on October 28th

AWESOME

Guests can color while the meet and greet is being installed

Plenty of Wreck-It Ralph merchandise available at Mickey’s of Hollywood

children’s shirt

Most of this stuff can be picked up at your local Disney Store

Scented plush

A strange large canopy has appeared near the Magic Kingdom turnstiles… Not sure if it is RFID related or for something else…

Magic Carpets of Aladdin is open while some exterior work is being done

The Yankee Trader is still behind tarps

A view of the new walkway and restroom area from the front of the Haunted Mansion

A look at the former Skyway site

Princess Fairytale Hall construction

The Crow’s Nest is still behind walls

Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom shirts are now available and they offer aid in the playing of the game!

OK… if you are buying more than that for Ebay, you are pretty dumb as they are not a limited edition item…

Frankenweenie flopped at the box office, but the shops at the parks are full of movie merchandise

It’s like they knew what the box office would be like…

I would expect to see all this stuff at the outlets and Cast Connection very soon…

Work continues on the Grand Floridian Disney Vacation Club wing

It is now set for a late-2013 opening

The parking lot is almost done

Moving over to Epcot, work is being done on Innoventions Plaza and the Electric Umbrella exterior

Test Track is now set to open December 6th

I expect these signs to vanish soon…