Major Doom Buggy Ride Vehicle Malfunction Leads to Haunted Mansion Closure at Magic Kingdom

    As you might have heard by now, Haunted Mansion is closed indefinitely at Magic Kingdom. When we spoke with Cast Members yesterday, they were not sure when the attraction would return to operation, potentially signaling a serious problem for the ride. Today, we can exclusively share a first-hand account of what went wrong on Monday night.

    According to an anonymous source, there was an issue with the omnimover track and Doom Buggies that led to the ride’s closure. Doom Buggies, which is the name for the attraction ride vehicles, were not turning correctly and started making loud, clunking sounds shortly before the attraction closed and guests were evacuated. We’re told that guests went down the sloping part of the track exiting the attic scene facing forward instead of backwards like normal. As expected, it was quite uncomfortable to descend facing forward.

    Guests who evacuated the attraction tell us that several of the Doom Buggies were turned the wrong way. The Doom Buggies were either facing sideways or the wrong way completely. An anonymous source sent in the following photo. In the photo, you can see what appears to be the scene where ghosts “join” your Doom Buggy. The Doom Buggy on the right appears to be completely turned away from the window seen in the background. Normal operation of the attraction would call for the Doom Buggy to face the window. The Doom Buggy on the left is also incorrectly directed perpendicular to the window.

    Without more information on what exactly caused the Doom Buggies to malfunction, we can’t say how extensive the problem is. Again, Cast Members don’t know when the attraction will reopen, but it has been closed since around 9:30pm on Monday night. As of publish time, Haunted Mansion is still closed at Magic Kingdom with no definite reopening date or time.

    As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com for continuing coverage of the Disney Parks.

    BlogMickey.com Newsletter

    Stay up-to-date with the latest Disney news, right to your inbox!

    Kingdom Destinations Quote

    Vacation Planning Assistance

    We're excited to partner with Kingdom Destinations to help you plan your next trip to Disney parks and experiences around the world. Kingdom Destinations is a full service travel agency, specializing in Disney destinations. Fill out the form below to schedule a free consultation with one of their professional travel advisors today!

    8 COMMENTS

    1. Wow lots of mishaps at Disney lately..
      The people mover, splash Mountain and now Haunted Mansion ?! Disney needs to get it together before someone gets really hurt!

    2. Because they “have it together” no one has gotten hurt… their fast response should be applauded … Yes a lot of things can go wrong in a short period of time..but being proactive on the solutions driven is more effective for the safety of all guests..

    3. What happened with Splash Mountain?! I heard about Jungle Cruise and Peoplemover along with my home away from home Haunted Mansion but didn’t hear about Splash Mountain!

    4. Splash Mountain didn’t have issues it was down for its refurbishment! They do this ever year especially when the weather gets colder here

    5. The issue you are seeing with the doom buggy facing the wrong way is common. Most likely a broken u-joint which facilities can repair quickly. But if the cast members don’t catch it in time, then the buggy can spin and the arm underneath (that turns the buggy to face a certain direction) can damage the track and guide rail (which are beneath the floor). If the mansion is closed for an extended period, my guess is that the track was damaged. Give it a week at most to be repaired.

    6. Guests were evacuated from Splash Mountain while we were at Magic Kingdom on March 3rd. We experienced several ride closures in multiple parks.

    7. I was on the ride Feb 14th & the buggy’s all stopped mo
      momentarily. An announcement was made after a minutes wait &
      the ride was functional again. I wondered, at the time, what was going wrong.
      That’s disappointing for fans but fixable.
      Disney does an amazing job handling so many people.

    8. It is possible the ride stop was to load or unload someone with issues walking, or another disability. I remember as a teen, my grandpa received the treatment of a Ride stop on several rides as he could not walk the speed to load the vehicles, even on slow downs.

    Comments are closed.

    BlogMickey.com Newsletter

    Stay up-to-date with the latest Disney news, right to your inbox!

    Related Articles