{"id":887666,"date":"2026-06-23T18:28:29","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T18:28:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/887666\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T18:28:29","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T18:28:29","slug":"what-its-like-to-ride-fast-furious-at-universal-studios-hollywood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/887666\/","title":{"rendered":"What it’s like to ride ‘Fast & Furious’ at Universal Studios Hollywood"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When the creators behind Universal Studios Hollywood\u2019s soon-to-open <\/a>\u201cFast & Furious\u201d coaster discusses the attraction, they speak of it not only as the most grown-up, intense ride at the park<\/a>, but also as one of the most extreme coasters in Universal\u2018s global portfolio. That means, in theory, a ride as vaunted as its Florida coasters Jurassic World VelociCoaster and Stardust Racers<\/a>. <\/p>\n

For riders, some of the perception of danger will come from the coaster\u2019s location. Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift is set on a hill between the park\u2019s upper and lower lots. It will careen over, under and around guest escalators, and take attendees on a journey that includes multiple inversions and speeds of 72 mph, making it the fastest coaster at any Universal park. A particularly unique facet is the ability for its cars, each meticulously designed<\/a> after a real vehicle, to rotate 360 degrees. <\/p>\n

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Plenty of coasters have the capacity to spin, but Universal has been hyping the high-speed \u201cdrift\u201d sensation of its cars. Each ride vehicle will have distinct programming along the coaster\u2019s 4,100 feet of track, and the hope is to create the feel of a stunt car just barely maintaining its control.<\/p>\n

I like a coaster, but I\u2019m also, I\u2019ll admit<\/a>, a tad squeamish. Hollywood Drift is expected to open by mid-summer, and at the time of writing, only Universal stakeholders had been on the attraction. Jon Corfino, the park\u2019s lead creative executive, was one of those riders, so as he gave me a tour of the coaster, I pressed him to describe what the experience is like. Here\u2019s what I learned. <\/p>\n

So Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift is intense. But just how intense is it? \"One <\/p>\n

A loop on Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift. <\/p>\n

(Todd Martens \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

The late, great theme dark designer Eddie Sotto<\/a> once devised a simple formula for what makes a good coaster: Fear minus death equals fun. I wanted to ask Corfino just how scared I would be. Answer: Pretty frightened. Probably.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a high level of intensity, absolutely, for sure,\u201d Corfino says. <\/p>\n

And yet Corfino tried to calm my nerves. Hollywood Drift, he explained, is designed to feel relatively slick \u2014 polished, if you will. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve ridden coasters that I would say are high intensity, but they\u2019re very aggressive,\u201d he says. \u201cThey\u2019re very rough. But if you look at what we tried to achieve here, it\u2019s that you\u2019re in a [car] vehicle. It\u2019s very smooth. It\u2019s not something that would be not natural for a car, if that makes sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

Well, except for the whole going upside down part. Based on Corfino\u2019s assessment, we can expect some white knuckles, as Hollywood Drift will lift riders off their seats at multiple points. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou definitely feel you\u2019re coming out a couple times, and not the least of it is when you\u2019re upside down,\u201d Corfino says. The coaster will utilize a lap restraint that extends from the top. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll be holding on,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen you\u2019re upside down, you\u2019re holding on.\u201d<\/p>\n

What about the drops? \"Rotating <\/p>\n

Unversal Studios\u2019 Hollywood\u2019s Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift is set to open this summer.<\/p>\n

(Todd Martens \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

Corfino didn\u2019t pinpoint the exact steepness of the drops on Hollywood Drift, but riders will encounter one immediately after launch. When exiting the show building, designed to look like a warehouse garage, Hollywood Drift will take a sudden dip off a cliff. The sharp drop is one of many.<\/p>\n

Riders will encounter, for instance, a so-called \u201cbunny hop,\u201d which is typically a series of small hills that provide airtime. But Hollywood Drift will play with riders\u2019 expectations through its terrain. Those mid-ride hills are \u201cactually pretty darn steep,\u201d Corfino says. And then before the ride ends, riders will go up, over and under Universal Studios\u2019 most recognizable feature (except perhaps Stuart the Minion<\/a>): its escalators. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you go up over the loop, that\u2019s very steep. You\u2019re coming straight down over the stairway and then underneath the stairway,\u201d Corfino says.<\/p>\n

How real are the cars? \"Coaster <\/p>\n

The minicars of Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift. <\/p>\n

(Todd Martens \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

The coaster will feature four heavily detailed miniature cars as ride vehicles. These four-seaters \u2014 mimicking a Dodge Charger, Mazda RX-7, Nissan Skyline GT-R and Toyota Supra \u2014 all come complete with working taillights. And each has its own distinct sound effects, engine and brake noises that match their real cars. Guests will hear brakes each time the vehicle drifts or turns.<\/p>\n

The minicars aren\u2019t complete tiny re-creations. The odometers in the coaster cars, for instance, are for show only. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe truth is I was really laboring,\u201d Corfino says of the accuracy of the coaster cars. \u201cThey all have realistic sound effects, and when you hit the bottom, the big launch, I wanted to hear the NOS kick in. But you\u2019re going so fast, at 72 mph, and with the wind, you\u2019re not hearing anything. Quite frankly, your vision is even kind of shaky because you\u2019re going so fast.\u201d<\/p>\n

That sort of attention to detail is what separates a Universal or Disney coaster from so much of the industry \u2014 even if riders will be clutching their restraints too hard to notice the discrepancies in each car\u2019s engine roar.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m eager to get on the ride. I will, however, pretend I didn\u2019t hear Corfino say that thing about \u201cshaky\u201d eyesight. <\/p>\n

This week in SoCal theme parks \"Dataland <\/p>\n

Dataland is now open in downtown Los Angeles. Theme park fans should give it a look. <\/p>\n

(Carlin Stiehl \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n