PORTSMOUTH, R.I. (Sept. 11, 2018) – While Fall is the time for 'leaf peepers' to drive the Northeast looking for foliage that has turned to brilliant autumn colors, it's also the perfect time to enjoy some cool car peeping at the Newport Car Museum in Portsmouth, R.I. There, the spectacular colors of 70+ cars create an eye-popping experience in what used to be a missile manufacturing facility for the government. The 114,000 sq. ft. building is climate-controlled with an art gallery-like environment for six impressive galleries that include seven decades of automotive design, starting with the 1950s.

Gallery Highlights

Newport Car Museum highlights include the Ford/Shelby gallery's authentic 1965 427 SC, the rarest car in the museum's collection and the Corvette gallery's fine examples from all seven generations of production (C-1 through C-7). Peepers can look for '70s cars like the Plymouth Hemi 'Cuda and Superbird in the Mopar Gallery and '60s cars like the Mustang, GTO, Chevy Impala and Camaro Z/28 in the newest gallery American Muscle 'Then & Now'. Also in that gallery, which opened on the Museum's one-year anniversary, is a 2019 Dodge Demon, which boasts the highest horsepower of any production car in the world.

More to See and Do

Artwork like the Marilyn and Joe piece, along with specially commissioned historical videos and sculpturally significant pieces of Mid-Century modern furniture, are representative of the special touches throughout this museum that make it unique among other top automobile museums. Visitors are welcome to sit on the furniture; there are no velvet ropes around the cars; and docents are around every corner to answer questions. The simulator room (where testing one's driving skills on one of eight simulators is free with admission) and an expansive gift shop are the Newport Car Museum's last stops that make a happy experience even happier.

The Newport Car Museum experience lasts anywhere from 90 minutes to a full morning or afternoon, depending on how much one wants to indulge. Once a month, the museum hosts a 'Hoods Up' weekend for gearheads wanting to admire the engines in the cars, and monthly movie nights and car club visits also are popular draws. The Newport Car Museum was named one of the 'Top 10 Best New Attractions in America' by USA Today (2017) and 'Best Specialty Museum' by Yankee Magazine (2018).

Tickets: $18 / adults; $15 / Seniors, Military, Students; $8 / Ages 5-15 (with an adult); free for children 4 and under (with an adult). Handicap accessible, the Newport Car Museum is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. seven days a week. Address: 1947 West Main Rd. (Enter at Light), Portsmouth, R.I. 02871, 401-848-2277. www.newportcarmuseum.org

Photo credit: Newport Car Museum
posted on conceptcarz.com

Related Posts