It includes everything, from Magnum P.I. to the first U.S. president car with armor to Magnum P.I. Ferrari 308 GTS.
The automotive industry is currently facing some difficult times as the coronavirus epidemic has impacted car sales and production. Automakers have had to send employees home. The COVID-19 pandemic has also affected museums. However, thanks to YouTube and the Internet, virtual tours that automakers quickly set up allow us to visit them.
While we wait for the museum’s opening, the Petersen Automotive Museum allows us to have a look at the diverse collection from the comfort of our homes. The Vault’s highlights are highlighted in this hour-long tour. It begins with a horse-drawn 1904 Studebaker carriage, which is paired with a 1903 Cadillac with a one-cylinder engine. This marks the beginning of North American car production. The tour moves on to motorbikes, before returning to cars. A few Ford Model Ts are included to show the evolution of the automobile’s comfort features. The video features a Duesenberg supercharged to Fred Astaire’s Rolls-Royce. It also includes a Ford Model A Woody wagon that is more practical.
While we could spend hours describing every car in the collection, we would like to focus our attention on a select few. Some examples of relevance would be the very first Honda shipped to the United States, and a rare Mercedes 600 Landaulet that Saddam Hussein used to own. This is a luxurious open-top sedan with a fabric top over the passenger compartment and a hardtop in the front.
The exhibit also features a never-used Popemobile, as well as the first U.S. armored presidential car and the Ferrari 308 GTS used for Magnum P.I. The huge coachbuilt Rolls-Royce Round Door, which measures over 20 feet (six meters) in length and weighs approximately 8,000 pounds (3.628 kilograms), contrasts the small Honda N600. A very different car is sitting in the same room – the rare Kaiser Darrin with sliding door represents one of the first production cars to have a fiberglass body.
Petersen Automotive Museum’s Vault has one of only a few gold-plated DeLorean DMC-12s, as well as a rare Ford Mustang that Ford painted to celebrate the pony car’s one millionth anniversary. We can also see what may very well be the first Ferrari, a Jaguar XJ220 and other hypercars, such as McLaren’s P1 or the newer Senna. The Vault tour is as amazing as the long video. The Petersen Automotive Museum website states that the Vault is closed from May 15 to May 15.