What Happened To Lightning McQueen At Art Of Animation Resort?

Refurbishment is taking place at a popular location at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort. However, it is taking longer than usual and has guests wondering where Lightning McQueen is.

Resort Refurbishments

Refurbishments are nothing new at Disney World. The company is always trying to improve upon the guest experience. Unfortunately, to make improvements long term there are inconveniences in the short term.

Construction noises, closures, and limited experiences can make for a less-than-magical experience during the process.

Disney’s Art of Animation Resort

Disney’s Art of Animation Resort allows guests to immerse themselves into their favorite Disney and Pixar animated films such as Finding Nemo, Cars, The Little Mermaid, and The Lion King.

Here guests feel drawn into their favorite animated films and have a sense of being part of the animation process.  Guests are surrounded by larger than life statues and figurines.  Check out Maggie’s complete guide to the resort here for information on room types, recreation, dining, and experiences.

Recently, the Cozy Cone Pool and other areas of the resort reopened after refurbishments.

Lightning McQueen

Over at the Cars Suites at Art of Animation, characters from the movie are found outside the buildings and offer great photo opportunities. Lightning McQueen, understandably, is one of the more popular photo spots. Recently, the models of the characters have undergone quick refurbishments as they are cleaned and paint is touched up. Usually the characters are covered for a few days during this process.

Lightning McQueen, however, has been covered for a few months. Guests have been frustrated that they cannot utilize the picture spot. It appears the McQueen refurbishment is not like the other Cars characters.

According to guest reports and conversations with cast members, McQueen is not even under the current cover. There is a foam mold under the cover holding the shape where McQueen typically sits. This suggests the Lightning McQueen may have been sent off-site for a more involved refurbishment or the resort is awaiting a new model.

According to guest reports and conversations with cast members, McQueen was damaged or vandalized in some way. Despite signage over the years asking guests to not climb on the characters, many guests sit on the cars for pictures. Not having McQueen available has been frustrating for guests staying in the Cars Suites.

Hopefully the damage was not intentional, but whatever happened has certainly led to a longer than normal refurbishment. A quick fix was not possible. Maybe Mater can get to the bottom of it?

Do you have an upcoming stay planned for the Art of Animation Resort? Do you get your picture taken by Lightning McQueen and the other Cars characters? What do you think happened? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook!