Franschhoek Motor Museum - Cape Town, South Africa

[JohnK]

I thought you all would enjoy this.

My wife, son and I are traveling in South Africa for the next few weeks, and my son and I had a chance today to pay a visit to the Franschhoek Motor Museum in Cape Town. This museum is actually the private collection of Johann Rupert, whom Forbes lists as the richest man in Africa. The museum is displayed across four buildings, and is actually only part of Rupert's collection.



The cars that are on display are rotated periodically, so the display is always changing over time. It's a pretty eclectic collection, with some really rare and valuable cars, as well as some cars that are not terribly valuable but pretty quirky and interesting. Here's a small taste of what's on display. If any of you happen to find yourselves in Cape Town and have a few hours to fill, this museum is worth a visit.








First up on the list of cool and and quirky cars is the Ford Mustero. What the heck is a Mustero, you ask?! It's a crazy brainchild of Beverly Hills Mustang, and is a mash-up of a Mustang and a Ranchero. Only 50 of these "beauties" were made (probably for the best.)





continued...

[JohnK]

Here's another cool oddity. The 1922 AC Empire. Of note, 1922 was the year that the company changed its name from Auto Carriers to AC.





Other cool cars in the collection included a 1934 Ford pickup, a 1927 Chevy pickup (soooo much wood!), an Aston Martin DB4, and a 1957 Messerschmitt that was nicknamed "Snow White's Coffin."









These are just the tip of the iceberg, but give you a good sense of the variety of cars in this very cool collection. All in all, a very fun outing.