The Weekly 3

There were a few significant automotive-related events that occurred over the weekend. One, I had an invitation to, but unfortunately had prior engagements and could not attend.

If you remember GM’s EV1 in the late 90s, you may remember all the cars that were leased, and then GM repossessed all of them except for about 40 that were meant for museums and educational institutions.

Not too long ago, one of the EV1s popped up on a local auction website and was in need of a lot of repair. I’d love to be able to share one at Miles Through Time Automotive Museum, but it became very quickly apparent that few other people had bigger ambitions and deeper pockets than I do.

The cool thing was that I had connections with a few of the bidders. In the end, a guy named Billy won the car. I had no idea who Billy was, but, unsurprisingly, Billy enlisted my friend Jared Pink for the YouTube channel The Questionable Garage.

Jared installed a brand-new engine in Miles’ Through Time’s 3-wheeled Snyder, and then I raced him in his Hell Cat UTE. I did not win, and I broke the engine mounts, which Jared has already fixed. Basically, Jared is a good dude with awesome skills.

On the 14th of November, after a tedious restoration effort, you can watch on YouTube in conjunction with V212, the finished car was unveiled. You can follow V212 on Instagram and see a bunch of content on the car.

I believe this car will go on some sort of publicity tour, and you may be able to see it in a museum near you. Billy does have aspirations to create his own museum in the future, so if you don’t get a chance to see this car at a museum, you may have another opportunity in the future.

I’m bummed I missed the unveiling event, but I’m super happy for Billy and Jared for conquering such an ambitious project.

The other event was a little bit bigger, and you may have heard about it. I did not get an invitation to this one, but it was sent to me a dozen times from various people, which I do appreciate. 

The Ford Heritage Vault had a special opening. I heard about 6,000 people visited in one day, which, needless to say, is an impressive figure. I’ve seen a number of photos of the cars inside, and I’d definitely like to see them in person, especially the concept cars which I am drawn towards.

Although this place has about 125 rare and historic Ford vehicles on display in an old 79,000 square foot Amazon building, it is NOT open to the public. However, it is my understanding that they are working towards making the collection accessible to the public in the future.

This is another example of having a massive car collection and even being backed by a billion-dollar company, does not automatically mean opening a museum is an easy task. I believe they will figure it out, and it may not be a traditional “museum,” but being able to see the Ford Motor Company’s heritage on display will definitely be enjoyed.

William E. Backer (Bill) a 2nd generation business owner of a company called Backer’s Potato Chip Company, found great success in his life and had a passion for automobiles. One car led to 2 cars, which then led to about 100 by the late 90s.

Bill then decided to create the Auto World Museum. Ten years later, the museum moved to its current location. Bill passed away in 2008, but his daughter, Vicki McDaniel, took the helm and almost 20 years later, the museum is still a place to visit.

The Ford Heritage Vault moved into an old Amazon warehouse, but perhaps a better word than old would be prior. They are building massive warehouses all over the place, that I can’t help but think, that at some point we will have a lot of empty warehouses available. I could easily fill a 100,000 square foot warehouse for Miles Through Time Automotive Museum.

Massive space is great, and I’d be grateful for anything, but there is something to be said about a location with character. The Montana Auto Museum is housed in an old prison, which I think is awesome.

I have not been able to visit this museum in person, but I would imagine seeing 200 plus cars in old prison would be pretty cool. It is not always possible, but when a museum’s building itself can be a part of the attraction, it makes it just that much better to visit.

There is a vast variety of automotive museums you can visit all over the world. Start with one, and just keep visiting as many as you can.

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If you want to see more, visit the Weekly 3.

Plan your next trip, discover your new favorite, or find the nearest museum

 Sean Mathis
Creator of Automotive Museum Guide
Founder of Miles Through Time Automotive Museum

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