Universal Studios shares major update on new ‘Fast & Furious’ roller coaster

By Yosi Yahoudai
Founder and Managing Partner

The new “Fast & Furious” themed roller coaster under construction at Universal Studios Hollywood will open in 2026, the theme park announced on Friday.

“Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift” will be the park’s first high-speed outdoor thrill ride and will feature “technological achievements never previously employed in a roller coaster,” USH said in a statement.

The ride will launch from the park’s upper lot and descend into the lower lot for a series of banked turns and inversions, including a loop around the Starway escalator. Park officials said its cars will be able to rotate 360 degrees to replicate the drifting seen in the movie franchise’s famous race scenes.

A rendering showing the tubes that will contain the screams of riders on Universal Studios Hollywood’s Fast & Furious roller coaster. (communityline.nbcuni.com)Promotional art for Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift at Universal Studios Hollywood (USH)A composite image showing a satellite view of Universal Studios Hollywood and the purported site map for the new Fast & Furious roller coaster. (parkfans.net)

“As Universal Studios Hollywood continues to evolve, the arrival of ‘Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift’ will be a powerful game changer that will infuse a new level of thrill into our already dynamic theme park,” said Scott Strobl, the park’s Executive Vice President & General Manager.

The ride’s queue will be a large, red brick, “garage-style structure” in the upper lot, and cars will be modeled after those seen in the films.

The rotating cars, however, won’t just elicit screams. They will also spin riders away from nearby communities so those screams don’t create a noise issue.

Two half-pipe shields and “pea gravel” filled tracks will also limit noise, the park says on its community outreach website.

Friday’s announcement coincides with the 60th anniversary of the park’s marquee attraction, the Universal Studios Tour, which predates any of its thrill rides.

To mark the anniversary, the park has revamped the tour to allow riders to step off and take photos next to the famous Psycho House and Bates Motel, among other updates.

About the Author

Yosi Yahoudai is a founder and the managing partner of J&Y. His practice is comprised primarily of cases involving automobile and motorcycle accidents, but he also represents people in premises liability lawsuits, including suits alleging dangerous conditions of public property, third-party criminal conduct, and intentional torts. He also has expertise in cases involving product defects, dog bites, elder abuse, and sexual assault. He earned his Bachelor of Arts from the University of California and is admitted to practice in all California State Courts, and the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. If you have any questions about this article, you can contact Yosi by clicking here.

(source)