Germany is known for its car museums. The most famous are those of BMW, Porsche and Mercedes, but there are some truly exceptional, though less celebrated, ones. One example is in Central Hesse, where around 150 spectacular vehicles from 1886 to the present day are exhibited at the “National Automobile Museum of the Loh Collection”.
To date, the museum, open since July 2023, has welcomed more than 85,000 visitors from all over the world (despite the winter closure) and has also established itself as a starting point, stage or destination for rallies of vintage carsorientation trips and club meetings. Our colleagues at Motor1.com Germany tell us what it’s like.
150 vehicles to admire
The Loh Collection National Automobile Museum extends over 7,500 square meters in a network of eleven halls and museum rooms on a former industrial site. It exhibits numerous individual pieces, prototypes and highlights of automotive history from the collection of the museum’s founder, Friedhelm Loh.
The museum inaugurates its second year of life with an exhibition celebrating the 125 years of car manufacturing at Opel. From August 1st to November 17, 2024the special exhibition integrated into the permanent exhibition will present a total of 15 prominent vehicles from the eventful history of the Russelsheim brand, including the first Opel, the Patent Motor Car from 1899.
Others treasures of the classical section include the 4/12 hp “Laubfrosch” of 1924, with which Opel introduced the assembly line to German car production, the luxurious Opel Admiral of 1939 and the Commodore GS/E, with which the company broke the 200 km/h sound barrier in 1970.
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The motoring history The brand’s legacy is documented by the 12 hp racing car from 1903, the 1983 Ascona Safari Rally and the legendary Cliff Calibra, which won the International Touring Car Championship (ITC) in 1996. There are also the 1997 Corsa Moon, the 2016 GT Concept and the 2019 Corsa-e Rally Concept.
There’s also a good mix of classic cars and motorsport legends, plus a pleasant setting with a cinema and more.
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Spectacular Ferrari Wallet
It was not only the museum’s impressive permanent exhibition that attracted the public’s interest, the beautiful Special exhibitionsunique in their quality worldwide. The first was “100 years of the 24 Hours of Le Mans – the myth, the heroes, the cars” with 21 original Le Mans racing cars from 1928 to today.
The Loh Collection
The major special exhibition “Ferrari – Masterpieces for the Track and the Road” takes place in parallel and will remain open until Spring 2025. It features dream cars from eight decades, including two Formula 1 world champion cars driven by Michael Schumacher and the quintet of hypercars 288 GTO, F40, F50, Enzo and LaFerrari, now known as the “Ferrari Big Five”. Also on display are unique cars that won historic road races such as the Targa Florio, the Mille Miglia and the Carrera Panamericana.
The museum as a university campus
Unique in Germany, the National Automobile Museum has also been serving as a university campus for the Faculty of Economics and Law of the University of Nürtingen-Geislingen (HfWU) since the winter semester of 2023. Prof. Jochen Buck, lecturer in forensic expertise at the HfWU, welcomed the first students to Dietzhölztal-Ewersbach during the winter break. In a one-semester certificate course, the students train to become Certified Experts for Classic Cars (CEHC).
The course too Certified Expert for Car Design (CECD) started in November 2023 under the academic direction of Prof. Wolfgang Henseler from the Faculty of Design at the University of Pforzheim. It is aimed at all interested parties who have always wanted to delve deeper into the topic of automotive design.
The international importance of the collection of around 150 selected vehicles, dating from 1885 to the present day, is finally demonstrated by the awarding of the FIA Founding Members’ Club Heritage Cup in December 2023, the highest international recognition that a museum can receive in the panorama of classic cars.
Source: it.motor1.com
