The Classic Car Novice

1907 Tourist Model K

2011-07-26T13:56:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
Today's car is a real beauty and a relatively new addition to the LeMay Family Collection at Marymount.
Its a 1907 Tourist Model K.

They were built in Los Angeles, CA from 1902 through 1910 by the Auto Vehicle Company. In 1907 under 500 of the Model K's were built.

It features a "two man Bow-legged top" but I am not exactly sure what that means.
Have to look into it.

Here are a few more pictures of this real beauty!

The model K car was the last two cylinder to have the name of Tourist. The car's engine had 20 horsepower and was located under the middle of the driver's seat.

Unfortunately the Auto Vehicle Company was sold to the California Automobile Company which in just five short years would itself shut down.

However, it left behind some beautiful cars including the Model K.

If you happen to know where I could get more information about the this Tourist Model K or any other years of the Model K I would love to hear about it, since I could not locate a great deal on this classic car.

However, A special note of thanks to the LeMay Family Collection at Marymount for their wealth of information and access to take pictures of their beautiful vehicles.

'Til next time have a wonderful day everyone!

1899 Baldwin Steamer

2011-07-26T12:10:00.000-07:00

This cool looking old time car is an 1899 Baldwin Steamer, as of 2010 the oldest car in the LeMay Family Collection.

Here's a few interesting tidbits that makes me so happy that our technology has improved since 1899.

First of all the Baldwin Steamer took about twenty minutes to get started and its boiler needed to be refilled every twenty miles.

And the second and most important reason why I'm happy for all the safety features of today's cars is that the Baldwin steamer's boiler over time did have the potential of exploding. And guess where the boiler was located???

That's right, it was directly under the driver's seat, talk about sitting in the hot seat. Okay, bad joke but while this cool classic old car does stand in time as being a stepping stone to where we are today and it is a cute little automobile - I'm certainly glad for today's technology.

I hope you found this little blog interesting - Thanks to LeMay Family Collection Foundation for the information about this wonderful old classic car.

'Til next time have an amazing day everyone,

Dragon's lair

2011-05-28T06:13:00.000-07:00

As promised here is a few more pictures of the Drakko's lair. Please enjoy!

Have a wonderful day,

1959 Ford Skyliner - A Convertible Hardtop?

2011-03-29T10:58:00.000-07:00

This week's car is the 1959 Ford Skyliner. A car with a convertible hardtop.

Here is a commercial from the time period about this car, although the 1957 model featured in the commercial is slightly different than the 1959 model.

Isn't that a cool concept for a car? Unfortunately the car was more expensive than their soft top cousins and this was something that the public didn't care for.

The engineering for this car was amazing though. The car (the 1959 model) had three switches to activate the trunk to open. Once the trunk was open all the way another motor engaged to lift the hood out of the trunk and then a third engine caused it to settle into place. Another servo was then used to flipped the remaining "flipper" part of the hood. ( I looked up the word servo because I had no idea what it meant and the definition according to Word Web is a control system that generates more power from a small mechanical motion).

For putting it back into the trunk the car had two more motors to control it! That is a lot of motors for one car. No wonder it weighed over 2 tons!!!

Here is another commercial about the 1957 version of the car.

And here are a few more pictures that I took of this beautiful car.

In 1959 around 12,000 skyliners were sold. The sticker price for them brand new was $3,346.

The 1959 did have some slightly different styling than that of the previous years.

One difference was that it featured a eggcrate grille.

It also had a larger window and anodized trim ( which means that the metal that has been given a oxide coat).

While the Ford Skyliner might be big and bulky and was not a popular item at the time, it sure is a cool car and I like it. On that note here is one more advertisement from 1957 with Lucy and Ricky.

'Til next time have an amazing day everyone!

References: Thanks to Joe Reasoner that wrote the article that I read about this car from LeMay Marymount and thanks to The Auto Editors of Consumer Guide that wrote the article that from The How Stuff Works article for the information.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T16:49:00.000-07:00

So in honor of St. Patrick's Day here are a couple of green tidbits for you. A green car collage and...

a 2007 custom Dragster "Drakko". It has a Chrysler 440 cid wedge engine in it along with a 250 horse power NOS system. Another example of modern car art. It breathes smoke and fire out of its mouth and the eyes light up red. Good thing I went into his lair when he was "asleep."

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!
'Til next time have a totally amazing day.

Micro Cars at LeMay Marymount

2011-03-17T16:28:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures that I took at Marymount a couple of weeks ago in Car Club Corner. Its the micro cars! So adorable and there were a couple I have never seen before. I've been a fan of micro cars since I stumbled upon this website: http://microcarmuseum.com/

Please enjoy the pictures!

??? - I'm not sure what this is but it was cute.

1971 O.T.A.S.

1970 Subaru 360 Pick-up

A 1960 Fiat 600 Multipla

A 1958 Messerschmitt - It tops out of 65 mph but it gets 85 mpg. I wouldn't mind having one of those with gas prices the way they are right now.

A Berkeley Sports - year unknown.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures.
'Til next time have an amazing day!

1952 Willys Jeep

2011-02-18T11:52:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone,

I have always been a fan of Jeeps and have wanted one since I was little. I think one aspect of jeeps that have always appealed to me is there spunk and ability to take one all kinds of different terrain. So this week I am learning about the 1952 Willys Jeep.

This one at LeMay Marymount, along with its trailer, has been restored to look exactly like the Jeeps and trailers that were used in the Korean War. So here are a few tidbits of information that I learned about this vehicle.

So, I always thought that a Jeep was a Jeep. So when I saw that this was a Willys Jeep, I shrugged and thought okay why Willys? Is that a type of Jeep? Well come to find out Willys stands for Willys-Overland, the automobile manufacturer responsible for the Jeep.

The Willys Jeep has a very interesting history and had a special place in the Korean War. Because of the various road conditions the Jeep was highly relied upon and became popular means of transportation for enlisted men, officers and military police. The Jeep was used for all kinds of missions. Some of them even had communication devices to help direct air strikes and observation planes.

What I thought was really cool about this jeep was that it has a snorkel so that the engine can run underwater.

What a beautiful piece of history. Well that is all I have for now. I hope you enjoyed this post about the Willys Jeep.

This is me taking my birthday picture in front of the Willys Jeep.

'Til next time have an amazing day everyone,

p.s. Here is where I received my information about the Jeep from:
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1945-1952-jeep.htm

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1945-1952-jeep4.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willys

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/history-of-jeep.htm

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T09:06:00.000-08:00

Know that I deeply appreciate all of you who follow my blog. Happy Valentine's day and Have an amazing week!

I"M BACK!!!

2011-02-10T18:38:00.000-08:00

Hello to you out there in cyber world. It has been way too long and I deeply apologize for not writing. It has been a couple of hectic months adjusting to my job. However, I am back and that is what matters.

Some new stuff on the volunteering front. I knew that there was going to be a time when LeMay - America's Car Museum was going to have the new beautiful museum built and I always wondered afterwards what would happen to the beloved Marymount Academy, where the collection is currently.

I fell in love with Marymount the first time I visited it and it was partially the reason why I chose to intern at the Museum. I love the fact that each room had a story and that it had such history to it. ( Marymount was a military boys academy back in the day and it was run by nuns). Anyway, since the projected time for the new Museum's building to be finished in fall of this year, the Museum and Marymount have become separate entities with a mutual friendship to prepare for the big transition. So now there is LeMay - America's Car Museum and then the Marymount Event Center which houses part of the LeMay Family's collection of automobiles.

The Marymount Event Center also has a new webpage and Facebook page which you should definitely check out.

What I think is cool also is that LeMay Marymount has started to give tours of the chapel and military academy rooms ( classrooms, dormitories, etc.) on a bi-monthly basis. I am hoping that I will be free one of the upcoming Saturdays that they hold it, since I have only been able to see the grounds and chapel.

I look forward to writing more about what I learn in the following months.

Here are a few pictures that I took of the Metropolitans that are currently in Car Club Corner at Marymount. Please enjoy.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures. Have an amazing day everyone!

One interesting car... 1943 VW Schwimmwagen

2010-10-28T13:34:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone,
I apologize for not posting anything for a while. It's extremely difficult being away from my source of inspiration, the LeMay Family Car Collection, to write posts about cars and dealing with learning a new job. So I do apologize but I am back and writing a short post for today that I hope to expand on later on.

I was trying to decide what to write about next and so I decided to look up one of my favorite cars just from their design, the volkswagen bug. However, in doing so I came a really cool and interesting car called a VW Schwimmwagen. The one I found that was actually for sale on a website called: oldbug.com (I've included the link even though it already has been sold because it does have some really cool pictures of this amazing little vehicle).

Its a amphibious car and actually looks like a cute rounded off boat with wheels.
Here a couple of youtube videos that I found of it:

The first one gives you a really good look at the car:

And the second it actually shows the car going to the water and driving off:

Cool huh?
Well I'll let you know about the history and logistics of the car as I go along, which hopefully will be soon.
I hope you have enjoyed this short blog post.
'Till next time have an totally amazing day!

Famous and trendy... A interesting link.

2010-10-04T05:50:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
Found a link that I just wanted to share that I found on the main page of msn.com today. It features some celebrities with their different classic cars. My favorite out of the bunch had to be Jay Leno with his Steam car and his Deusenberg J. The man has a great sense of style and real appreciation for real classics. So here is the link, hope you enjoy!
Famous people and their favorite classic cars

'Til next time have a amazing day!

1914 Detroit Priscilla - Electric Car

2010-09-29T10:05:00.000-07:00

The 1914 Detroit Priscilla Electric car, a very cute and successful electric car for its time.
These cool electric cars were made from 1907 to 1938 by the Anderson electric company and was powered by a rechargeable Edison storage battery which was rechargeable, which were both lighter than lead acid batteries and long lasting.

The car was marketed towards women and doctors of the day and with good reason. This was a great vehicle that didn't require to started by hand crank and the driver did not need to master choking skills either.

This car was produced during the companies peak in the 1910s. In fact the car was so popular that the name of the company was changed to the Detroit electric company.

The beauty of the Detroit Priscilla's china cabinet like body is one of the things that it is known for. The car also featured a flower vase and lantern shaped headlights which I really like.

This is known as one of the most successful electric cars of its time. Its top speed was about 20 mph and it was advertised to get at least 80 miles on a single charge. It's slogan was: " it...will take you anywhere that an automobile may go with a mileage radius farther than you will ever care to travel in a day."

Unfortunately things for the gasoline powered car improved and with these improvements the electric car became obsolete. The Detroit electric company while filing for bankruptcy in 1929 actually made it through the depression years but closed up shop for good in 1938.

However, the good news is that these beauties are still around to this day so that people can still see and admire their beauty.

I hope you have found this blog post interesting and educational. Thanks to the LeMay Car Museum for the information on this little beauty.
'Till next time have an amazing day everyone!

Ford Mustangs

2010-09-13T16:44:00.000-07:00

I do apologize for not posting anything this last week. I started at my new job which is requiring quite a bit of research in order for me to do it correctly ( I'm working in the home department of a major department store and really don't know very much right now about bedding, towels or appliances) and so posting for the next couple of weeks might be kind of spare but I'm going to try and shoot for at least one per week.

The Ford Mustang, in my mind is one of the "famous" cars out there. It is a very popular car and started on being on the market in early spring of 1964. It was a beautiful car and was fairly inexpensive.

The popularity of the Mustang caused many others to mimic it thus creating the different "pony" cars - Finally that mystery is solved, when I first started at the LeMay Museum at Marymount I had wondered what a "pony" cars was and how they had come about. Now I know.

One of the famous mustangs were the 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1 which had such a built a such a big engine that it had what was called a shaker scoop (much like the one on the mustang below) which was part of the engine that extended through the hood of the car and shook when the car idled.

Personally I like the older Mustangs from the 1960's once the "fox body" was introduced ( I really wish I had a picture to show as a example but I don't) the Mustang seemed to go down in design and seemed to blend in with so many other cars' body designs afterwards in my opinion. Some more of the Mustang's characteristics were a long hood and a short back end.

One of the really cool things about the Ford Mustang from 1965 to 1970 was that the former race car driver designed the Ford Shelby Mustangs.This is something new to me as I thought the shelby cars were a totally different car altogether.

Here are a few more pictures of some of the Mustangs I have encountered over the recent months:

So I hope enjoyed this interesting but short post.
'Til Next time have a amazing day everyone!

The Volkswagen Thing

2010-09-04T08:50:00.000-07:00

The Volkswagen Thing

The Volkswagen Thing aka the Volkswagen Safari,Volkswagen Trekker and the Volkswagen Type 161 or Type 162, based on where a person is and where the car is from. Unfortunately the Thing has gotten some bad publicity, in my mind as a ugly car but I really don't think so. I think its cool and different. Now maybe if I rode in it I would think differently but for right now I stand by the vehicle and say, "Hey that is a cool car!" - at least in design.

The car was actually made after a military vehicle called the Kübelwagen: Kübel meaning bucket and wagen meaning seats which makes since that is what the car has.

The convertible things were only sold in the United States in 1973. Unfortunately the car never really caught on with the market because most of those that could afford the $3,150 ( as much as many of the sport cars at the time) did not like it. (However it did catch on with the youth.)

Fascinating fact is that the vehicle's doors and windows are detachable and interchangeable! The convertible models of the Thing were only sold in the United States.

It was built on the same chassis as a pre -1968 Volkswagen Microcbus. A chassis, for people like myself that didn't know until I looked it up is the skeleton of a motor vehicle consisting of a steel frame supported on springs that holds the body and motor.

Looking back at the car show I really wish I had taken a peek inside the car's interior. It was suppose to be so bare and "stripped" that Volkswagen advertised that one could hose out the interior!

The way that the car was heated was through a gasoline fueled heater that was hooked up right to the engine and the heater was optional.

It had a four cylinder engine and the only option for transmission was a four speed manual transmission. Just another reason why I should learn to drive a stick.

Things did not go well for this car since few that did like the design could afford it and then Ralph Nader got it banned from being imported after the 1974 model due to its failure to meet safety standards for passenger cars - hmmm.... Safety is important but if you follow the #1 rule of driving it shouldn't be a issue ( the rule is don't hit anything and don't let anything hit you!)

However, the Thing wasn't known for its speed either - it would go from 0 to 60 in 23 seconds, not so great.

Overall the Volkswagen Thing to me is a pretty cool little car and I hope to learn even more about it along the way.

It you are interested in more Volkswagen Thing history I found a great website, the Jacksonville VW Thing website. Its chocked full of information on the Thing that I couldn't possibly squeeze into my blog. Click here for the link for the history pages of the VW Thing on their website. They are also a cool resource for the history of the Volkswagen company as well.

I hope that you enjoyed this blog and found it to be entertaining and enlightening.
'Til next time have a amazing day everyone!

LeMay Car Show

2010-08-30T13:47:00.000-07:00

This last Saturday was the big 33rd LeMay Car Show and Auction and it was amazing. I volunteered at the Marymount grounds dealing with ticket sales. It was a bit chilly, in fact before the crowds came a good portion of conversation with the other volunteers was how cold we were. But once the bus loads of people came there was simply no time to even acknowledge cold hands and feet. I met some amazing, friendly people and the six hours of volunteering went by fast. Then the rest of the day was dedicated to seeing the sights and sounds of the car show.

I had no idea how much fun this car show was going to be and I definitely recommend coming next year if you even live somewhat near the Pierce County area. I can understand why people travel clear from the east coast for this event. I took over 300 pictures between the car show and collection of cars at the LeMay Museum at Marymount location and the LeMay house. It is absolutely mind boggling how many cars Harold LeMay had in his collection just looking at what is currently at Nancy LeMay's, his wife, home.

Here a just a few pictures of classic and vintage cars that really stuck out to me from the event:

1930 Model A Ford Special Delivery Truck

Working tickets sales at the front gate definitely has its advantages, it was where all the collector cars came to enter the show. This picture is of three Isettas in a row! So cool!

A really cool old time bus, going to have to ask for more info. on this one.

A absolutely beautiful cherry red 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air, I want one just like this one!

Isn't it adorable, a 1957 Volkswagen "Shorty"

Volkswagen Thing, though I'm not sure of the year

A pink 1967 Mustang - beautiful! I want one of these too!

No clue as to what it actually is but isn't it cool?

This beautiful flower box right here made me think of being in Disneyland, only for classic and vintage cars.

One of my absolute favorites from the show a 1914 Detroit Electric Priscilla

A 1964 Amphicar - a car that can drive in the water. By this point I of the day I was absolutely exhausted but it was a ton of fun!

It truly was a amazing day filled with so many great classic, vintage and sporty cars, along with other amazing items such as Nancy LeMay's antique doll collection - including a couple of Annie dolls, all nine original Strawberry Shortcake dolls and a couple of the very early Barbie and Ken dolls. It you are interested in seeing more of the pictures I took of the event click here . There is 204 pictures in the album.

I hope you have enjoyed my post about the car show and some of the great pictures of the cars. The LeMay car show and auction always happens the last Saturday in August so mark your calendars for next year!

'Til next time have a totally amazing day!

Learning Classic Car Terminology...

2010-08-21T19:18:00.000-07:00

I almost forgot that I promised to report back on my list of questions that I had developed over the last entry with the 1929 Imperial L-80 Roadster that I was going to ask the volunteers at LeMay.

So its time for some basic classic car terminology:
Body Pillars: This is the support for the cars windows and roof. For example in the picture below of the limousine the metal the holds the front windshield in place is called Pillar A, the metal between the front and second window is called Pillar B and then C, etc. till it gets to the metal support holding the rear windshield.

Arched vertical hood louvers: These are the vertical slits in the hood of a engine to ensure proper ventilation. This is shown in the image of the Imperial Roadster's picture below.

They remind me of the shark gills on the side of their head that they use to breathe.

Cowl ventilator: A cowl ventilator is a curve on the inside dash board that helps with wind flow. Thus I have learned that cowl ventilators and cowls are the same thing.

When I went into LeMay to ask these questions I thought it would be some profound item on the car but I have found that a lot of times these certain qualities are just little intricate details.In a way I guess it is sort of fashion statement for cars. A sweater have crew necks, cowl necks, or v necks while classic cars can have front body pillars, cowl ventilators and arched vertical hood louvers. It is all terminology that one must embrace when coming into the new world of classic cars much like embracing a new language and culture.
I hope you enjoyed this blog about my experience with classic car terminology.
'Til next time have an amazing day!

p.s. Thank you to Joe Reasoner, John Meister and the others that have so patiently put up with me asking so many questions about basic and simple things regarding classic cars. I really do appreciate it! You have given this classic car novice just a little bit more knowledge about this world of classic automobiles. So I just wanted to say: THANK YOU!!!

1949 Kaiser Deluxe

2010-08-19T09:38:00.000-07:00

When I first heard and saw the 1949 Kaiser Deluxe what stuck out most about this car's story was the fact that its paint color was chosen based on the results of Carleton Spencer's research, a pioneer of color and trim. For it was Spencer who took a survey for the Kaiser company to see what it was that women liked in cars. A interesting fact was that Spencer's research was used both for the Magazine "House and Home" and for the Kaiser-Frazer automobile company.

This particular car was bought by Harold and Nancy LeMay while it was still dissembled when they were visiting in Pennsylvania. The car was put together for the 15th Annual LeMay Car Show and Auction ( which happens every last Saturday in August) in 1992. Interesting fact was that when the LeMay's went to look at the car that was in a bunch of boxes they were expecting a sedan with a hard top, not a convertible.

The fact that the car was described as a sedan to them probably had to deal with the fact of how the idea for the convertible Kaiser Deluxe came about, because Henry J. Kaiser believed that he could make a convertible from the company's sedan by just chopping off the hood, adding chrome to the windows and installing a convertible top and that the car would be fine without added enforcements. However, after the first test drive where it was described to drive like a "bowl full of jelly" the company's mechancial engineers convinced Mr. Kaiser that the convertible needed at least x-member frames and special pillars for it. However, why stop at just x-member frames?

After analyzing a Packard convertible, which was said by one of Kaiser's engineers to be the best convertible that he had ever driven, the Kaiser Deluxe not only got its x-member frames but other special reinforcements that ended up the car weight 4,000 pounds and exceptionally solid.

Now on another interesting note:

A Mystery is also attached to this particular car.....
There is a image of a buffalo within the Kaiser emblem on this car is several places, on the front, steering wheels and hubcaps of the car but there doesn't seem to be a explanation as to why? The volunteer that I spoke to at the Museum that has been curious about this puzzling image has asked several different sources, other volunteers and other people that might of had an answer but to no avail.

My answer thinking about it is that the car's color is called Indian Ceramic, because of its color being much like that of the Native American Pottery. Maybe its a Indian Buffalo or somehow the Buffalo was associated with Native Americans back then?

So if you happen to know the answer behind this mystery or have another idea of what the answer could be I would love to hear it.

In the mean time I hope that you enjoyed this post.
'Til next time have an amazing day everyone!

1954 Bristol Bus

2010-08-19T08:30:00.000-07:00

I have always admired and really liked double decker buses. Maybe its because I have never been on one or it could be the fact that it is a "British" thing. Whatever the reason I have always seemed to have a fascination with them.

This is one of LeMay - AMERICA'S CAR MUSEUM'S Bristol Buses at the Fife location.

An interesting note about that British Bristol Bus is that before the redesign in the 1920s the double decker bus was not a popular option of transportation in England. This was because it the buses were low clearance buses that did not have enough head room and their seating was four in a row for the upper deck. The buses couldn't be any taller because of the low bridges in the area so the Lodekka model was invented to take care of these problems. The Lodekka model lowered the gear shaft so that it would provide more head room.

Another funny thing that I found out about these buses that I never knew before was that these buses were not all red and white. The buses that were red and white were actually owned by the red and white motor services.
I hope you have enjoy this entry about the Bristol Bus.
'Til Next Time have a great day everyone!

1929 Chrysler Imperial Roadster

2010-08-13T20:33:00.000-07:00

Another rare jewel of a car at the Lemay Museum.

A 1929 Chrysler Imperial L - 80 Roadster. It was actually made by a separate division of Chrysler by Locke & Sons.

This was a custom car and according to the person I talked to at LeMay very few were made, less than 300!

The third door on this vehicle for the rumble see was rare for this time. So much that the term "three door" is often included in the title of this car now a days.

While I couldn't find a lot of information on this car, thanks to the Imperial Club and to Joe Reasoner at LeMay - America's Car Museum I did learn a little. I found some cool advertisements from the day on the Imperial's website, which I have linked to here: Custom L- 80 Roadster ad, "Ultra Fashionable" Ad for Roadster, also here is a couple of pictures of the roadsters comparing the early and late production of the 1929 models.

While researching this car I have struck on a new vein of curiosity for myself dealing with classic cars, not just in the individual cars but in how they worked also. So hopefully next week I will be going over an anatomy lesson of what classic cars usually have versus more modern day cars. We'll see how it goes and if I can get some answers. Watch out fellow volunteers at LeMay, I'm going to start carrying a memo pad full of questions and I'll be wanting some answers when I come! : )
'Till next time have a excellent day everyone!

Hail to the Chief... 1984 Cadillac Limousine Presidential Prototype

2010-08-10T15:18:00.000-07:00

I went into the gymnasium at the Museum today and to my pleasant surprise look what I found sitting there!

Cool huh? This is a 1984 Presidential Prototype Cadillac Limousine. While it never did have a president in it, at least we can't say for sure, the limousines designed from this prototype were the vehicles that were made from this design include: Ronald Reagan, George Bush and Bill Clinton. It was built by GM motors in 1984 to evaluate the design and layout of the one that they sent to the White House that year.

This limousine featured three cell phones, writing desks, and a hands free intercom that allowed the passengers to communicate not only with the chauffeur but also with the people outside.

Some of the other amenities that the limo had was a tv, a specially designed am/ fm radio, cd player and video cassette player.

I hope you have enjoyed this post about the 1984 Cadillac Presidential Prototype Limousine. If you are in the Pierce County area you should really check it out for yourself. It is quite a cool vehicle.

'Til next time have a amazing day!

1983 Duesenberg II SJ LA Grande, A Real Treasure

2010-07-31T15:32:00.000-07:00

This is a 1983 Duesenberg II SJ LA Grande. Before I started doing research on this automobile I thought it was a nice car and that it was cool because it was a Duesenberg, a car that had been featured in the movie, "Annie." However after I finished reading about its history on LeMay Car Museum's website I have come to a new appreciation for this beautiful machine.

So what is so special about a 1983 Duesenberg II SJ LA Grande? Let's start with the fact that it is actually a reproduction of a earlier model of a 1930 Duesenberg J Dual Cowl Phaeton. I have to be honest that the first time I read this statement I started to wonder if the article was faulty. I said to myself but it's a SJ LA Grande not a J Dual Cowl Phaeton! However, it is indeed correct and I learned something new this week. A cowl is a little piece of the metal body frame that follows the ridge of the car's body up by the windshield and the reason why this particular replica is also a dual cowl is because it has that metal strip for the front and the back seat. It is there to redirect air flow off of the driver and passengers.

The car was made by the Elite Heritage Company and only 42 of this particular model were made. It was built by hand and all of the components were custom-made to match that of the original Duesenberg. Yet, it also had some new features that made for nice modern conveniences, such as, power brakes, power windows, power seats, power brakes and air conditioning!

From 1978 to 2000 the company made five different styles of Duesenberg replicas. Each was done with careful detail to the original.

Another cool feature that I learned about this week was this Duesenberg II was built with a fire wall, I believe that is the correct term for it, but it is a piece of metal on the car, right above the cowl that was designed so in case the car engine caught on fire it would not come up past the passenger and driver compartment. Fascinating right?

Well I hope you have enjoyed this entry about the Duesenberg II.
'Til next time have a great day!

Open House For Marymount!

2010-07-23T20:26:00.000-07:00

Last night was the big open house for LeMay Museum at Marymount to show off the facility spaces for special events. There were tours of the facilities, food samplings from various caterers and booths featuring vendors for various special event needs. I volunteered at the vendor business card table which included giving out business cards from the various vendors present and receiving business cards from vendors that attended the event that were interested in doing business with the Museum.

I took lots of pictures and wanted to share them all but had to calm myself down. So, here are a few of the pictures from last night.

Since this is a car blog we will start off with a few pictures of the cars present at the event.

The motorcycle room was open for the event and boy was I excited! This is a custom 1964 XLCH Harley.

And here are a few pictures of the exhibits or setups for marriage ceremonies at the event.

The gymnasium ceremony exhibit.

A beautifully decorated stage in the gymnasium.

The absolutely gorgeous sanctuary

I think my jaw dropped when I walked into this room. It was my first time in the sanctuary.

Some of the glass windows.

A outdoor ceremony.

Beautiful grounds.

Now for a fun photo from the night....

The tiny black spot with red hair in LeMay's "American Dream" car is me. Although it didn't really translate into very well onto the web it was nice that the photographer was giving out free photos. Thank you Lobban Photography!

And a special shout out to my booth neighbors for the event:

This is Theresa Wolland from Brown's Flowers. She does amazing wedding flowers. Her portfolio was so beautiful!

This is John Karwoski from JFK photography. His portfolio books were amazing also. I really loved the emotion caught in the photos. Him and his wife are truly gifted.

It was a great night and it was so great to see the pay off of all the hard work that everyone has been doing to put this together with the carpeting, heating and building. It has really paid off and resulted in a truly beautiful Museum. If you are interested in having a event at the Museum here is the page that you want to go to for more information. Tell them Amber sent you!

And now maybe a few more pictures from last night...

'Til next time have a amazing day!

Modern Car Art: Function and Fashion : "Red Stiletto"

2010-07-15T18:40:00.000-07:00

"The Red Stiletto"

As I walked around the Museum on my first tour my eyes quickly caught this fun vehicle and I was hoping that the tour guide would comment on it. This cool two seat vehicle is a classic example of art cars. It was created by David Crow in Washington, who was inspired by his girlfriend who took note that the cars at most of the car shows that she went to with Crow were tailored towards men. It took almost four years to complete and is built on a 1976 Honda 350cc motorcycle engine. This is one of the unique vehicles that has made me smile around the Museum and all of my friends that I have showed this to have thought it to be really cool, so Mr. Crow you did indeed accomplish creating a vehicle that leaves both men and women admiring a great piece of art and machinery.

'Til Next Time Have a Excellent Day!

A Indoor Motorcycle Parade?

2010-07-07T08:44:00.000-07:00

I had a great fourth of July this last Sunday, it was time for our church's annual "Freedom Northwest." The fourth of July has to be one of my absolute favorite holidays in the whole year and this is partially why. There was amazing patriotic songs, a great word from our pastor about freedom in Jesus, fellowship with the picnic afterwords and of course the annual indoor motorcycle parade! Here's a short video to give an idea of what the day was like.

I had a short video of the parade but unfortunately could not make it small enough in size to put up. However, I did take some pictures of the motorcycles that were there afterwords and I found a excellent video of the indoor parade on facebook which you can see if you have an account. It was a Harley parade but other bikes were more than welcome. Here's some pictures of some of the motorcycles that were present. Please enjoy!

I love the reflection of the US flag in this picture.

There were all kinds of motorcycles there, here are some of the "Non - Harley's".

Pretty huh?

I highly encourage you if you are in the Federal Way or Everett area next year around the 4th of July to come and see this wonderful event for yourself. It's all about what's right in America and true freedom in Jesus.
Well that's all for now. 'Til next time have a totally amazing day!

One of my Favorites... 1955 Chevy Bel Air

2010-06-29T16:53:00.000-07:00

Now for one of my favorites, a 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air. After doing a little research I found that this car had a lot of admirers and was referred to as, " A Milestone in Automotive Car History."

The first time I ever found that I really liked this car was at a little car show that my family and I just happened to stop at. I was very green in my knowledge of classic cars and cars in general but almost every time I pointed out a car to my dad during my time at that show and asked what it was he said, "That's a Chevrolet Bel Air." This was the start of making this one of my favorites. Granted there are many years that the Bel Air has been around but after looking at the different styles I think that the 1955 model is the one I like the most.

The clip of information that I got on this car from LeMay - America's Car Museum web page is that this year was a explosive year for the styling department at Chevrolet. The dramatic design was created by Harley Earle. Which for me was, being very new to cars, the first thing the caught my attention and the thing I still like the most about it.

Compared to its previous models the 1955 version had a better frame and body, brakes, more suspension for the back to give it a smoother ride and it had more than 50 additional features that a person could get including a electric shaver for the car!

I have always seemed to be partial to the styling of Chevrolet cars and trucks, especially during the 1950s and this is one reason why.

I hope this post has been enlightening and enjoyable.
'Til next time have a great day!

Exciting Renovations!

2010-06-22T14:03:00.000-07:00

It was very exciting today when I went to volunteer at the Museum, the new carpet had been put into the gymnasium and I got to see the new caterer's prep kitchen and the new restrooms! It was all so exciting I wanted to share. Here are some of the photographs that I took, but the Museum will be having a open house within the next couple of months so I strongly encourage you to stop on by if you are in the Tacoma area and take a look at it.

Here's the gymnasium with the new carpet and a few cars, there was a meeting to be held in there later on in the day.

A few of the great cars that were left in the room, along with the great new carpet.

Setting up for the meeting that was happening later on in the day.

I certainly wouldn't mind having that car at my next event!

The new caterer's prep kitchen.

Isn't it nice?

Very nice sinks.

This is the entry way between the caterer's kitchen, the restrooms and the orphan room, the name of one of our car rooms.

New bathroom.

Sparkling red counter tops and lovely red lights.

So that's what I have to report. It's great seeing everything coming together for the Museum. I hope you enjoyed this post and who knows maybe I'll see you at the open house in the next couple of months. Tell them Amber sent you.
'Til next time have an amazing day!

More Pictures of Groundbreaking

2010-06-15T13:38:00.000-07:00

Pictures of LeMay - AMERICA'S CAR MUSEUM are up on their flickr page and I just thought it would be nice to pass the information along:
LeMay - AMERICA'S CAR MUSEUM Groundbreaking pictures
They have some very nice pictures of the actual ceremony.

Also here are some more pictures that I took of the cars from the event:

There were so many pictures to share with you all that I liked from the event I thought that it deserved two postings to cover it all.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures. If you are in the area of downtown Tacoma or happen to pass by where the Tacoma Dome is make sure to glance over, when it is safe to do so of course, and see the new Museum's progress!

'Til next time have a great day everyone,

LeMay Museum Ground Breaking

2010-06-14T10:30:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday was LeMay - America's Car Museum's groundbreaking by the Tacoma Dome for the new museum site. It was really quite exciting, not only was it the groundbreaking but was like a car show also because of how many collector classic cars came. One thing that made me chuckle was when Nancy LeMay said that if her husband, Harold the Museum's founder, was here today he would probably be out looking at the cars instead of at the ceremony.

Here are a few pictures of the ceremony:

Nancy LeMay and the Museum's CEO David Madeira

It was absolutely amazing how many people from the press at the ceremony.

This was before the ceremony started, quite crowded already.

Now here a few of my favorite pictures that were taken at the groundbreaking.

A Hudson Hornet

A whole caravan of Model "A" Fords came to the event.

A view of some of the cars and where we were located at in reference to the Tacoma Dome.

It took thirteen years to get to the groundbreaking and now the construction is finally underway! It was definitely a day of celebration and excitement.

I hope you enjoyed this post and the pictures of the event.
'Til next time have a great day everyone,

1948 Tucker 48

2010-06-09T13:24:00.000-07:00

I'm still working on my Vanna White pose but here's me with the 1948 Tucker.

The 1948 Tucker is one of the cars that got me excited about LeMay - AMERICA'S CAR MUSEUM. It's a beautiful car in waltz blue which was named after the inventor's wife's dress color that she wore the evening that she gave him the okay to start production on the car.

What's so special about a Tucker?

Well here's some of the reasons why I thought it was cool.

It has a third headlight that turns with the steering wheel when the car goes around the corner, very handy at night.

It has a Franklin air-cooled helicopter flat 6 engine in it! The engine was built in the rear which was quite a novel concept at the time. The engine weighs 320 lbs and produces166 hp.

Then there is the fact that instead of seat belts the car has a huge space for the driver and the passenger to slide into in case they were going to be in a crash, this was a time when seatbelts were thought to be a sign that the car was unsafe. Another really cool safety feature of the car was that it had pop out wind shields that would come out on impact if it was in a accident.

One other thing that made this car special is that there was only 51 produced! (This number included the prototype.)

They made a movie about the man behind the car called "Tucker: The Man and His Dream" which came out in 1988 which re-introduced this magnificent car to a whole new generation. I decided to get this movie from the library and was very glad that I didn't buy it. It was insightful it but it wasn't really a movie that I would watch over and over again. I did however really enjoy getting to see numerous Tuckers when they came off the production line near the end of the movie and when they went as a sort of caravan to the courthouse.

I hope that you learned a little bit and enjoyed this post about this really cool classic.
'Til next time have a amazing day everyone,

p.s. LeMay Museum's ground breaking is tomorrow! If you happen to be in the Tacoma / Seattle area please come on by, its next to the Tacoma Dome at 3 pm. There is going to be a ton of classic collector cars too. I'm definitely planning on bringing my camera! For more info. check out the Museum's website.

1954 Pontiac Bonneville Special Concept Car

2010-06-05T06:52:00.000-07:00

So I was doing research for this blog and came across the 1954 Pontiac Bonneville Special Concept Car. It reminded me so much of the Bat mobile from the old television show with Adam West with the spare tire in the back encased in metal and the glass gull wing doors. It was designed by Harley Earl the director of Pontiac styling and was suppose to be based on American's fascination with rocket design at the time - however, I have also heard that he was inspired by people setting world racing records at the track in Salt Flats, Utah. There was only two made a green and a red one or copper/ bronze as I have seen it called. In my opinion it is very unfortunate that this car never came to be. I would have loved to have one. Maybe someday I can have one of the originals, though at the last auction one was in was sold for $2.8 million - hmmm... Then again there are a lot of other nice classic cars out there even though this one is nice.
Hope you enjoy this.
'Til Next time have a great day everyone,

Great News! LeMay Museum Breaking Ground!

2010-05-29T08:16:00.000-07:00

It's a day that myself, the other volunteers and a good number of others have been looking forward to for a long time. The Museum is breaking ground on its new location next to the Tacoma Dome! The date is set for Thursday, June 10th, starting at 3 pm at the Tacoma Dome with a after party at the Museum's Fife location from 5 - 8 pm. If you are interested in attending the after party they are asking that people RSVP.
It will be a lot of fun and the approximate finish date for the new Museum is sometime in 2011!
So if you are in the area and are available at that time it would be great if you could make it.
On LeMay's website you can see pictures of what the Museum is going to look like after it is finished.
Just wanted to share the exciting news!
'Til next time have a great day everyone,

Thanking volunteers and a great gift

2010-05-24T09:50:00.000-07:00

The volunteers uneasily stepped forward to receive their assignment after many others have ducked their heads or avoided eye contact:
Their mission.... To have fun and cause a little laughter in the room!
Sunday was the Museum's Volunteer Picnic Driving Tour.
Although I did not make it to all of the stops, which included the a motorcycle museum in Spanaway, the Museum's Fife location and a private car collection up towards Puyallup, I did get to come to the last stop back at Marymount for games and a picnic lunch.

It was great to meet new people and get to know the names of some of the people I have passed by and never got the chance to talk to.

The games were fun too- I "won" a baseball cap and later was given, there were many prizes left over, a poster of a nice looking race car (not particularly sure what kind it is though).

The games were based off the television show, which I have not seen, called "Minute to Win it."

I was with the starting group that participated in the first game, our team's mission was to pull out all the tissues from a tissue box in under a minute using one hand and only pulling them out one at a time. My forearm was indeed sore afterwords but I enjoyed it.

Later games including shaking ping pong balls out of empty tissue boxes that were strapped to the participants backs, dipping your nose in Vaseline then getting cotton ball with it and transferring them to a bowl about three or four feet away, stacking cups in pyramid formation (one handed) and then taking them down by using one cup to collect all of them by collapsing them and taking a measuring tape to get a ping pong ball into a bowl about four feet away ( more difficult than what it seems). The gymnasium filled with laughter and encouragement with each game.

It was a very enjoyable experience to say thank you to all of us volunteers and I hope that next year I can make it for the tour portion also.

Hope you enjoyed this post!
'Til next time have a amazing day,

p.s. On another note in the life of this car novice - On Friday I was pleasantly surprised to have one of the volunteers give me a collector car magazine that is suppose to be like the bible of collector car magazines, Hemmings Classic Car. This was really very sweet of him, he had finished reading it and knows that I am trying to learn more about the cars. I look forward to reading it and maybe passing on the information if I find anything really striking about some of the cars.

Car Show Season begins....

2010-05-18T08:43:00.000-07:00

So last week I went to not only a car show at Clover Park Technical College but I also went to the first Coffee CruiseIn at LeMay Museum's Fife office. It was really a great time. I got to see a few friends that I haven't seen in a while at the Fife location.

I also learned something about myself since I have volunteered at the Museum, I have gained a appreciation for classic cars. There was one particular car that was all "tricked" out with special things and I realized that while it might be "cool" and high performance it just doesn't have the artistic flair that some of the older cars have.

This is the car that I previously was talking about. But here are some of the cars (some classic, some maybe not) That I saw at the car shows.

While I have learned that I don't particularly care for some tricked out cars appearances, some pieces can be added to the classics that make me smile ( Note the wind up key in the back).

I had to get a picture with the LeMay double decker bus!

And now some nice cars that were at LeMay Museum's Coffee Cruisein at their Fife location.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures of the cars! If you are in the area of Tacoma next time there is a Coffee CruiseIn ( It's a monthly event) I highly recommend it. Tell them Amber sent ya!
'Til Next time have a great day everyone,

1947 Indian Chief

2010-05-14T15:22:00.000-07:00

The 1947 Indian chief was produced by the Indian Motocycle Company and for those that caught the seeming spelling error, yes that was how the company spelled its name. Its original co-owner Oscar Hedstrom was apparently familiar with the fact that Italian motorcycles names started with "moto".

I was excited to find out that this motorcycle was in the Museum's collection. I had recently gotten a very good documentary on Harley-Davidson motorcycles and they discussed the rivalry between the Harley-Davidison fans and the Indian fans and discussed the company's history. It was started by a champion bicycle racer, Oscar Hedstrom and a brilliant engineer, George Hendee, in 1901. The original owners decided to leave the company in 1916 and the company suffered years of mismanagement afterwords until the company was bought by Paul Du Pont who not only loved motorcycles but also knew how to run a business.

The Indian Chief motorcycles were started in production during Du Pont's time of running the business in 1940. It was also the first motorcycle to have a "stream lined" design which meant making it look fast even when standing still.

I can't believe that when these beauties first came out dealers were actually throwing them away because people did not like them at the time! The stream line designed was viewed by the consumer at the time to be extra and unwanted metal. I thoroughly wish that I had a time machine to go back and buy one of these when they were unwanted, particularly a 1940 one when they just came out.

Something that I thought was only like a car hood ornament, this Indian head was actually both a emblem for the company and a running light.

This particular one at LeMay - AMERICA'S CAR MUSEUM is a 1947. This was when the company was under the leadership of Ralph Rogers - the man that has been accused of killing the company as its doors closed just a few years after he was put in charge. His timing for new advancements in the motorcycles were bad, even though his concepts were good, and the company shut down in 1952. However, the Indian Chief was the one tried and true model that the company sold continuously until it closed.

I highly recommend the documentary "Hog Heaven - The Story of the Harley-Davidson" that the History Channel did. I learned a great deal about the history and beauty of motorcycles and it was a lot of fun to watch.

You can currently see this classic at LeMay - AMERICA'S CAR MUSEUM in Tacoma, WA. Tell them Amber sent ya!

'Til next time have a great day everyone!

1983 DeLorean DMC 12

2010-05-11T14:15:00.000-07:00

I never really noticed a Delorean until I started volunteering at LeMay - AMERICA's CAR MUSEUM. Yes, I did watch "Back to the Future" but I was more interested in the story line than the car. However,

One experience sitting halfway in the car ( I didn't want the the carpet to get dirty with my boots that I wore for that day) and a little knowledge later I now have a new appreciation of this classic car.

It was built by the Delorean Motor Company. The company was started by John Delorean, the Division Manager of Pontiac, and the cars were built in Belfast, Northern Ireland from 1980 to 1982. It was in 1982 that the factory was shut down. The cars featured "gullwing" doors - a new concept for me when I first saw this car as a child in the "Back to the Future" movie. The body is brushed stainless steel and the way to clean this car is with a scotch pad or similar product. The engine is located in the back of the car, something that seems unusual to me because of the how the car is built. It has135 horsepower which was average for the time according to Jay Leno.

The car was not known for its great performance but it was known for its Gullwing doors and the fact that it did have that "from the future" look to it.

The weight distribution was 68 percent in the back and 32 percent in the front so it could be tricky on corners.

My impression of the car is that it is very comfortable to sit in but one should be careful of their head as to not hit it on the frame of the car as they climb in, when this happened to me the Museum's volunteer coordinator made it sound as if a lot of people hit their head on the the front corner of the window. The windows for me seem a bit claustrophobic because they are so small, but maybe that's just me. But over all it seems to be a very cool car despite some of the bad reports I have heard about it.

The car had its problems and was expensive to boot, around $25,000 to $27,000. However, I learned about a man, Steven Wynn, who now owns the Delorean Motor Company and is fixing the problems that the Delorean originally had, such as the steel frame with a epoxy coating cracking which actually sped up the rusting process. The video below is from Jay Leno's Garage where Mr. Leno has a interview with Mr. Steven about what he is doing to fix these cars up and about the car itself. It's 15 minutes long but if you have the time it is a very fascinating and enlightening video.

And of course I had to throw in a little "Back to the Future" movie memorabilia that was behind the Delorean in the Museum- As it was the movie "Back to the Future" that helped a new generation discover and appreciate this car.

I hope you enjoy this post and learned a little something about the Delorean.
'Til next time have a great day everyone!

1937 Fiat Topolino

2010-05-04T08:36:00.000-07:00

A 1937 Fiat Topolino - a small and cute classic auto car. It gets pretty good gas mileage, around 39- 50 mpg ( I know this is a very wide range but it came in about three different models/ styles - the Topolino 500, 500B and the 500C ). I took notice of this car for two reasons. First, because it is cute ( Topolino is Italian for "little mouse") and what really amazed me about it was the fact that the engine is so small (13.5 horsepower) but can go up to around 50- 60 mph! Below is about a two minute video from Jay Leno's Garage on this car. What I found interesting is when Jay Leno opens the hood and shows just how tiny the engine was and how far forward it was on the car providing the driver with tons of leg room.

If you want to see this car in person and you are ever are in Tacoma, WA area come check this car out at LeMay - America's Car Museum in the Green room. This link also provides more information about the fiat topolino.

I hope you have enjoyed this post. Next I will be writing a post about Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
'Til Next time have a great day everyone!

"The Superbowl of Racing"

2010-04-29T08:13:00.000-07:00

The Daytona 500, the Superbowl of racing as it was called so many times on the video that I watched about this race track, "The Daytona 500: 50 years of 'the Great American Race'". It was the longest one built at the time, 2.5 miles long. Before it was built, race cars were run on the beach in Daytona Beach, Fl. The racetrack was built by William H.G. France.

The message that I came away with from this video is to be a winner of the Daytona 500 is to be among the elite class of car racers. It's 500 miles to win the race and a lot of things can go wrong along the way but that makes the victory even more sweet. According the video, the Indianapolis 500 may be big but in the racing circles it is the Daytona 500 that gets the most admiration. I think its because of the challenge of the race track being so long and the fact that the track goes up at a angle on the corners, 31 degrees to be exact.

For the novice that has never really been into car racing all that much I now have a new appreciation for this race and all of the references that are made to it in the movie Cars by Disney.

I hope that you also learned something and enjoyed this post.
'Til next time have a great day,

p.s. Here is a link to Nascar's history page about the Daytona 500 if you want to know more.

A Classic Car Wedding

2010-04-27T19:29:00.000-07:00

Everything was very busy this last Friday at LeMay - AMERICA'S CAR MUSEUM, our Volunteer and Event Coordinator was getting married on Saturday and the Museum was alive with volunteers and staff making sure that everything went just right at the reception that she would have at the Museum. I was amazed at the results. The Museum is in the middle of renovating, one of those areas being the gym, so it was great to see how beautiful it can look.

Here are a few pictures that I took of the gymnasium and the great classic cars from the Museum's collection that were there. I was pleasantly surprised at how amazing the place looked and I was so happy that it turned out so well for our coordinator.

Congratulations Stacy and Tim!

Hope you enjoyed the pictures of how the Museum looked and the classic cars. Click here: for more information about having a event at the Museum or call 253-536-2885, tell them Amber sent you.

'Til next time have a great day everyone,

BMW Isetta

2010-04-20T14:45:00.000-07:00

Originally made in Milan, Italy by a company named Iso and designed by a man that made refrigerators, the BMW Isetta is a very unique car. BMW from Germany bought the license to make the car and then made a few improvements. It was made just after World War II (launched in 1955 to be exact) and although I don't know the exact selling price it was suppose to be very affordable.

I remember the first time I saw the BMW Isetta at LeMay - AMERICA'S CAR MUSEUM, I looked with fascination and gave a little chuckle. It is such an unusual car with the door on the front of the car with the steering wheel attached to the door.

I found it interesting that they advertised the car as a family vehicle and I have watched some early footage of them squeezing in a man and wife with a child all into the front seat might I add!

The Isetta contained a 13 horse power motorcycle engine and it can go up to around 50 mph but the video that I watched stated that it was also a scary 50 mph.

* Interesting Facts*

The car was four wheeled in Germany but the English version was three wheeled to avoid the car tax and instead be taxed as a motorcycle.

The USA version has silver side bumpers like the one featured here because they passed the US standards for bumpers.

There are many versions of this particular car and I found a good portion of them on
www.microcarmuseum.com - Be warned though this website is very addicting!

My personal favorites that I have seen so far is the one at the LeMay - AMERICA'S CAR MUSEUM, which is a 1959, the 1961 300 which features a small bed in the back like a toy pick up truck and the 1959 BMW Isetta WHATTADRAG which actually has a small Hotwheels version of it ( I might have to go looking for it!)

Here's a fascinating video on the Isetta done by BMW Web TV on youtube including what seems to be a original commercial that the company used.

Below are some links of where I found my information:

http://microcarmuseum.com/tour/isetta-1960.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fk-WbG4suwI&feature=related

Isettas - they are fun, cute, adorable, compact, unique and very valuable!

A Spring Fair Classic Car Experience

2010-04-18T17:09:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I went to the Puyallup Spring Fair to Auto Alley, which contained classic cars representing LeMay- America's Car Museum, the Corvette Club and GoodGuys. It was great getting to see some classics and take pictures. I got to meet a lot of classic car enthusiasts and got to see people's love for automobiles in action as people looked at the classics and talked about good memories from times pasts and fathers or grandfathers pointing out different points of interest on the different cars to their family members.

"I'm in love..." I heard a girl said to her friends as she walked past to look at a 1970 Blue Corvette Stingray.
I can't say that I blame her because it was a mighty fine looking car.

Here are a couple of pictures from the event, enjoy!

1970 Corvette Stingray- Elvis drove a 1959 version of this car in the movie, Clambake.

1959 BMW Isetta - Isn't it adorable?

1964 Cadillac DeVille - A paint job just like Ramone's from the Disney Movie Cars!

1973 Norton 850 Commando - It looked like a blast to ride!

1956 Ford Thunderbird -

There are perks sometimes when befriending volunteers that have cars in the show!
* Remember* - Don't do this without special permission from the owner of the vehicle.

It truly was a blast and I look forward to more car shows this summer!

The Classic car novice: How this blog came to be.

2010-04-17T08:30:00.000-07:00

My name is Amber, I volunteer at LeMay - America's Car Museum, something that I started as a intern in their public relations and marketing department while finishing up my bachelors degree at the University of Washington, Tacoma and because I enjoyed learning about classic cars and liked the Museum so I continued afterwords.

Before I was introduced to the Museum, I had never really been all that into cars other than the look of a car. It never occurred to me that so many have great stories, histories and that some of them really are marvelous machines.

However, I got excited about classic cars and the histories and stories behind them after I took the tour at the Museum before I became a intern. It fascinated me to hear that these cars weren't just a piece of machinery but that they had great stories behind them, fascinating history that surrounded them, and some interesting mechanical features.

That is what this blog is about, my journey into the wonderful and fascinating world of classic cars.
I hope you enjoy and learn something from it.

One of the beauties at LeMay - America's Car Museum - 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Coupe