The art of the sports car takes centre stage at the new Porsche museum in Stuttgart.
Engines, interactive displays,Porsche memorabilia and 80 cars – including prototypes and icons likethe 911, all polished to a mirror-sheen – are parked on two floors ofpristine, white galleries.
The collection includes a 550 Spyder – the model James Dean was driving when he died in a collision with a Studebaker in 1955.
Othermodels, like the 917 type Hollywood star Steve McQueen made famous in”Le Mans” and the 928 version Tom Cruise’s character in “RiskyBusiness” used to elude trouble, are parked bumper-to-bumper underdazzling spotlights.
Three dramatic concrete pillars support themuseum building, designed by the Viennese architecture firm DeluganMeissl, which seems to float above its industrial surroundings.
A handcrafted aluminum recreation of the very first Porsche, a Type 64 ‘VW Aerocoupe,’ shines in the center of the first floor.
Prototypes on display include a 928 model almost longenough for four doors, a 1989 “Panamericana” with odd, frog-like curvesand the darling of the museum staff: the 1992 Boxster prototype thatwon Best in Show at the 1993 Detroit Auto Show.
Porschehopes to lure 200,000 visitors a year to the museum – competition forthe rival Mercedes museum, located a half-hour away in Untertuerkheim,a Stuttgart suburb. (more visuals over at Autoblog )
