The Peterson Museum

Living in Los Angeles is great for a lot of reasons, one of which is that LA is the epicenter of car culture. There is car stuff all over, all the time. One of the jewels is the Peterson Museum, it was founded by Robert Peterson. He got his start by coming up with Hot Rod magazine in 1949 and building a publishing empire from there.

It seems like the museum has no permanent displays, every time I've been there I've seen new displays everywhere. There was some neat stuff, take a gander at some of the highlights.

This car was built in 1935 for Edsel Ford, it was a styling exercise that Edsel did once a year until 1940. Working with in house designers he would design and build a one off custom based on Ford running gear. I think they nailed it with this one.

I saw this car right after it was discovered a few years ago, it was red and had a perfect patina. Now it has been restored  to within an inch of it's life.

This thing must be a blast to drive!

There was a large exhibit devoted to the life of Phil Hill, this is a stunning 1958 Ferrari Testarossa that he raced in those years.

Form following function, still breathtaking.

The museum had a static display of a Cadillac dealership circa 1940, and this gem was there. It's a Cadillac coupe which has been turned into a three window coupe! This was another job for coach builders, they would modify a brand new car to your personal tastes. I believe this was built for Clark Gable, somebody needs to clone this.

This Ferrari was a gift from Enzo Ferrari to Henry Ford in 1952 or 53, somewhere in there. It is said to have been the inspiration for many design touches on the 1955 Thunderbird. This car is totally original down to the paint and tires.