InfoBritain
Custom Search
Heritage Motor Centre, Warwickshire This image is copyright free
The Industrial Revolution and early British car manufacture were centred on the Midlands. Engineer Frederick Lanchester, at his factory in Ladywood Road, Birmingham led a revolution in British car manufacture, and industrial production generally. Lanchester was a superb craftsman whose pursuit of quality often put him at odds with his commercially minded directors. Other manufacturers tried to rely on a plentiful supply of cheap labour, which made hand fitting the most commercially acceptable form of manufacture at the time. Lanchester would have none of this, insisting on the consistent results only possible with machine tools turning out interchangeable parts. Today "hand made" denotes quality, but for Lanchester, "hand made" would have denoted shoddy, and it was his industrial processes that helped bring predictable quality to British car production. It also meant that cars could be produced at much lower prices, helping to make the car an item of mass ownership.
The British car industry is commemorated, fittingly in the Midlands, at the Heritage Motor Centre, just outside Stratford Upon Avon. The Heritage Motor Centre has a collection of around 250 cars, the world's largest collection of British cars, dating from the 1890s to the present day. There are a selection of permanent and changing exhibitions, related to how a car actually works, and also to its social effects. In Life's Highway, the lifetimes of four imaginary characters are described in terms of their cars. The Time Road presents car and road history as a chronological walk, so that changes can actually be seen taking place. A reading room allows access to an extensive archive of documents relating to motor history. There is also a film and photo library with over a million transparencies and negatives, and 7000 film titles relating to cars from the 1900s onwards.
To complement the museum there are motoring activities on offer which include off road driving and go-karting.
Address: Heritage Motor Centre, Banbury Road, Gaydon, Warwickshire, CV35 0BJ
Directions: Follow signs from junction 12 of the M40. Click here for an interactive map centred on Heritage Motor Centre.
Opening Times: Open daily 10am - 5pm, except 24th December to 1st January.
Access: Designated parking is available, which moves on special event days to make sure that spaces are positioned in the most appropriate location for visitors. Follow blue and white signs. There is a drop off point at the museum entrance. Wheelchairs are available at the pay desk, and can be booked on arrival, or pre-booked by ringing 01926 642288. Level access is possible to all areas. Portable induction loops are available at the pay desk. Adapted toilet facilities are provided.
Contact:
telephone: 01926 641188
education enquiries: 01926 645128
e-mail: enquiries@heritage-motor-centre.co.uk
web site: http://www.heritage-motor-centre.co.uk/