Now that my interest has been peaked on this I don't know if driving is really much worse than flying. Let's go with 17 hours drive. We would leave Friday after kids get off school (take afternoon off work) and drive for 6 or so hours from 3-10 (1 hour stop for dinner). Then on Saturday we'd get up at 8:00 and drive the last 11 hours from 9:00-10:00PM (1 hour for lunch and 1 hour for dinner).
Or for flying let's leave Saturday and keep the same 8:00 AM wake up time as the drive. So you get up at 8:00, leave the house at 9:00, get to JFK at 10:30 (via the LIRR), flight leaves at 12:30, arrive at MCO at 3:30, get to the Mickey Bus and check in 4:00, bus ride to WDW 5:00.
So with flying you'd really save about 5 hours on Saturday. In the flight scenario you could get to a park by 6:00 and have 4 hours at the park whereas driving you lose that 4 hours of park time.
And it would be a similar idea on the way home, you'd lose Friday evening at the parks and then some hours Saturday morning before leaving for your flight (assuming you have a flight that leaves at 5:00 and would get us back hime by 10:00).
If you have two drivers, seventeen hours is doable in a day. You want to start way early in the morning (like 3 or 4 am), and not stop for anything but quick potty breaks. Its no different that a flight to Asia - in fact its shorter. I've done 15 hour days - me and my daughter who was thirteen at the time (and therefore a non-driver). And as a kid we used to do sixteen hour days, five people in the car - "home" for Summer and Christmas every year.
The kids will snooze until 8 or so. Make sure you have ample charging. Or listen to books - Harry Potter is really good.
Saves two nights worth of hotel.