Tacoma, WA

Today I wanted to try going somewhere different with my family so I decided to take them to the LeMay American Car Museum. I fell in love with these cars many years ago when Harold LeMay was still alive, and my father would take me to his car shows. Today I wanted to share with my little ones that same experience. My oldest son fell in love with what he called, “the pretty cars.” I myself found it to be enjoying as always to see the car I grew up looking at every year in my life. But my most favorite part was the American Muscle Cars. That’s right boys even us girlies like to hear the roaring of a great engine. I have decided to bring my youngest son back when he gets old enough to understand what he is looking at. I personally think everyone of all ages will enjoy a day here, like we did. While at our visit we also found that the museum will be moved into a bigger and permanent place when the funds are raised and plans set out.

Tour takes approximately 2 hours and includes viewing 300+ vehicles from the largest privately owned collection in the world. Our gift shop is also open to visitors during this time where they can purchase America’s Car Museum mementos and membership in the museum. We recommend wearing comfortable shoes and to dress according to the weather.

Price:
Tuesday through Saturday, 10am-5pm.
Summer Hours, June through August, Sunday 12pm - 5pm.

Adults: $15.00 per person
Members: $10.00 per person
Children 6-12 years: $5.00

All of our tours are guided by trained docents, so we appreciate appropriate notice in scheduling your tour so that we may provide you the best experience possible. Our last tour will begin at 3pm.

Directions:

From I – 5

From I-5 take the Puyallup/Mt. Rainier exit (Exit 127). This will put you on Highway 512, heading east toward Puyallup.
Take the Pacific Avenue exit and at the light take a right. You will be heading south on Pacific Avenue to 152nd Street East/Military Road.
Take a left (east) on 152nd/Military Road, go approximately 1/4 mile.
Turn left at the LeMay Collection Tours sign and follow road through the entrance gate.

Park in front of the Museum gift store

The Vision of the Future:

The new home for America’s Car Museum will be an inspirational icon for the the City of Tacoma, WA. A gleaming beacon above this growing city, it will be a technologically-advanced, interactive automotive museum and educational center that will showcase the cultural impact of cars, motorcycle and trucks on our uniquely American way of life. The Museum is based on the LeMay Collection, currently consisting of over 2000 cars. The new Museum will ultimately house over 1000 diverse vehicles, spanning not only a century of automotive history, but the future of our transportation system as well. This much anticipated $100 million project will be built in two stages. Upon completion of stage one, it will be the largest auto museum in the world!

ACM is being built in the heart of the technology-rich Pacific Northwest. Located just thirty miles south of Seattle, the Museum will be situated on nine prime, highly-visible acres adjacent to Interstate 5. Stage one groundbreaking is planned for summer 2008 with completion of construction and opening slated for spring 2010. The new Museum is being built on the premise that there is an important and unique story to tell and it involves not only the past, but the present and future as well. As a result, we are creating a place that will attract young and old alike, insure and delight everyone who enters…and help shape the drivers of the future.

America’s Car Museum will be:

• A Gathering Place – where enthusiasts from around the world will come to celebrate America’s love affair with the automobile
• A Creator of Social Network – for automotive enthusiasts, serious collectors and educational entities through promotion of, and active involvement in, automobile-related activities around the world and online
• A Showcase for the Transportation Industry – to portray present achievements and future directions in design, technology and products
• An Education Center – to promote automotive history, restoration and preservation

I think that when the new museum is built and finished that it will bring in more people and become a family tradition to see the cars.