Walter P. Chrysler Museum to close at the end of 2012

In a sad bit of news, it has been announced that the Walter P. Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills, Mich., will be closing at the end of the year. The Chrysler Foundation, which is the not-for-profit group that owns the content of the museum, was unable to raise enough money each year to maintain their status.

The content will be purchased by Chrysler Group LLC, and the museum will become a private display, used only for special events and Chrysler employee functions. That means the days of walking in off the street and appreciating this significant display of Chrysler vehicles, will come to an end.

Alternative fuel vehicles are nothing new. Check out the 1963 Chrysler Turbine Car

These days, there’s a lot of talk about alternative fuel vehicles. From hydrogen to electric, from flex fuel to bio-fuel, automakers are always in pursuit of the next big revolution.

This phenomenon isn’t new, however. Since the beginning of the automobile, engineers have tinkered with different types of propulsion. Production and concept cars have run on everything from alcohol to nuclear. And 50-years ago, Chrysler’s answer was the Turbine Car.

Know your Airflow. How one of the best cars of its day was also one of the biggest failures

If you want to talk about cars that were ahead of their time, the Art-Deco lines of Chrysler’s Airflow need to be at the top of your list.

To fully appreciate the story of the Airflow, you need to put it into context. Airflows were built between 1934 and 1937. As you look at the Airflow pictures on this page, think about what a ’34 Chevy or Ford looked like. Heck, look at the first two cars on the left on my granddad’s car lot in the header and you’ll see a ’39 Pontiac and a ’37 Plymouth. That’s pretty much how all cars looked back then. So the swoopy Airflow was a tremendous departure from what people were used to.

The Walter P. Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills is a stunning showcase of Chrysler's storied history



Chrysler Turbine Concept

There is a lot of news about Chrysler Corporation lately, and much of it is bad. When you are bombarded with all the headlines, it is easy to forget just how significant this company really has been in this country.

I was reminded of that fact earlier this year when I took a tour of the Walter P. Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills, Mich. This 55,000-square-foot facility holds three levels of rare and interesting vehicles from Chrysler’s storied history.

Some of my favorites included concept cars such as the 1941 Chrysler Thunderbolt, the 1941 Chrysler Newport, and the 1953 Chrysler Ghia Special. Seriously, where are you going to be able to see these unbelievably rare cars together in one place?