It’s no secret that big things are brewing at Magic Kingdom, and Disney fans are paying close attention.With construction walls going up this July, a massive chunk of the park is about to become a multi-year work zone. The buzz? All eyes are on the new Cars-themed land that’s coming to the back of Frontierland—a project that’s as ambitious as it is mysterious. Disney recently confirmed the name of the new area, inspired by Planes: Fire & Rescue (2014), but they haven’t said a word about when guests will actually get to experience it.Credit: DisneyAnd that silence is exactly why so many people are speculating. The name’s out, the closures are dated, and the concept art is flowing—but if you’re expecting this thing to be done in a year or two, you might want to pump the brakes. The reality is, we’re probably not stepping foot into this new land until 2028 at the very earliest.What We Know So Far About the Cars Land ExpansionThe new land will take over the back portion of Frontierland, which includes Tom Sawyer Island, the Liberty Square Riverboat, and Rivers of America—all of which are permanently closing after July 6, 2025. On July 7, construction walls are expected to go up, officially kicking off what’s likely to be a long and disruptive construction process.The new land will be themed around “Piston Peak,” the fictional national park from Planes: Fire & Rescue, and will introduce two all-new attractions. One will be a high-speed rally-style off-road ride, while the other is expected to be more family-focused. Both will be housed in their own national park-style lodges, with Imagineers pulling design inspiration from the Rocky Mountains, Wilderness Lodge, and Grizzly Peak over at Disney California Adventure.Welcome to the Wheelderness Take a look at Piston Peak National Park coming to Frontierland at @WaltDisneyWorld, inspired by the history and iconic sights of the American Frontier! https://t.co/O6Ib2LVqKe pic.twitter.com/wSOQr8A6O5— Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) June 3, 2025This isn’t a clone of Radiator Springs from California—it’s an entirely original build, and that means everything from the ride systems to the architecture will need to be constructed from scratch. That takes time. A lot of it.2026 Is Impossible for This To Be CompletedLet’s get the obvious out of the way: This land won’t be opened next year.Sure, we’ve seen Disney pull off some quick turnarounds in the past, especially when it’s a re-theme or minor expansion. But this isn’t that. This is a full land being built from the ground up. Even if construction crews were to move at lightning speed starting July 2025, there’s almost zero chance this land is ready to open in 2026.Keep in mind that it is supposed to take Disney potentially more than a year to refurbish Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, a single attraction.Over at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the upcoming Tropical Americas land—which is replacing DinoLand U.S.A.—was announced before this Cars expansion and is currently not expected to open until 2027. That project is further along in the planning phase and doesn’t involve draining rivers or deconstructing massive existing infrastructure like Liberty Square Riverboat tracks and island paths.Credit: DisneyIf Animal Kingdom’s land is landing in 2027, there’s no logical path for Magic Kingdom’s new land to arrive any sooner, and there’s no reason to believe that Disney will open two new lands in the same year, at least on the surface.All Signs Point to 2028 at the Earliest (Most Likely Later)That brings us to the most likely opening window: 2028.A three-year construction timeline is realistic, especially considering the level of detail Disney tends to pour into their new lands. Think about how long Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge took to build. Or how long it took TRON Lightcycle / Run to open—years, even though it was a clone of a ride that already existed in Shanghai. Piston Peak, being a unique creation, has every reason to take at least that long, if not longer.And let’s not forget delays. Weather, supply chain hiccups, technical setbacks—it only takes one major issue to push an opening date back by months or even years. If that happens, we could very well be looking at 2029 or beyond.Credit: Inside the MagicWhy Disney Needs This Done Sooner Than LaterOf course, there’s one big reason Disney will be highly motivated to get this project across the finish line as fast as possible: Epic Universe.Universal’s brand-new theme park is already open and dominating the Orlando buzz. With lands dedicated to How to Train Your Dragon, Dark Universe, Nintendo, and more, Epic Universe could begin pulling in huge crowds in the future and threatening to shift the power dynamic in Central Florida’s theme park wars.Disney can’t afford to drag its feet. This new Cars-themed land, along with the upcoming Villains area (also planned for Magic Kingdom), is clearly Disney’s answer to Epic Universe. But announcements alone don’t keep guests coming back—actual attractions do. So while 2028 may be the most realistic early target, we wouldn’t be surprised if Disney does everything in its power to keep things moving quickly and quietly behind those construction walls.They’ve done it before. Pandora at Animal Kingdom opened just three years after its groundbreaking. If they stick to a tight schedule, Piston Peak could follow a similar trajectory.Credit: Andrew Boardwine, Inside the MagicThe Waiting Game BeginsFor now, fans will just have to keep watching the skyline. Once those walls go up in July, there’s no telling how long they’ll be part of the landscape. The view from Liberty Square and the back edge of Frontierland is about to become a sea of plywood, scrims, and cranes—and it’s going to stay that way for a while.So if you’re heading to Magic Kingdom this summer, take a few final rides on the riverboat. Walk the bridge to Tom Sawyer Island one last time. Because once construction starts, it’s going to be a long wait before something new takes its place.Maybe 2028. Maybe later. Either way, it’s happening—and fans have a lot to talk about between now and then.The post Magic Kingdom Timeline for ‘Cars’ Land Opening Will Have You Frustrated appeared first on Inside the Magic.