While the early automotive industry in all parts of the world designed cars primarily for local markets, it was not long before “World Cars” evolved, standardizing design and parts to ensure quality at the best cost savings for a global automotive market. The Newport Car Museum brings together the best of the marquee brands – based on technological advances and design – developed during the 1950s and ’60s through to the present day
Among the special cars celebrating the art of performance are three British-built Jaguars – the 1956 XK140 Roadster, 1963 E-Type Roadster, and 1993 XJ 220 (at one point, the fastest car in the world) and seven German-built Mercedes Benz: the 1886 Patent Motorwagen, 1955 SLR, 1955 300 SL Gullwing, 1963 300SL, 2008 SLR, 2012 SLS, and a 2018 GT R.
Like the legendary McLaren F1 before it, McLaren’s P1 hypercar has set a new benchmark for road legal super cars. The first of the three major hybrid supercars to see production (the Porsche 918, featured in the museum, and LaFerrari came the following year), the P1 sets new standards for performance, handling and technology.
Rounding out the collection are a German-built BMW Z8, a tribute to the recreation of a 507 roadster that Elvis Presley owned while serving in the Army in Germany; four Italian-built Lamborghinis, a 1997 Diablo, 1989 Countach (seemingly featured on every teenage boy’s wall next to his Farah Fawcett poster), 2008 Murcielago, and 2017 Aventador; and three British-built jaguars: a 1956 XK140, 1963 XKE, and 1993 XJ 220; and a very rare 1956 MGA Twin-Cam.