Gilmore Car Museum holds Muscle Car lectures and events

Muscle car exhibit | Gilmore Car Museum photos

The next presentation in the 2018 Lecture Series at the Gilmore Car Museum, in Hickory Corners, northeast of Kalamazoo, features popular speaker and historian Don LaCombe on January 21^st to present “Henry Ford’s X Engine – Replacing the Model T.” LaCombe spent 36 years in Product Development at Ford Motor Company and is now affiliated with Detroit’s Ford Piquette Plant Museum, the birthplace of the Model T.

“We have brought together a fine group of historians, scholars, and authors—all experts in their respective fields,” explains Fred Colgren, Education Director at the Museum. “There’s certain to be something of interest for everyone.”

LaCombe will discuss how Henry Ford had experimented with a very unique engine where the cylinders were in an “X” configuration, and his secret five-year race against Charles Kettering, head of GM Research, in the development of a low-cost automobile.

The lecture series takes place each Sunday afternoon with presentations at 3 pm, each appropriate for all ages with no registration required.

“We are very excited and honored to offer such a distinguished group of speakers and wide-ranging topics for this year’s Speaker Series,” said Chris Shires, Gilmore Car Museum Executive Director.

The remainder of the series consists of several noted historians and authors, with topics as diverse as sand dune rides in Michigan, Le Mans racing, and vintage gas stations to Abe Lincoln and Walt Disney.

On February 4, guests are even asked to become part of the program as they join photo journalist John Lacko and present 3 to 5 minutes of their “Muscle Car Memories.” If guests have a vintage snap-shot and would like to share them with their recollections, they are asked to save them to a blank USB thumb drive so they can easily be found and projected during the presentation.

Shortly after, the museum holds its annual “Pint with the Past,” a Michigan craft beer tasting event and museum fundraiser, on February 17. This year, attendees will be able to view special exhibits showcasing muscle cars of the 1960s and ’70s, along with vintage trucks as ten Michigan breweries host tasting stations mixed throughout the exhibit galleries amid the cars.

The event is open to those 21 and older and runs from 7-10 p.m. on Saturday, February 17. Advance tasting tickets are $40 each via the Museum’s website or $50 at the door.

The 2018 Speaker Series continues for several consecutive Sundays, always beginning at 3pm sharp, in the Gilmore Car Museum’s Heritage Center. This year’s exciting lineup includes:

January 28, 2018, Can-Am 50th Anniversary: The Best Stories and Photos, George Levy, Author
February 4, 2018, Your Muscle Car Memories, John Lacko, Racing Aficionado and Photo Journalist
February 11, 2018, The Relevance of Abraham Lincoln, Cameron Brown, Author and Historian
February 18, 2018, Automotive Lubrication Testing Lecture and Seminar, David E. Persell, Ph.D
February 25, 2018, Art, Architecture, and the Automobile, David O. Lyon, Author and Historian
March 4, 2018, Sir William and Jaguar: From Swallow Sidecars to Victory at Le Mans, Mike Erspamer, Jaguar Historian
March 11, 2018, Walt’s Pilgrimage: The Walt Disney Story with a Gilmore Connection, Christopher W. Tremblay, Author and Disney Historian
March 18, 2018, Slot Cars and the Kalamazoo Connection, John Lacko, Racing Aficionado and Photo Journalist
March 25, 2018, Running On Empty: Abandoned Gas Stations in America, Susan Johnston, Photographer
April 8, 2018, 100th Anniversary: Colonel Joseph Westnedge and World War I, Tom George, Historian
April 15, 2018, Riding Across the Sands of Time: Dune Rides, Dune Scooters, Dune Schooners, Dunesmobiles,and Dune Buggies, Christine Byron and Thomas R. Wilson, Historians and Authors
April 22, 2018, The History of Speedway Design and Construction, Van Walling, Historian
April 29, 2018, The History and Evolution of the Country’s Most Unique Aviation Museum: The Air Zoo, Bob Ellis, Founding Air Zoo CEO/Director