Locked away in a semi-secret former army quartermaster building surrounded in a crumbling old fort, the Detroit Historical Society’s Collections Resource Center is a car-person’s dream. It features priceless automobiles from The Motor City’s rich history, all preserved in constantly-filtered clear plastic bubbles — many formerly owned by automotive celebrities like Cadillac’s Henry Leyland, Ford/Chrysler’s Lee Iacocca, and so many more. I luckily had a chance to visit the unbelievable collection; here’s what I saw.
I have to thank Autopian contributor and NVH enginerd Steve Balistreri for taking me to the CRC, because I still get goosebumps. I’d heard whispers about Detroit’s “bubble cars” over the years, but to see them in person was awe-inspiring, especially since I had just moved out of Detroit after nearly a decade of residency — the longest I’d ever lived anywhere. So to fly back to Michigan and then see its rich automotive history laid out in the form of carefully-preserved machines — and astonishing blueprints, brochures, and correspondence from the founders of these car companies – was truly moving.
Here, watch this YouTube video and hopefully you’ll have at least a bit of a glimpse into just how incredible an experience this was for me, thanks largely to David Marchioni — Automotive and Industrial Curator for the DHS:
And here’s some bonus footage in the form of Instagram videos:
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Anyway, for those of you who don’t want to watch videos, check out this Brush Runabout, built by Brush Motor Car Company out of Highland Park, MI:
It’s not so much that the car is that important in the history of Detroit — it’s more about what the car represents, or rather, who it represents: Alanson Partridge Brush. Here, allow Hemmings to tell you a bit about him:
The scene was electrifying: Thousands milled about and cheered lustily on a crisp fall morning in October 1902 as a tiny car clattered up the steps leading to the entrance of the magnificent, newly opened Wayne County Courthouse in Detroit. Reaching the Beaux-Arts building’s landing, it made a U-turn and descended smartly to the bottom of the stairs on Randolph Street. The crowd mobbed the tiny car. It was the very first Cadillac ever built, and decades later, the area in front of the courthouse would be renamed Cadillac Square in commemoration of its feat.
In the seat that day, 103 years ago, was the man mostly responsible for the landmark car’s basic design, a native Detroiter named Alanson Partridge Brush. He is one of the lesser-known lights in the early American auto industry’s galaxy of stars, but was nonetheless a gifted, self-taught engineer who developed and patented a raft of innovations that, in some cases, have long been wrongly credited to others.
Here’s a Mighty Mite, which was developed by American Motors Corporation (technically its military arm, AM General) in the late 1950s for the Marine corps — specifically to be lifted by the Sikorski H-19 helicopter. The Mighty Mite, which features automatic locking diffs front and rear, an aluminum body, a fully independent suspension, and an air-cooled V-4, didn’t make it into production until the early 1960s, which is when the “Huey” helicopter came out and offered much more carrying capacity, largely rendering the Mighty Mite obsolete. Production lasted only a few years.
So what does this Kenosha, Wisconsin-built military runabout have to do with Detroit? Well, that air-cooled V4 was a Detroit creation. Check out Popular Science’s cover from February of 1959:
I also saw this 1930s Chrysler Airflow (a car far ahead of its time — an aerodynamic wonder that was also a sales-flop) next to Henry Leyland’s personal car, a car called the Osceola Coupe (a vehicle used to study a potential closed-body Cadillac, the brand that Leyland founded. The Osceola was named after a Seminole Chief), which was designed by Fred Fisher (of Fischer body — the company that build bodies for GMs for decades):
I could spend this whole article writing about both of those two cars, but I must move on, for the CRC was full of absolute gold. Like this Mustang II prototype from 1963:
Motor Trend breaks down why the Mustang II was so important, writing:
The Mustang II “concept” came out of the need to bridge the public’s perception of the Mustang I two-seater from 1962 and the production Mustang to come in April 1964. In the summer of 1963, the Ford Styling department handed design details to Dearborn Steel Tubing (DST) to build the Mustang II prototype. What began as a ’63 Falcon Sprint chassis evolved into a completed vehicle in September 1963, minus the final top coat of paint. On October 6, 1963, just six months prior to the introduction of the mass produced Mustang on April 17, 1964, Ford unveiled the Mustang II at Watkins Glen Raceway in Watkins Glen, New York. On hand to make the introduction was Lee Iacocca, the man who had staked his reputation—and his job—on this car.
After Watkins Glen, the Mustang II was placed on the auto show circuit until early 1964, then it was retired to a Ford warehouse in Dearborn. Following 11 years of mostly storage, Ford donated its valuable piece of history to the Detroit Historical Museum in 1975. With the exception of a handful of car shows, the 1963 Mustang II resided for the following 21 years, from 1975 to 1996, in a WW II era warehouse owned by the museum.
Behold the first Chrysler minivan, the 1984 Plymouth Voyager — this one with a four-cylinder and four-speed manual transmission:
The minivan was the Brainchild of Lee Iacocca, who also had a huge hand in the Ford Mustang. (see Motor Trend quote above). His Lincoln Continental is also in a bubble just to the left of the Voyager minivan:
Behold this Ford GPW World War II Jeep, which was really developed by Butler, PA’s Bantam and Toledo’s Willys Overland, though certain elements (like the stamped grille) came from Ford Motor Company, who had a main plant in Dearborn:
Speaking of Jeeps, here are some M38A1 military Jeeps. These were built in Toledo, just 90 minutes south of Detroit:
I’d be mad if I didn’t show you the world’s first minivan, the 1935 Stout Scarab, developed by Detroit’s Stout Motor Car Company, founded by William Bushnell Stout, an aircraft pioneer and Ford exec. Next to the Scarab you can seven see a 1940s concept car Scarab successor that never made it into production:
Here’s a Firebird convertible developed by American Sunroof Corporation, which started out in California but moved to Michigan and became a huge outfit, helping automakers develop cars like the Dodge Dakota Convertible and Chevy SSR:
Here’s an early Pontiac Fiero, built in Pontiac, Michigan not far from Pontiac’s Fisher Body plant:
Here’s a ridiculous Scripps-Booth (a Detroit-based company founded by engineer-artist James Scripps Booth, who was part of a family that made its riches in media) water-cooled V8 motorcycle called the Bi-Autogo (notice the outriggers and cooling pipes):
Here are two 1986 Cadillac Brougham wagons, vehicles that never actually made it to production, as they were just an exercise by the UAW to show Cadillac that they could build different cars at the Clark Street assembly plant, and not have to change things. Unfortunately, Clark Street shut down shortly thereafter.
Speaking of Cadillacs, the CRC features this old Cadillac still on its platform/jig that took it down the assembly line just prior to plant closure:
Look at how minty the interior is; it still has its plastic wrap. Plus, the window sticker is still there:
And here’s another custom Cadillac wagon:
Among the most beautiful cars in the collection were these concept cars built on Shelby Cobra platforms: The 1965 Ford Bordinat Cobra (named after Ford’s head of design Eugene Bordinat) and the 1963 Ford Cougar II:
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There’s so much more to this collection even beyond just the cars themselves. Here’s a look at an old Ford Twin Traction Beam demonstrator cutaway:
Here’s a bunch of batteries from a Detroit Electric car from the early 1900s:
Here’s an old Dodge Omni welding buck — a calibration tool for the robotic welder, which is also shown:
DHS’s archives are as impressive as its vehicles. Look at these engineering drawings of the Scripps-Booth V8 motorcycle:
Here’s a look at the rear brake/drive axle:
Here’s another Scripps-Booth Drawing:
But the most impressive historical documents were the Stout Scarab drawings, because they were just as much art as they were engineering:
Here’s a Stout airline advertisement (that’s how he made his fortune):
There’s really not enough time for me to walk through every car at the CRC. It’s an overwhelming, but inspiring place that even features a bunch of pieces from the old Tigers Stadium, which was demolished about 20 years ago:
Here’s a photo dump of some other machines and memorabilia:
I am choosing to believe that it was left in exactly this state when the factory shut down and they somehow rescued it from the scrapper. I don’t know how/why that would have happened, but it’s a cool narrative.
My buddy Dave!!!!
I’m glad you finally got to go there. I’ve been plenty of times myself and also watched nearly every interview that Dave has ever given there. I’ll you that this is, by far, the best one I’ve watched (YouTube) yet. Good job, Mr. Tracy.
I’ll have to tell you that Dave is not only an encyclopedia of Detroit’s automotive knowledge, but he builds some pretty bitchin’ vehicles himself. He and I also co-chaired Detroit’s largest outdoor summer car show at Detroit’s Historic Fort Wayne for a few years. He’s a good dude.
Did Iacocca have an NSFW hood ornament? So naughty that it must shielded from innocent eyes in storage?
I think it’s so it doesn’t damage the bubble when it’s deflated. Probably has some pokey bits on it.
Fine. I will stop wondering if Iacocca was a certified freak.
Wowowowowowowowowowowow. Holy crap, that’s a collection. I always worry about mold in storage bubbles like that, so I was glad to at least hear a lot of fans whirring. (Not being Houston has its benefits, too.) That Mustang II concept looking squeaky clean gives me some hope that they’re at least moved around regularly.
What a collection. I love seeing all the ephemera, too. All the little models and documents. So cool.
I was excited for this article to come out. David’s right, there is so much important, historically significant stuff under that roof, and the way it’s set out with the cars in bubbles in this old quartermaster building, it’s almost like a holy place. You never knew what was around each corner so it was a thrilling place to explore. Dave Marchione is a walking encyclopedia and a great dude (he used to lend me tons of tools when we were both working at the Ford proving ground) and was an excellent tour guide. He also has the dream job of conserving and repairing these important vehicles. It was an afternoon I’ll never forget.
As Dave says in the video, museums usually just have a fraction of their collection on display at any given time so these cars aren’t stuck in their bubbles. They get shown at the museum and other exhibitions and events as well. It was super cool to see.
If Cadillac made that wagon, even for one year, I would have that wagon.
I’d be interested to know if it’s 3 row like the Caprice.
John Tjaarda’s design for the Stout Scarab looks oddly like the Schlorwagen developed by Karl Schlor. The latter had a Cd value of 0.186. I suspect the Scarab wasn’t anywhere near as slippery, and couldn’t find a Cd figure for it, but a slightly modified version of that shape can get very slippery.
There should be a Fallout: Detroit game and all these cars should be in it.
Just visit Detroit with your smartphone taped to your arm and it’ll be just like the game!
I hope they have good security and fire control.
I’ve been waiting to see that Mustang II concept for months, ever since you guys mentioned the access you got – thank you!
I understand it still runs even, and the DHS occasionally takes it out to events. I can’t recall, but I think it’s going somewhere soon.
They do. I believe they showed it at the Detroit Concourse last summer.
Cool. It must be sooo tempting to keep it in that bubble for all eternity (as it’s not 1 of XXXXXX ’60s Mustangs, it’s 1 of 1), so that it does that totally makes my day.
I would daily the f out of those Caddy wagons.
why’s there no linkback to carcapsule?
https://carcapsule.com/6.-carcapsule/
It’s funny that they draped a towel over the Continental’s hood ornament but the stowed the Fiero with the lights up. And the Firebird with the lights down.
That Cadillac Brougham still on the assembly jig is honestly one of the coolest things I have seen on the internet! Perfect preservation of not only the car but how it was assembled!
For real! Easily one of my favorite items in this piece.
One of the displays in the museum is a recreation of part of the Cadillac assembly line, showing how the bodies were lowered on to the chassis.
Is that an Iron Lung in the last photo? I wonder who is in there? Lee Iacocca or Henry Ford?
I believe it is. And it contains Walt Disney’s head.
Arthur Digby Sellers perhaps?
Oh yes. The designer of the 1956 Chevrolet.
This whole article is nothing but bubble rap.
… satisfying I hope.
Pop-pop-pop-pop …oh yeah!
That incredible collection needs to be moved away from Detroit to keep it safe.
With the amount of transit damage I see on a daily basis, that’s a risky proposition.
Safer than what is coming to Detroit in just a few years.
Enlighten us, please
Detroit is very strong Democrat city. One doesn’t need to be blind to see what Democrats have done to Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, etc.
Oh fuck off with your fear mongering, Detroit is doing better than it has in the past couple decades and is no longer the symbol of urban decay that it was 15 years ago.
Truth social is over there.
Go fuck yourself.
Stay away. Detroit is doing just fine without you.
Can we vote for shittiest comment of the day because I’m pretty sure this is it.
Why? Because you disagree with it? Why not just give a reasoned response? Or is it just easier to yell people down?
You’ve probably never been to Detroit. You’ll probably never go to Detroit. You know nothing about the city, but are quick make a shitty response to a cool story about cars and turn it into something political with racist undertones. So yeah. That’s my response.
LOL, HUH? Typical actually. If you look at what I said, I just said what is coming is not good. I did not say anything else. I would have been more than happy to have a real discussion about urban blight, the continued trek of people leaving the cities, the changing look of the auto industry and shrinking of the blue collar workforce etc. All those things together = not good. But you are so far up your own ass you cannot fathom that somebody might have different opinion than you. Instead you instantly go to “if you dont agree with me you are a racist” bullshit. Oh and only a moron wears a mask outside in the fresh air.
Oh… you’re one of those “just asking questions” kind of people. Listen, man. Your dog whistle is louder than you think. Here’s some reading you can do on your spare time when you’re done listening to the Joe Rogan podcast.
https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/commercial/reversing-the-real-estate-doom-loop-is-possible-just-look-at-detroit-0916d6f7
https://www.deadlinedetroit.com/articles/31866/wall_street_journal_detroit_is_emerging_as_america_s_most_unlikely_real-estate_boomtown
https://www.cbsnews.com/detroit/news/watch-live-detroit-mayor-mike-duggan-2024-state-of-the-city-address/
https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2024/04/17/campus-martius-detroit-best-public-space-usa-today-readers/73352800007/
https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/02/19/detroit-riverwalk-named-best-in-us-for-third-straight-year/69918864007/
I notice you dont link a story to GM leaving RenCen. That is a huge loss of tax and other revenue. Also you use the typical angry assumption ad hominem attack about things you dont have a clue about. Your type of angry attack style of posting is just a way of shouting people down you dont agree with…..and it was very easy to draw out of you. Keep wearing that mask outside to protect yourself from threats that dont exist.
GM still owns the RenCen and they’re only moving less than a half mile away, but believe what you want. I didn’t post it because it was already obviously good news. My point was to share other good news about Detroit that you likely choose to remain ignorant on. However, since I know nothing about Detroit after growing up on the east side and spending the rest of my adult life in the metro area, please enlighten me about what I don’t know is “coming”. It almost sounds like you’re making a terrorist threat.
Also, thanks for the continuous compliments on the mask. I’ll keep on wearing it just for you.
annnnnnd I seem to have fallen into the Bordinat Cobra rabbit hole . . .
Cobras are well suited in rabbit holes.
The window sticker on that Caddy is hilarious! As a former Brougham owner I can assure you all those fuel efficiency numbers are wildly optimistic.
I find the two Cadillac wagons and the 80% finished Cadillac a completely bizarre yet telling commentary on GM arrogance/mismanagement.
Union workers showing their creativity and ingenuity with what they had on hand vs GM management refusing to pay line workers a few more hours wages to get another $17,000 in revenue.
The inflation calculator says the Brougham would cost $72k today, which is about what I’d expect.
Oh pluuuleeeeze. They probably took a week to find enough sober workers to build those wagons.
David Marchione looks exactly like David will in 20-25 years.
If I could save cars in a bubble, the first thing that I’d like to do:
Is to save every car ’til eternity passes afar,
Just cruise them with you!
I see what you did there! Nothing wrong with a Jim Croce reference!
What an awesome place!
Bubblelicious!
I was wondering if the comments on this story were going to blow up!
Good one! 🙂
Let’s put a pin in that.
Scatter my ashes there…
Based on the dust covering the bubbles, it seems like yours wouldn’t be the first.
This is sad to me. Vehicles built with a functional purpose, doing nothing, seen by noone. It’s like a vault you’d find in a Fallout game. You’d think “how cool, and how totally worthless now,” except it isn’t the year 2161, it is 2024.
Or if I’m not mixing my pop culture metaphors too much…
Ford Cougar II Concept: What is my purpose?
Detroit Historical Society: You sit in a plastic bubble in a basement.
Ford Cougar II Concept: Oh my god.
It’s museum backstock: stuff gets cycled through display as exhibits change. And, sometimes, collections will tour smaller subsets: our little art museum had a visiting Brief History of Cars exhibit for I think a month
As Tossabl said, these vehicles get rotated through the museum’s displays and are shown at other events and exhibitions. Most museums only show a fraction of their collection at a time. They are also kept in top shape by Dave the caretaker.
The Detroit Historical Museum is small and doesn’t have enough room to display all cars at once. Dave cycles them through to put on display and also send some out on loan to other museums. All of the items are well taken care of.