The Haynes Motor Museum is now the largest vehicle collection in
the UK with over 300 exhibits. It was set up by John Haynes of workshop manual
fame and is a charitable trust so preserving the collection for future
generations to enjoy. It is located just off the A303 near Sparkford in Somerset.
The collection is housed in a number of halls. The first hall deals with the
dawn of motoring and houses a number of cars from the early 1900s. The hall is
dimly lit, probably to help provide a huge contrast when you walk through to the
next hall, the red room. As it's name implies, this hall is full of red sports
cars! All the favourites are here: E-Type Jag, various Ferraris, Lamborghini
Countach, Triumphs, MGs, AC Cobra etc. There are not many Japanese cars in the
collection, but I was very pleased to find an immaculate Datsun 240Z in the red room.
There then follows a series of halls with a wide variety of classic British,
American and other international cars. A line up of Minis (Cooper, Riley Elf,
Moke etc) sits not far from a line up of Chevy Corvettes - quite a contrast!
Other tasty machinery here includes a selection of Aston Martins, Rolls Royce’s,
Mercedes, Bentleys, and an early 3-door Sierra Cosworth used for TV advertising
by Duckhams with portions of the bodywork cut away and replaced with Perspex
panels. American car fans will love these halls, because there is a whole host
of American classics to partner the Corvettes. Pride of place is taken by two
stunningly presented 1931 monsters from Dusenberg and Cadillac. To give you an
idea of the size of these cars, the Dusenberg is powered by a 6816cc straight 8,
and the Cadillac by a V16!
I was particularly looking forward to wandering around the Hall of
Motorsport, opened a few years ago by Sir Stirling Moss. Amongst the exhibits
are some driven by all-time greats, including a 1974 Graham Hill Lola Cosworth
Ford, a 1984 Ayrton Senna Van Diemen Formula Ford, and a 1996 Michael Schumacher Ferrari.
There then follows a hall of British classics, focusing on the more popular
family cars including such well know vehicles as the Morris 8, Ford Consul,
Rover P4 and one of only a pair of Rover SD1 Estates produced.
Walking past a few custom cars brings you to the Millennium Hall. This was
set up to select 25 cars from the past 25 years with the potential of becoming
collectible within the next 25 years. I was well chuffed to find a red MK1 MR2
as one of the cars selected! E966 FLN looks to be in pretty good condition, even
the rear arches. The bonnet and left headlight seem a little misaligned, and the
leading edge of the bonnet has had paint chips and rust spots over sprayed at
some time. I presume the Haynes restoration team have not worked on it yet, at
least I hope not! As can be seen from the photographs, it is parked next to a
Mazda MX5, which I'm sure we all begrudgingly agree is actually a very good car
and worthy of inclusion alongside the MK1! Both cars are in good company though,
other exhibits in the Millennium Hall include a Jaguar XK220, Ferrari 456GTA,
Delorean, Lotus Elise and Dodge Viper, all of which are definite classics in my opinion.
I would definitely recommend paying a visit to the Haynes museum if you are
in the area, to admire all the wonderful exhibits and then walk out to the car
park and drive off in one!
NICK CHALLONER
HOW TO FIND US - The Haynes Motor Museum is easily reached: From the North
and the Midlands via Bristol, taking the M5 to Taunton (J25) and then the
A358/A303 to Sparkford; from London via the M3/A303; from the South West via the
M5 to Taunton or the A30 through Chard to pick up the A303; from the South is
easiest via Yeovil EASY DRIVING TIME (approx driving times one way) 1 Hours
drive - Bristol, Exeter. 1½ Hours drive - Swindon, Bournmouth. 2 Hours drive - Birmingham, Plymouth,
Southampton and London.
ADMISSION PRICES FROM FEBRUARY 2002
Adults: £6, Children: £3.50 OAP: £5, Family: £17
GROUP RATES - Adults: £5, Children: £2, OAP: £4
Opening Hours: Mar-Oct, daily, 9.30am - 5.30pm (until 6.30pm during school holidays)
The museum is close by the A303 by the village of Sparkford on the A359. It is clearly signposted.
Tel: 01963 440804 Fax: 01963 441004
The Haynes Motor Museum is a Charitable Trust No 292048
Nov - Feb, daily, 10am - 4.30pm
(closed Christmas and New Years Days)
