Even though the Disneyland Viewliner train has the reputation as being “One of the shortest-lived rides in the history of Disneyland”, it did a superb job showcasing what a high-performance train could be way back when. Why is it on TFLtruck.com? It’s a scale replica of the General Motor’s Aerotrain (more on this later). Its sleek styling, performance and rapid demise sit in the cobweb-covered annals of Disney rides long forgotten. That’s a shame.
On June 26, 1957, the Disneyland Viewliner debuted. It was a narrow gauge railroad that Walt Disney claimed was the fastest in its class. Disneyland ran two passenger trains through Tomorrowland and Fantasyland. The ride ended for the Disneyland Viewliner on September 15, 1958. Disney needed the space for the construction of the Monorail System.
The Disney Viewliner, designed by Walt Disney Imagineer Bob Gurr, was a 5/8-scale replica of the Aerotrain by GM, which was a short-lived mix of train and bus. The Disneyland Viewiner was powered by a Chevrolet Corvette V8 mated to a manual transmission that had a reverse gear as well. Truck components were said to have been used for a majority of the suspension components.
It also had a steering wheel. The structure of the engine was enhanced by the judicious use of automobile parts – mostly GM, but it is said that there were some Jeep components used as well.
Disneyland ran two trains over two different routes. They were different colors and the Tomorrowland cars were named after planets while the Fantasyland train used popular character names for each car. The top (scale) speed for each train was 120 MPH (about 30 actual MPH).
While it is sad that the Disneyland Viewliner was discontinued and scrapped, a replica of the GM Aerotrain/Disneyland Viewiner is running at the Oregon Zoo in Portland, OR.
