December 2012 | Issue #12

Car Collectors: How To Cope
With Cabin Fever

Winter, in many parts of the country, means cold weather and assorted forms of frozen precipitation. It also means salt on the roadways, which most collector car owners do their best to avoid. So, what’s a gearhead to do when the collector car goes into hibernation — especially when there are no repairs or maintenance to be done in the off-season? With the help of some friends in the classic car biz, we’ve put together a few ideas to inspire and entertain. We invite you to try one or more, and report back to us.

Want to see a museum-quality restoration? Visit a museum.

The first three museums recommended by our friends for a wintertime visit are located in Southern states so you can make it a warm weather getaway as well!

Barber Museum – ©Collection of Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum

The Barber Museum in Birmingham, Alabama was mentioned as a “must” by several people, including renowned motorsports photographer Darryl “Killboy” Cannon. While it’s more of a motorcycle museum (perhaps “the” motorcycle museum?), it also houses a very interesting collection of cars — mostly vintage Lotus motorsport vehicles. The Barber also has the distinction of having its own racetrack next door.

Weiner MicroCar Museum – ©John Viviani

Another collection that got mentioned a few times is the Weiner Microcar Museum in Madison, Georgia. Says John Viviani, a Master Restoration Technician at the Barber, “Even though I work at the Barber, a MUST SEE museum is the Weiner…especially because it will be closing in February 2013.” Closing, as in the owner is selling the entire collection in an auction. So go, now.

Lane Motor Museum – ©Ezra Dyer

Ezra Dyer, Contributing Editor at Automobile magazine is among the many fans of The Lane Motor Museum in Nashville. According to Dyer, the Lane is filled with “everything from a LARC to a Peel, an MG Metro rally car, a forest-service Citroën with steering and motors on each end (so you’d never have to turn it around) and tons of other great, interesting, weird stuff.”

Focus Auto Collection Museum – ©Gaving Young

The last collection we’ll feature is not in a warm locale, but consider it a necessary detour if you find yourself in Calgary, Canada for skiing this winter. It’s called the Focus Auto collection, and here’s how Atomic Toasters’ Editor-in-Chief, Mitch Bell, describes it: “Seriously, I cannot overstate how cool this is, but it’s a ‘you’ll just have to trust me’.” According to their website, the collection includes Pebble Beach and Amelia Island Concours winners. Plus, the $25/person fee is donated to support a local teen center — and matched by the owner of the collection, who also gives the by-appointment-only guided tours.

Put a racetrack in your living room.

Photo courtesy of SpeedZone NJ of Mount Holly, NJ

If you prefer your cars in motion and can’t wait for Daytona to open in January, consider getting a slot car track for your home. The current trend is toward the larger 1/24th and 1/32rd scale formats made by European makers like Scalextric, Ninco, and Carrera.

Don’t know where to start? We recommend a Carrera Digital 132 set with wireless controllers. The Carrera digital system is one of the most accessible systems available, with track that’s 1:24 scale, the widest you can get, which gives you a lot of room to drift and slide.

Carrera has several Digital 132 wireless sets that include everything you need to start racing. A very popular kit is the “GT Masters” set which includes 2 wireless controllers, nearly 30 feet of track, 2 lane changes, and a miniature pair of future collector cars: the Mercedes SLS and Audi R8. It is a great starter set in terms of bang for the buck. Carrera’s website also provides templates of famous race courses, should you want to build a scale replica of the Nürburgring in your bonus room. Plus both modern and vintage cars are available from Carrera and the other manufacturers.

If you don’t have a hobby store nearby, try online retailer HotSlots132.com. They have a wide selection, free shipping on qualifying orders, and excellent customer service.

Curl up with a good book

©Assouline Books & Gifts

Books are always a nice way to pass time, and while there are marque-specific titles for pretty much every brand of collector car, as well as car-centric works of fiction (“The Art of Racing in the Rain”), we recommend “The Impossible Collection of Cars” by luxury book publisher, Assouline.

Housed in a black rubber clamshell case, this impressive (with an equally impressive price tag) coffee-table book features 100 of the most iconic cars of the 20th century. The photography is gorgeous, and the overall presentation stunning. Just like your collector car, right?

Have suggestions on museums, books, or other car-related entertainment worth checking out this winter? Or maybe you have an epic slot car set you’d like to show off. We invite you to send them to [email protected] or share them with your fellow car enthusiasts at our Facebook page.

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The rubber meets the road in Brandywine Valley

We recently packed our bags, piled into a beautiful 1968 Shelby GT350 and 1970 Chevy Nova (courtesy of a very generous policyholder, Tim McGrory), and headed to the Brandywine Valley region of Pennsylvania to shoot the pilot episode of our upcoming road trip web series, American Detours!

The premise behind American Detours is simple: we send a camera crew to a great American road and drive a different classic on it in every episode. Along the way, we’ll showcase the car as well as visit great sites suggested by locals. We even asked fellow car enthusiasts to help select destinations for the first season (alongside The Brandywine Valley, we’ll visit Route 39 in West Virginia, and the Creole Trail running through Texas and Louisiana.)

Now if you’re going to cruise around the historic Brandywine Valley, there are definitely worse ways to do it than behind the wheel of a 1968 Shelby GT350 and 1970 Chevy Nova! Our co-hosts visited several unique destinations including the breathtaking Longwood Gardens and Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles. Let’s just say we were giddy kids in a candy store at the museum and were in awe of the vast array of motorized, horse-drawn, and man-powered road transportation manufactured in PA while the industry was still in its infancy.

We also made a pit stop at Victory Brewing Company, where we chatted with Victory’s vice president in the VIP “Brewmaster’s Booth,” and wound our trip down at the famous Jimmy John’s Pipin’ Hot Sandwiches. Outside of the delicious roadside eats, we were thoroughly entertained by the interesting sports memorabilia, signed photos of some of Jimmy John’s original customers and their rides, and electronic train displays that cover the walls. Jimmy John’s was kind enough to let us wrap up the shoot there with local customers and enthusiasts!

American Detours is set to roll out Spring 2013. However, we’ll be releasing “teaser” videos, behind-the-scenes sneak peeks, etc. on our Facebook page all year long.

Have ideas for WV or Creole Trail pit stops? Just email them here. We’d love to hear them!