Earlier in the year, I read about the latest museum that I have just visited, the Cussler Collection, on a web forum. It was not one that I had heard about it, but the pictures of cars that were in the museum looked stunning, so I added it to the (still long!) list of places I just had to visit. A bit of research turned up the fact that it was in Denver, but that its opening hours are limited to Mondays and Tuesdays. A bit of careful planning ensured that I was in the area – it is in Arvada, on the western fringes of Denver, about 10 minutes north of the I-70 freeway, tucked away down a side street that looks very unpromising – to go and inspect. I am glad I did.

The museum contains about 75 of the more than 100 cars owned by the famous (? – I’d never heard of him) adventure story writer, Clive Cussler. Many of the cars featured in the museum have star in his books, driven by the hero of his stories. What a lucky guy he is, as the cars are absolutely stunning. Although Cussler has been collecting for many years, it seems that it is only recently that the museum has been open for anything other than private showings, and it is now members of his family that do a lot of the work associated with being open to the public.The collection has two major themes: prestige cars from the 1930s and American cars, mostly convertibles, from the 1950s. All were stunning to look at, and ins absolutely first class condition. Most of the cars run, and do get taken out from time to time. Here is a photographic summary of what was on display at the time of my visit:

1930 American Austin Bantom 1963 Studebaker Avanti
1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham1955 Packard Caribbean Convertible1960 Chrysler Crown Convertible1959 Buick Electra 2251957 Chrysler 300C1936 Pierce Arrow V12 Berline, with matching caravan 1906 Stanley Steamer1918 Cadillac V81911 Locomobile M-48 and 1925 Locomobile Sportif1951 Daimler DE-30 Green Goddess 1947 Tatra Type 87 1951 Talbot Lago T-26 Grand Sport, with Ghia body, ex King Farouk of Egypt1948 Talbot Lago T-26 Grand Sport1925 Minerva AB Town Car1936 Voisin C-28 Ambassade1939 Bugatti Type 57 – ex Maurice Chevalier1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III – over 80% of these cars still exist 1928 Mercedes 630K Saoutchik1939 Mercedes 540K – weighs over 5000 lbs1931 Chrysler Imperial CG1938 Packard V12 Town Car1933 Pierce Arrow V121936 Duesenberg J 577 Laundalet1931 Marmon V16 Town Car 1933 Lincoln KB V12 1939 Packard Twelve All Weather1932 Stutz DV32 Town Car 1928 Cadillac Town Car Transformable Brougham Limousine1928 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8AS1932 Auburn Boattail 12 cylinder1929 Bentley 4.5 litre Blower and 1930 Bentley Speed Six1925 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8 Torpedo Phaeton1929 Duesenberg Model J Boattail Torpedo1936 Auburn Speedster1930 Packard Speedster 81926 Hispano-Suiza H6B 1929 Packard Model 6401930 Cadillac V161937 Cord 8121937 Cord 812 Supercharged

1948 Packard Custom Coupe1936 Ford Cabrio1952 Allard J2X1956 Mercury Monterey Woodie 1946 Ford Club Coupe 1951 Kaiser Golden Dragon1956 De Soto Adventurer1957 Dodge Royal Lancer1959 Edsel Corsair 1954 Cadillac Eldorado Convertible1958 Chrysler 300D Convertible1960 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz 1959 Pontiac Bonneville 1957 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser 1959 Lincoln Continental Mark IV 1958 Oldsmobile 98 1958 Buick Series 700 LimitedDefinitely worth visiting. More details can be found at: http://cusslermuseum.org2009-07-03 13:51:15