NEW Universal Studios Roller Coaster Faces Complaints Before Opening to Public

There might be no one more excited for Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift than us! This new coaster is coming to Universal Studios Hollywood and Orlando but the Hollywood version actively testing and set to open this summer. For Orlando, the roller coaster is planned for 2027, but no further timelines have been announced.

This is one of the more unique roller coasters we’ve seen, where guests will climb aboard cars that will spin and “drift” throughout the track. With construction well underway, noise reports are starting to appear. Could this mean a delayed opening? Let’s find out.

According to FOX 11 Los Angeles, Universal Studios Hollywood is facing noise complaints from Toluca Lake residents over Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift. They say that “Early human test runs have sent a wave of screams echoing into nearby residential areas, prompting locals to demand immediate noise control.”

Currently, this is the park’s only fully outdoor roller coaster, which makes sense why guests’ screams have not been a previous complaint. The ride reaches top speeds of 72 miles per hour and has been causing “loud, intermittent screaming that carries directly across the fairway of the nearby Lakeside Golf Course and into the surrounding Toluca Lake neighborhood.”

One resident told FOX 11, “I mean, when you’re sitting outside, you just hear the screaming all throughout the day and then even into the night, so it’s pretty non-stop. Yeah, loud screams, just voices, just like a little bit of obnoxious noise throughout the entire day.”

Rumors have popped up saying that the ride would be delayed while they worked on a solution, but a Universal Hollywood spokesperson said that the report is not true and that “We expect to announce an opening date soon. The information online is incorrect.” The ride is still set to open in summer 2026.

Universal Studios Hollywood engineers are currently working on a series of structural and mechanical adjustments to muffle the sounds before the ride officially opens to the public, according to FOX 11. The current plan includes:

• • Constructing dedicated sound walls around the high-velocity segments of the outdoor track.
  • Utilizing a specialized gravel track bed designed to absorb structural vibrations and mechanical noise.
  • Programming the individual coaster vehicles to spin and face away from the Toluca Lake neighborhood during the loudest elements of the ride.

We’ll be keeping a close eye on the coaster, especially since an opening date is coming soon, but in the meantime, make sure you keep following AllEars for more Universal and theme park news.

CHECK OUT MORE DETAILS ABOUT THE RIDE HERE!

Are you excited for this new roller coaster to open? Tell us your thoughts in the comments.