Names

Veteran Vehicles collection

IDs

NMM 6

Offline Only

Descriptions

This collection takes its definition from The Fédération Internationale des Véhicules Anciens (FIVA) which defines 'Veteran vehicles' as those built between 1905 and 1918 anywhere in the world. The National Motor Museum has collected a number of pre-1918 Vehicles, primarily through the generosity of local Australian donors.

This collection reflects the relative wealth of car owners at the beginning of the twentieth century, as motoring was by and large the preserve of the wealthy until higher volumes of cars were made available through mass production - the most famous of which was Henry Ford's Model T, released in 1908. The veteran vehicle industry was dominated by a large number of small, highly skilled manufacturers producing small numbers of vehicles several of whom exported vehicles from the UK and Europe (such as De Dion Bouton and Renault) and the United States (such as Oldsmobile and Ford). The collection demonstrates an early opulence in Australian motoring, with almost all vehicles utilising expensive materials such as brass and nickel along with intricate finishes in wood and leather. The collection reflects the broad range available, from the mass produced, to those which were fitted with their own individually built bodies such as the Daimler Laundelette.

A National Motor Museum collection. Access to collection items held in Museum Stores is by appointment only.

Subjects

Cars

Cars; Road vehicles

Manufacturing; Materials; Motor Body Building: Motor Car Production; Veteran Cars

Motor cars

National Motor Museum, South Australia

Coverage Spatial

Australia

Coverage Temporal

1905

1918

Related Collections

Dates

2012-05-30 23:40

2011-03-04 13:46