Six Flags Is Permanently Closing This Famous Roller Coaster After More Than 100 Injury Claims

Visitors to Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California, will no longer be able to ride the X2 roller coaster. As of September 2026, it has been permanently closed after reports alleging it has caused many serious injuries. Brian Oerding, Six Flags Magic Mountain Park President, wrote a post confirming the closure. "While X2 consistently passed a multitude of safety tests, we have decided to close the ride because we believe it's the right thing to do. Ride safety is a cornerstone of our business, and when we see guest confidence affected, we take it seriously."

The ride was closed temporarily in July 2026. Then in August 2026, CNN published an investigation on the multiple traumatic brain injuries and even deaths linked to the ride. There are also some ongoing lawsuits filed by the Dordick Law Corporation on behalf of three riders who allege they were injured on the ride. The law firm said in a press conference that they had also received complaints from more than 100 people of traumatic brain injury related to the X2.

When it opened as X in 2002, it was "the world's first 'fourth-dimensional' roller coaster," according to KTLA. For those of us not in the know on roller coaster lingo, that means the "seats rotate 360-degrees independently of the track" and it adds an element of unpredictability. The X was closed for major updates in 2007, and it reopened in 2008 as the X2. The coaster reached speeds of 76 mph, and it featured a 215-foot drop at the start and a number of inversions along its 3,600-foot-long track. There were few coasters like it. However, despite its distinctive design, X2 faced ongoing scrutiny over safety.

Reports of major head and neck injuries connected to the X2 at Six Flags Magic Mountain date back more than 10 years, and some complaints involved "riders who suffered life-altering disabilities, fell into comas and two who died of their injuries," per CNN. CNN saw an email from neurosurgeons who operated on two women who experienced brain hemorrhages after riding the X2 in July 2026. It read: "the severe brain injuries requiring emergent neurosurgical attention were the result of a traumatic rapid acceleration-deceleration event experienced while on the X2 ride."

The park confirmed in its closure announcement that the X2 indeed passed safety tests.  And Brian Oerding's post about X2's closure noted the ride had "earned a passionate following among ride enthusiasts." Adding, "We recognize the special place X2 holds in the coaster community." Oerding was certainly right about that, if the social media response to the closure is any indication. "This was my favorite ride. Was always the first one I went on too," one person wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter). Someone else posted: "sad. I think it's the right move. Hopefully will make space for another world class coaster."

Even without X2, Six Flags Magic Mountain is still the "thrill capital of the world" with plenty of roller coasters to ride. While you're in the Los Angeles area, spend a day at Universal Studios Hollywood, its first high-speed outdoor roller coaster opened in September 2026. Then head to Disney California Adventure (one of the most expensive theme parks in the U.S.), to catch a heart-pumping ride on the popular Incredicoaster.