Gearing up for Father’s Day activities

Father’s Day at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles includes the opportunity to take a family photo inside a classic Petersen vehicle, to explore engines with ‘Hoods Up’ on select vehicles, and a visit to the Discovery Center where the little ones can create a trophy for Dad. Drago, the museums’ restaurant, will have a Father’s Day lunch on the Petersen’s rooftop penthouse with a special menu as well.

The Mullin Automotive Museum in Oxnard, California, will host a Classic Car Meet-up Saturday, June 17 at 9:30 a.m. All makes and models are welcome and car show entrance is included in museum admission.

The AACA Museum in Hershey, Pennsylvania, holds its annual CARnival Car Show on June 17 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. All makes, models and years are welcome to participate. Additional features include tailgating on the lawn, a variety of vendor booths, a 50/50 drawing, family-friendly activities, entertainment, and valve cover racing.

Additionally, on June 17, and for the third consecutive year, the Kansas City Automotive Museum holds Cars & Coffee (and Pancakes). Admission is $5 and includes admission to the museum, all you can eat pancakes,  sausages and beverages (while supplies last).

The California Automobile Museum in Sacramento offers free admission to dads on Father’s Day, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Additionally, the museum will have classic cars available for rides to the marina and back from 10 am to 3 pm.

The America on Wheels Museum in Allentown, Pennsyvania, holds a “Hoods Up” Father’s Day weekend with buy one, get one free admission June 18.

LeMay — America’s Car Museum in Tacoma, Washington, holds hood up displays from June 13-22 and a BBQ on June 17-18.

Also June 18, the British Motor Museum holds a Hot Rod and Custom Drive-in day with a Batmobile re-creation in attendance.

Car Shows –

Saturday, June 10, from 9 a.m. – noon, the Seal Cove Automotive Museum in Maine holds “Cars & Coffee: Woddies & Wooden Boats” with canoes and wooden boats on display along with the museum’s wood-bodied 1913 Peugeot.

The Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum in Indiana hosts “Cars & Coffee” in its Education & Exhibit Plaza on June 17 from 9-11 a.m. “Cars & Coffee” is open to all vehicles: classic, exotic, and muscle cars.

June 24, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the National Automobile Museum in Reno, Nevada, holds a “Women with Wheels Car Show” in the museum parking lot. The show is open to collectible or contemporary cars and includes complimentary coffee, tea, orange juice and breakfast pastries, swag bags filled with a 10-percent discount card for the Museum store, two more free admissions to be used at a later date, a gift from the Museum, and a ticket for the entrant’s-only door prize drawing. Car show registration is $35.

The Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum in Philadelphia stages the first Pennsylvania Concours d’Elegance on June 24 to support research into birth defects and developmental disorders. The event includes a preview gala on Friday, June 23rd at 6:30 pm, then a Premier judged concours event, public car display and family-friendly activities and silent auction.

On June 30 the Great Race will visit the Stahls Auto Museum in the Detroit area. The museum anticipates the arrival of the first car around 12:20 p.m. and will be open to the public from 3-5 p.m.

The British Motor Museum holds the “BMC & Leyland Show” on Sunday, July 2. The show will have approximately 400 vehicles on display, including cars, commercial and military, in addition to vehicles produced under the BMC marque.

The 4th Annual Kansas City Automotive Museum’s People’s Choice Car Show is set for July 15 and runs from 6:30-10 p.m. Event Admission is free and guests select their favorite car to win a $500 cash award, while second and third choice will earn cash as well.

Museums in motion

The Simeone’s Demo Days have been a big hit with visitors, who not only get to see cars inside the museum but who get to venture out to the three-acre parking lot behind the facility in Philadelphia to see some of the museum’s cars in action. Weather permitting, the plan is to feature a selection of cars on June 10 with a Le Mans theme and parking lot runs by a Ferrari 375MM, D-type Jaguar and Cunningham C4-R.

However, not all such “museum in motion” programs involve visitors as viewers. On June 23 and July 7, the Lane Motor Museum in Nashville holds a driving experience with visitors getting to drive some of the museum’s vehicles.

The Seal Cove Auto Museum holds a Demo Day on Thursday, June 15, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and features a series of curator-led discussions on the four “Hidden Gems of the Collection.” Among them, the museums 1911 American Underslung is set to be demonstrated.

From June 17-18, racing enthusiasts have the chance to pack the National Corvette Museum track and take in two full days of competition, as the endurance races range from 7 to 24 hours in length.

The National Corvette Museum takes enthusiasts on adventures to the Northwest Passage – the coastal region of Seattle, Washington, Tacoma, and Mount Rainier – set for July 26-30. Then on August 18-23 the museum heads to Kingman, Arizona and travels portions of Route 66 to Long Beach, CA with a visit to L.A., followed by a drive to Roanoke, WV for some ‘R&R’ on August 27-29.

The AACA Museum offers tours to England in early September and to Italy in November, and the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum in Knoxville, Iowa, will award a raffle winner with a trip for two to Australia that includes tickets to the Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic races. Contact the various museums for details.

Exhibits and Education

Set for 2 p.m. on Saturday, the America on Wheels museum in Pennsylvania holds a presentation on the history and culture of roadside diners, with a special look at Allentown’s eateries.  The presentation is given by Richard J.S. Gutman, an author of four books about diners.

The National Corvette Museum is hosting a special exhibit, ‘Kentucky: 225 Years on the Move’ opening August 28, running through Spring, 2018 that celebrates its admittance as a state into the Union. Originally a part of Virginia, “the Kentucky County” became the 15th state on June 1, 1792.

The Petersen, in partnership with ArtCenter College of Design, hosts a panel discussion to examine new technologies, the emergence of autonomy, and how alternative power sources are helping bring about not just evolutionary, but revolutionary, changes in cars and transportation in general. The event features the Petersen’s Leslie Kendall, ArtCenter’s Stewart Reed, and some of the leading innovators in the field to explore the future of automotive design. This Pete Talk is slated for June 10 at 11 a.m.

On June 11 the museum holds a movie night showing Talladega Nights, a movie about a NASCAR stock car racer, Ricky Bobby, whom is known for his “win at all costs” approach to a challenge against a French Formula 1 driver.

Shortly after, a day of Le Mans celebration and Forza competition occurs on June 17 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Bobby Rahal Family Gallery. The event features professional and media influencers competing in the museums Forza Motorsport Racing Experience. Additional activities include Le Mans themed tours and a live-stream of Le Mans surrounded by race cars.

Set for June 28 from 7-10 p.m. the Petersen holds an exhibit opening for “the High Art of Riding Low: Ranflas, Corazón e Inspiración,” which celebrates lowriders and chicano art. The exhibit opens to the public on July 1st.

Three new exhibits have opened at the AACA Museum. Garage Finds: Unrestored Treasure that Survived Time runs through October 8; Detroit Underdogs are on display through August 27; the 50th anniversary of Camaro and Firebird is featured through October 8.

The Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum opened its community exhibit entitled “Design An Ad Contest” in the museum’s advertising department offices. This exhibit is composed of advertisements designed by students who chose the National Historic Landmark. There were a list of rules the students must follow, and the artwork that followed shows originality. Additionally, the next Curatorial Spotlight is Tuesday, June 20 at 6:00 pm in the Metal Technologies, Inc. Education Center, presented by Curator Jon Bill, on Motoring from Indiana to California – 1914 style.

The Simeone’s newest special exhibit, “Mopar or No Car,” will be open June 17-July 9. and will celebrate the history of one of America’s oldest automotive manufacturers. A dozen cars will be on display from the early 1960s through 2017, representing an exciting array of Mopar sports cars from Dodge, Chrysler, Plymouth, and SRT.

Let’s party!

LeMay — America’s Car Museum will be the site of events to benefit America’s Automotive Trust:  Cars & Cigars is June 28 and the Summer Ender Fender Bender is September 9.

The National Corvette Museum hosts a 24 Hours of Le Mans viewing on a 28-foot screen June 17-18.

The Petersen Garage at Fairplex celebrates Alex Xydias’ 95th Birthday on Saturday June 17th. It is sure to be a relaxed evening of tacos, tunes and hot rods, with proceeds benefitting the next phase of AXC.