Classic Car History Lessons

Classic car fans know that summer is always a good time to take a road trip. Although the primary purpose of a road trip is to enjoy the journey itself and not focus so much on a destination, every good road trip needs a basic itinerary and some sort of eventual goal or destination unless you just want to drive around in circles for a few days.

A better use of your time out on the open road would be to plan a road trip that includes both good routes and good destinations. One good destination option available to nearly every vintage car enthusiast regardless of where they live is a museum. Although there are thousands of museums of every imaginable description scattered all over the world today, the type of museum that would be best suited for a classic car road trip would obviously be a classic car museum. A museum that focuses on the evolution, engineering and design of automobiles makes a perfect road trip destination. Auto museums that feature and display interesting and important vehicles that have had a direct impact on the world’s evolving cultures and economies over the past century can be interesting and entertaining to just about anyone lucky enough to visit them. Enthusiasts of all ages can appreciate beautiful and significant automobiles, and a car museum is the best place to see them.

The good news for today’s classic auto enthusiasts is that there probably is a great car museum located somewhere near you, no matter where you live. Today, there are historic car collections and displays located all over the United States and there are many great automobilia venues overseas too. Depending on where you live, your road trip to a car museum may take a few days, or it might only take a drive across town, but no matter how long it takes to get there, a classic car history lesson is a proper destination that will justify your journey.
Just in case you thought there weren’t any good automotive museums located near your particular location, we have listed the biggest and best car museums, classic collections, manufacturer displays and other great historical vehicle venues (in no particular order of importance) here in the U.S. as well as a few abroad that might interest you and your family. * Be sure to do your homework and get the details on those destinations you are interested in prior to making the journey to visit them in person.

Antique Automobile Club of America Museum in Hershey, Pennsylvania
Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum in Auburn, Indiana
Automotive Hall of Fame in Dearborn, Michigan
Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum in Birmingham, Alabama
Blackhawk Museum in Danville, California
Buffalo Transportation Pierce Arrow Museum in Buffalo, New York
Collier Car Collection in Naples, Florida
California Route 66 Museum in Victorville, California
Don Garlits Drag Racing Museum in Ocala, Florida
Eastern Museum of Motor Racing in York Springs, Pennsylvania
General Motors Heritage Collection in Warren, Michigan
Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners, Michigan
Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Hastings Museum in Hastings, Nebraska
Henry Ford Museum in Deerfield Village, Michigan
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum in Indianapolis, Indiana
International Motorsports Hall of Fame in Talladega, Alabama
Jay Leno Garage in Burbank, California
Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline, Massachusetts
LeMay American Car Museum in Tacoma, Washington
Mack Truck Historical Museum in Allentown, Pennsylvania
Mullin Automobile Museum in Oxnard, California
Muscle Car City in Punta Gorda, Florida
Museum of American Speed in Lincoln, Nebraska
National Automobile Museum with the Harrah Collection in Reno, Nevada
National Automotive and Truck Museum of the United States in Auburn, Indiana
National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky
National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum in Knoxville, Iowa
Nethercutt Collection at San Sylmar in Sylmar, California
Penske Racing Museum in Phoenix, Arizona
Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California
Rolls-Royce Foundation Museum in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
San Diego Automotive Museum in San Diego, California
Saratoga Automobile Museum in Saratoga Springs, New York
Shelby American Collection in Boulder, Colorado
Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Studebaker National Museum in South Bend, Indiana
Toyota USA Automobile Museum in Torrance, California
Tupelo Automobile Museum in Tupelo, Mississippi
U.S. Mercedes-Benz Visitor Center in Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum in Pomona, California
Walter P. Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills, Michigan

International Museums –

BMW Museum in Munich, Germany
Brooklands Museum in Weybridge, United Kingdom
Canadian Automotive Museum of Oshawa in Ontario, Canada
Donington Grand Prix Exhibition in Leicestershire, England
Franschhoek Motor Museum in Franschhoek, South Africa
Jaguar Heritage Museum in Coventry, United Kingdom
Lamborghini Museum in Bologna, Italy
Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, Germany
Mille Miglia Museum in Brescia, Italy
Musée Automobile Reims Champagne in Reims, France
Museum Ferrari in Modena, Italy
Museum Juan Manuel Fangio in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Museum of Transportation and Technology in Western Springs, New Zealand
National Automobile Museum of Tasmania in Launceston City, Australia
National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, United Kingdom
Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, Germany
Toyota Automobile Museum in Nagakute, Japan
Toyota Mega Web in Tokyo, Japan
Volkswagen Autostadt in Wolfsburg, Germany
Volvo Museum in Göteburg, Sweden