We took a tour of the Mullin Automotive Museum in Oxnard, California last week. Although not our usual nostalgia racing/hot rod event, the Mullin Museum provided the chance to view some outstanding cars which we don’t often see. The collection offers pre-war French automobiles and Grand Prix race cars. This was the art deco period and the automobiles were stylish and distinctive. From the Bugatti and the Delahaye to the Voison these cars set the styling trends of the era — many of which can be found in the cars of many other manufacturers. We spent about 4 hours at the Museum and thoroughly enjoyed every minute.
This overview of the main floor shows many of the distinctive cars on display.
The exhibit below shows a 1946 Delahaye Type 135 MS Coupe barn find.
Louvers were a prominent feature of many cars, some for cooling, some for decoration.
The car below, a 1925 Bugatti Type 22, while not pristene does have an interesting history. This car with 40 horsepower could travel at 100 mph. In 1934 it was impounded at the Swiss border because the owner couldn’t pay the import duties. A few years later it was destroyed by pushing it into Lake Maggiore. Chains were attached to the car just in case it had to be retrieved. The chains, however, eventually broke and the car settled to the bottom of the lake in 173 feet of water . It was discovered in 1967 by a local diving club. In 2008 a local boy was beaten to death and the dive club decided to raise the Bugatti, sell it and donate the proceeds to a foundation established in the victim’s name. It was raised to the surface on July 12, 2009 and purchased by Peter Mullin. It now sits it a special room in the Mullin Automotive Museum — the room gives the feel and look of the car on the bottom of the lake.
The second floor of the museum holds the Grand Prix race cars. The Miller, which is an American car, was one of our favorites.
The Miller Special Indy Car was built by Harry Miller and driven by Leon Duray. This car continued the Miller domination of racing in America in the 1920’s. Duray sat on the pole and went on to win Indy in 1928. To capture the pole Duray ran 122 mph. Below are some of the other extraordinary race cars on display.
The placard next to every car brings each car to life by giving not only the spec’s of the car but also the history. The Mullin Automotive Museum was way more than we expected. It is well worth a visit.
The museum is open on some Saturdays and does give private tours by appointment. Go to http://www.mullinautomotivemuseum.com for more information.
