I’m not sure if this place should be listed as one of the free things to do in Los Angeles or in the almost free section but I do know it is really a cool place and needs to be listed on the site. Like many free museums, they take donations but it is more strongly suggested than most places.
I asked if someone could come in if they had only no money or only a buck in their pocket and they said of course and since what they offer is so cool, I decided to go ahead and list it with all the other great and free things to do in the LA basin.
As we all know Los Angeles is a great place for lovers of old cars. We not only have a strong history with cars because many were made here and we created the first freeway (the 110 between downtown and Pasadena) but our dry climate is great for preserving older cars. Hence, we have several great car-related activities and places to visit but this car museum really has something extra special.
Yes, they have special and one of a kind old cars, unlike any other automobile museums I have been to.
Almost every Sunday, they choose three classic cars anyone over the age of ten can sign up to ride in. Don’t worry about not getting there early enough – because, the Automobile Driving Museum is truly one of LA’s hidden gems.
Even though it is just south of LAX, before going there myself, I have never met anyone who has ever heard of it, much less visited there. In fact my buddy Gonzo and I got to ride in all three cars they brought out on Sunday.
A 1969 Chevy Catalina Convertible, a 1937 Oldsmobile Sedan and a 1958 Nash Metropolitan. After taking a ride, we perused the museum’s collection.
They have one-of-a-kind cars dating back to the early 1900s to all the way up to modern concept cars.
While I normally avoid tours, preferring to wander about by my lonesome, I highly recommend opting for the tour with Inge, one of the museum’s many friendly docents, because she points out a lot of really cool features you would otherwise miss.
I asked Gonzo to tag along, because he’s a serious car nut. He also seemed to have a lot of knowledge and was pointing out all kinds of fascinating things. Between the pair of them, it was almost information overload.
Also, on the last Friday of every month they close the street in front of the museum and folks from all over LA bring out their hot rods for a great time which I plan to check out. The show starts at 6pm but if you are bringing your hot rod you need to be there by 5pm.
As you can tell, I highly recommend visiting the Automobile Driving Museum and especially on Sunday when you can ride in their cars.
They are open Tuesday thru Sunday from 10AM-4PM.
For more information visit:
http://www.automobiledrivingmuseum.org/
