Better Beaters - Building Cars and Daily Drivers

 This Summer, during a trip to Reno I visited the National Auto Museum.

A Post War version of the Lincoln Continental.

This is part of what was once known as the Harrah's Collection. This collection was formerly housed in a couple of large warehouses located on the outskirts of the city. Many years ago, almost fifty to be exact, I visited the old display site, which was somewhat cluttered and not viewer friendly. I have an album of grainy old Instamatic prints of that visit. This time I brought my digital camera along with me. The images are much sharper.

Someone, tell Mr. Cunningham that his De Soto is missing!

The National Automobile Museum is located in downtown Reno. I didn't take any notes during the visit, but will try to identify the cars the best that I can from memory.

Ed Roth's VW powered trike.

The famous Roth Beatnick Bandit.

A popular favorite, a '55 Thunderbird.

Cadillac ElDorado Brougham. The most expensive American car of it's era.

'55 Buick Skylark.

A Dual Ghia with a Frank Sinatra connection.

A dead Triceratops in a Jurassic Park exhibit.
The Ford Explorers had already been moved out.

A 1940's Indian sidecar rig.

A classic early Forties Harley Knucklehead.

 

Al Jolson's Cadillac V16.

Here's a shot of the engine.
It was beautifully finished from the factory.

Pre War Mercedes cabriolet.

This is the model that preceded my '46 Plymouth.

I'm guessing that this is a Morgan. 
What else could it be?

Late Thtrties Buick would have made a great used car buy.

Late Thirties Cadillac Sixty Special.

Thirties Packard Cabriolet. 
I watched the staff carefully guide the car back into it's display spot.

It was not easy without power steering.

These Boyd Coddington hot rods were in a room
that was closed for a donor event.

The museum also has a gift store with books, toys, models, T shirts, and other memorabilia for sale. I bought a few old copies of  Automobile Quarterly for five bucks each. I don't have a complete collection, but will pick up a copy here or there when I find them at a good price. 

If you happen to be in Reno, it's worth stopping by. The museum is not that large, and most of the cars are a bit crammed inside. It's not easy to get a good view of most of them. 

I have visited the Bering Museum in Danville as well as the California Auto museum in Sacramento, but that was quite a few years ago. 

My favorite museum is the Petersen in Los Angeles, which has a huge collection. It also has special marque events and displays. I'm sure that there are probably more automotive museums that I've never visited and don't even know about. Hopefully I will get a chance to discover them.