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Thursday, 2 December, 2010 3:44 AM

Learn the history of the automobile at L.A.'s Petersen Automotive Museum

LOS ANGELES -- The words Los Angeles and automobiles are synonymous. Just about everyone who lives in America's second most populous city has one or more vehicles. The 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show just wrapped up over the weekend in downtown L.A. However, there is still a great way to learn the history of the automobile in the city of Angels. The Petersen Automotive Museum is open six days a week and is only a few miles from the Convention Center, where the auto show was held.

Museum goers will learn how the automobile was created and everything up the present day with alternative-energy powered vehicles. There is more than 300,000 square feet of exhibit space with over 175 rare and classic cars, trucks and motorcycles displayed at any one time.

"Right now, we have several exhibits going on," said Chris Brown, the museum's information and marketing manager. "Our Hollywood gallery is full of cars from the stars and full of cars that have been on TV and movies. We also have a motorcycle gallery, an alternative power display, a racing corridor and several other places."

The first floor "Streetscape" is dedicated to exhibits and experience settings of early Los Angeles where the world's first shopping district was designed. It features a blacksmith shop, gas station, diner, a dog cafe and the first strip mall in the world.

"It is kind of like a walk-through diorama," Brown added. "You get to see the automobile from the age of the blacksmith shop where it started all the way through modern times. You get to feel like you're in a downtown kind of setting."

Permanent and revolving exhibits are located on the museum's second floor. Some of the current galleries include "The Hollywood Gallery," "Alternative Power: Lessons from the Past, Inspiration for the Future" and "Racing Corridor."

The Petersen Auto Museum just opened a new exhibit "NHRA: Sixty Years of Thunder."

"It shows kind of the history of the drag racing, that was starting out here in southern California and crawled across the United States," the museum's information and marketing manager explained.

Many of the cars within the Hollywood Gallery were featured in films and television shows. The gallery includes Hannibal 8, the Batmobile, Speed Racer Mach-V, Herbie and more. Others were simply owned and driven by the stars themselves.

"We have a Jay Leno car here," Brown added. "It's a 1974 Dutcher. It's actually a steam-powered car. It's not in our Hollywood gallery, it's actually in our alternative power gallery. It's a very unusual car to consider steam in the '70s. It was pretty obsolete by that time. At this moment, we have a Jaguar XKSS that was owned by Steve McQueen. We also have a '41 Cadillac that was owned by Clark Gable and Carol Lombard."

The Petersen features an alternative power gallery, which was originally a temporary exhibit. It was so popular that the exhibit became a permanent one. Brown said he is looking to add a Chevrolet Volt to the collection some day.

"We also have a GM EV1, one of the few that escaped the crusher after their program was over," the museum's information and marketing manager said. "Another car in there is the Chrysler Turbine. In 1963, Chrysler also did an experiment where they gave out 50 Chrysler Turbines to families across the nation. We actually happen to have one here."

The third floor "Discovery Center" is dedicated to children and families with hands-on, interactive exhibits. Kids can sit in a 1910 Model T, Indy race car or a CHP motorcycle. Young museum goers can become a human spark plug and get plugged into a larger-than-life combustion engine. Children can learn how sound travels and how a police radar gun works.

"When you come here, you'll really find out that we're a family museum," Brown explained. "There's something to learn on every floor and in every gallery. When you go up to that third floor, the kids can kind of cut loose and they can play and climb in and out of the cars, only on that third floor. They can also learn different science and math principles through the automobile up there."

A penthouse conference center and lounge are located on the museum's fourth floor. The Petersen is also available for groups and corporate parties.

"We're also a special events venue," the museum's information and marketing manager said. "If you have a corporate party or maybe a birthday party, wedding, bar mitzvah, whatever you want to do, we have spaces within the museum here that are perfect for your event."

The Petersen Automotive Museum Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) charity. The Museum is located at 6060 Wilshire Boulevard (at Fairfax) in Los Angeles. Covered parking is available for $2 per half hour with an $8 maximum for Museum visitors. Museum hours are Tuesday through Sunday from 10am to 6pm. For general Museum information, call (323)930-CARS or visit the Museum’s Web site address at www.petersen.org.