The 1910 White Roars to Life

It was a special Flag Day at the National Automobile Museum. Hootin' and hollerin' galore. Flags were waving but it was the Starting Flag that created a stir this day as opposed to Old Glory.

After multiple years of hibernation the 1910 White Touring car roared back to life again. Jay Hubbard, Automotive Collections Manager, Al Abrahamson and a select group of volunteers rebuilt the large displacement four cylinder engine to re-commission the open touring car.

After several pulls on the crank and a few adjustments, the '10 White lit off in a billow of smoke and then settled in a loping idle. Vital signs were checked and the car was driven out of the garage and into the light of day. Hooray!

Radical Racer – National Automobile Museum Guest Blogger

Family Night Out

We are teaming up with the Food Bank of Northern Nevada this month! When we teamed up with them last December we asked visitors to donate one food item and receive $1 entry into the museum. The turnout was so amazing, we wanted to do it again!
The Food Bank of Northern Nevada dispersed food to over 210,000 people in need last year. If you plan on coming, here is a link to their most needed food items.

BoDawgs will be onsite, selling and serving their food to those who are visiting the museum. Silver Peak will also be there selling and serving beer. Make it a family night out. We hope to see you there, with food in hand!

What: $1 Night Out
Who: Everyone is invited
When: Wednesday, June 13. 4 p.m.- 9 p.m.
Where: The Museum (10 S. Lake St. Reno)
Why: To raise food for the community and have a good time.

For any more questions, feel free to call us at 775.333.9300

Autoweek Announcement

In the March 5 issue of Autoweek, Ken Gross named the best five automobile museums in the nation. We are honored that he named the National Automobile Museum among them!

Don't subscribe? Check out the article here. Ken Gross named on of our rarities: the Julian pancake-engine car.

A Corvette to be won

If you haven’t stopped by in awhile, you might not have seen our new raffle item: a 1989 Corvette convertible.

For the 17^th consecutive year, the museum is raffling off a car.  We are fond of corvettes; this will be our 15^th in 17 years- and what is not to love about this 240 horse power, V8 engine? This corvette comes with a black convertible top, automatic transmission and 28,000 miles; valued at $10,000.

To get in the raffle, you can drop by the museum (check out the beauty) or purchase the tickets online. Tickets are $1 each, or 40 for $20. The winner will be announced on November 8…that could be you. Increase your odds by buying tickets!

During last year’s anniversary party, we raffled the car to a visitor from San Antonio. He agreed to have us sell, and benevolently donated back half the proceeds to the museum ($6000).

We are looking forward to another great year in raising funds for the museum.

Al Jolson's 1933 Cadillac Phaeton

National Auto Museum, Reno - Al Jolson's 1933 Cadillac Phaeton

Cadillac Motor Car Company’s first V-type engine design was introduced in October 1914, as the Cadillac V-8 Model 51. In its quest for higher engine performance, Cadillac experimented for more than three years with a V-16 engine design. The V-16 was designed, engineered, prototypes handbuilt, and hundred of thousands of miles of testing were accomplished without public knowledge. But when it was formally announced in December 1929, orders poured in from eager would-be owners who had not even seen one. The new 16-cylinder Cadillac made its first public appearance in the form of a majestic Imperial Landau Sedan with Fleetwood coachwork at the 1930 New York Automobile Show. In an era of fours, sixes, and straight-eights, the public was dazzled by the very notion of a 16-cylinder powerplant.

Despite the technological innovations and high quality custom coachwork, Cadillac sales dropped yearly as the Depression continued to devastate the luxury car market. Cadillac’s worst year was 1933, and it was announced that only a limited number of V-16’s would be produced. Serial numbers would range from 1 to 400, and the owner’s name and the car’s serial number would be engraved on a special plate attached as an integral part of the car. Al Jolson, a famous singer and movie star in the 1920’s and 1930’s, ordered the five-passenger All-Weather Phaeton displayed here. It was Cadillac’s most expensive model for 1933, priced at $8,000. Of an anticipated 400 V-16’s, only 126 were produced in 1933, and Al Jolson’s car was number 56.

The Museum's placard for this car reads:

1933 CADILLAC
Model: Series 452C, All-Weather Phaeton
Built by: Cadillac Motor Car Co., Detroit, Michigan
Body by: Fleetwood
Price: $8,000
Engine: OHV V-16 cylinder, 165 H.P.
Bore: 3 in.
Stroke: 4 in.
Displacement: 452.4 cu. in.


Donated by: Harrah’s Hotels & Casinos
Adopted by: Gary & Roy Goodlett Family (E)