Rare items from Disney World and Disneyland sold at auction
A vehicle from Walt Disney World's Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, and a Skyway gondola and an Autopia car from Disneyland were just a few items available in a unique Disney auction held on Saturday. The collection of about 45,000 items belongs to Scott Rummel, a voice actor from Orange County.
The buggy from Mr. Toad's Wild Ride sold for $87,000 at the Heritage Auctions in Beverly Hills on Saturday. The ride, which opened at Disney World in 1971, was one of the most popular attractions in the park. The buggy from the ride, which dates back to 1993, had been "professionally restored and repainted with added features like spinning wheels and working headlights," according to the auction's website.
"To say this is a rare piece would be a massive understatement," the website says. "With a limited number of these vehicles ever made to begin with - only a handful ever made it to market. This is one of those rare pieces from Walt Disney World."
The gondola sold for $162,000. According to the auction's website, it is one of "the rarest Disney attraction vehicles to exist" and "everything on it is original." The Skyway gondola was built by a Swiss company and arrived at Disneyland in 1965, where it carried visitors across the park for several decades. It was also likely used at Disney World for several years.
"Making this piece even more special is the fact that the lights have been rewired to be functional!" the website says.
The Autopia car "is believed to be the single Autopia vehicle to ever come to auction with all original components present, including the chassis and tires (with the exception of the engine, which was not allowed to be sold for safety reasons)," the website says. It sold Saturday for $180,000.
The car was first put into use at Disneyland in 1967, where it spent more than two decades. The front end of it was modeled after a Corvette Stingray, while the back was inspired by an Opal GT. The car still has "an original Autopia Mark VII insignia" on it, as well as "a plastic sign on the front rail reading 'Do not bump car ahead, keep hands inside car.'"