Yahoo Autos Here Are Some Of The Best Cars I Saw In The Petersen Vault
The Petersen Automotive Museum has one of the worlds best collection of cars. It’s a place that any automotive enthusiast should visit at least once in their life. Luckily for me, I live nearby and tend to visit it at least 3 times a year. One of the best spots of the museum is its basement, affectionately referred to as the Vault. It’s its own separate collection that’s full of one offs and stuff you’ve literally only seen on movies or tv.
We’ve touched on the Vault before a decade back when Jason Torchinsky toured it. The collection down there is a bit different now from what he saw back then but just as great. So here’s some of the best cars I saw during my time in Petersen’s Vault.
Read more
10 Years Ago, An Underrated Zelda Game Paved The Way For Tears Of The Kingdom
Julianna Margulies Offers Predictable Apology for Racist Remarks
I honestly had no idea this existed. Originally commissioned by GM for Pope John Paul II’s visit to Mexico, it started life as a seventh generation Cadillac Deville. It’s roof was then lopped off, an elevated platform with a chair added, then wide doors with retractable steps and official Vatican seals.
Ultimately though it was all for nothing. Given the attempt on John Paul II’s life in 1981, he wasn’t permitted to use this popemobile in public; the Vatican didn’t want to take any chances.
Bentley Turbo R
One of only 5,864 ever made, the Turbo R was a performance sedan from the British luxury brand. More than just a letter, “R” in this instance stood for roadholding. The Turbo R didn’t have the cushy, cloud-like ride Bentley was known for. This thing could actually handle: it had stiffer front and rear roll bars and retuned dampers. Power came from Bentley’s legendary 6.75-liter turbocharged V8 that made just under 400 horsepower.
This Turbo R was owned and daily driven by Mr. Petersen himself.
1954 Kaiser-Darrin 161
Designed by Howard Darrin and built by Kaiser Motors in 1954, the 161 was essentially a rebodied Kaiser Henry J. It was designed to be an American answer to the European roadster craze of the early 1950's. It’s main American competitor was the C1 Corvette. It’s design was unique in that it was the second American car (after the Corvette) to use an all fiberglass body. It also had a three position convertible top and cool doors that slid into the body rather than opened out. Power came from a 90 hp 2.6-liter six-cylinder engine.
1948 Davis Divan
A failed vision of the future, the Divan was built by Davis Motorcar Company, a Southern California based automaker. Davis had big plans for the Divan. Two prototypes were made in ‘47 and after raising over a $1 million through a nationwide campaign, just 13 were ever built.
Citroen Mehari Transparente
The Citröen Mehari was an open air, early SUV like thing made for over 20 years before it stopped production in 1988. Think of it as sort of a French VW Thing. A number of variants were built over the years, the most unusual of which is this transparent Mehari Transparente. More art piece than car, its transparent body lets you see the orange chassis of the Mehari underneath.
1967 Honda N600
Designed specifically for Americans, the N600 was Honda’s first foray into U.S. car market. The Civic before the Civic, it was damn near a Kei car on American roads. While the N600 sold well — just over 25,000 had been sold when production stopped in 1972 — the sportier Z600 proved to be more popular. This particular N600 is one of 50 test vehicles and was the very first N600 off the production line for the U.S.
