Sarasota-based company Cruise Car Inc., continues to expand its global presence—winning a coveted contract to supply Disney Hong Kong with custom-built low-speed vehicles throughout the amusement park grounds and resort. The team worked closely with Disney Hong Kong’s management team and the city's authorities to obtain this approval.

Last week, the Hong Kong Transportation Department solidified the contract after a "lengthy application and approval process." This will be the first time Cruise Car will be providing vehicles directly to Disney, as opposed to distributing to vendors of Disney. “This contract, directly with Disney Hong Kong, is an excellent opportunity for us to expand in Asia and with major amusement parks,” say Adam Sulimirski, president of Cruise Car. 

Low-speed transportation vehicles with golf cart-like models, are currently capped in Hong Kong at about 500 units—requiring the city’s DOT to approve a license to outsource additional vehicles. After meeting in Sarasota with the Hong Kong-based engineering team, a formal purchase order was issued with a multi-year opportunity for Cruise Car to ultimately replace their 60-vehicle fleet. Of Cruise Car’s 100 different vehicle models, Disney selected two ideal utility carts for its flagship property. Cruise Car then customized the models to match their exact need/application to handle specific tasks. For this specific fleet, the team engineered Disney Hong Kong's carts for aggressive use, a challenging topography and salt-air environment. 

“Hong Kong uses standard back-to-back carts, but we approached them and suggested building the same cart on a longer chassis,” explains Sulimirski. “This would allow us to place a secured locker area down in the hauler body and also a storage cage between the back-to-back seats. Disney has serious hills, so a fully programmable motor/controller package included a torque package and a special 240v onboard charging system.” The two-passenger and four-passenger vehicle models provided not only have those hill climbing features and built-in storage lockers, but are fabricated with aluminum to avoid common rust issues, as Hong Kong’s salt air tends to eat away steel carts. Cruise Cars may all be manufactured as street legal LSV’s (low speed vehicles) and include a 17 Digit VIN allowing them to be plated and used on streets posted up to 35mph. 

Now breaking into a global niche market, Sulimirski notes, “We have always focused on large institutional fleet buyers, but find our walk in retail business has accelerated with the positive publicity we have received.”

Photo courtesy of Cruise Car.