The owners of the Sheraton Palace Hotel allowed Disney to film the scene of Herbie crossing their large regal dining area only after the Herbie used was rigged to run on battery power (no gas exhaust) and the bottom of the car was drip-proofed. It was filmed at a time of day where there is low traffic at the dining area. The diners in the foreground (in front of Herbie rolling through) were actually blue screened in later.
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