Canadian Automotive Museum

Canadian Automotive Museum
Entrance on Simcoe Street
Established1962; 64 years ago (1962)
Location99 Simcoe Street South
Oshawa, Ontario
L1H 4G7
Coordinates43°53′41.5″N 78°51′43.8″W / 43.894861°N 78.862167°W / 43.894861; -78.862167
TypeAutomobile museum
Collection size
85+ cars
WebsiteCanadian Automotive Museum

The Canadian Automotive Museum is an automobile museum located in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum notably features many Canadian-made cars. The automobile industry, specifically the Canadian division of the General Motors, known as General Motors Canada, has been based in Oshawa since the early 20th century.

History

The museum was founded in 1962 by a group of Oshawa businessmen through the Oshawa Chamber of Commerce. The venture was initiated mainly to preserve the automotive history of Canada and to present this history in an educational and entertaining manner. Canadian Automotive Museum, Inc. is a charitable corporation and has been in operation since 1963.

The museum is housed in a 25,000 sq ft (2,300 m2) building in downtown Oshawa that was originally the location of Ontario Motor Sales, a local car dealership, in the 1920s. The building maintains its original period architecture right down to the original elevator used to move cars to the second floor.

Vehicles on display

The museum has two floors: the ground floors features foreign cars, while the upstairs features a "Made in Canada" exhibit.

Decade Year Make and model Notes
Before 1910 1897 Fossmobile Replica of original.
1898 Woods Electric The oldest surviving electric vehicle in Canada.
1903 Orient Buckboard
1903 Redpath Messenger
1904 Ford Model C Replica
1905 McLaughlin Carriage
1908 Tudhope-McIntyre Model HH Phaeton
1908 McLaughlin Model F
1909 Kennedy
1909 Model T Canadian-built
1910s 1910 McKay Torpedo Coupe Features semi-historical modifications.
1910 Hupmobile Model 20 Runabout
1911 De Dion-Bouton Roadster
1911 International Harvester Auto Wagon
1911 Cartercar Touring
1912 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Originally owned by Lady Eaton
1912 McLaughlin 5 Passenger Touring
1913 Wolseley 16/20 Model C6 Touring
1914 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost distinguished by its use by the Prince of Wales
on his 1919 Royal Tour
1914 McLaughlin Model 14 Truck
1914 Galt Gas-Electric
1914 Brockville-Atlas
1916 Ford T Touring
1917 Chevrolet 490 Touring
1918 Chevrolet 490 Snowmobile
1918 Packard Twin Six 3-25 Touring
1919 Rauch & Lang Electric Brougham
1920s 1922 Kissel Gold Bug 6-45 Speedster
1922 McLaughlin-Buick 22-49 Special
1923 Gray-Dort 23B Special Touring
1923 Vauxhall 30-98 Velox Not on display as of July, 2026.
1924 Chevrolet Superior Series F Touring Coupe.
1925 Brooks Steamer Model 2/3 Sedan
1926 Ford TT Tanker Truck
1926 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A S Sala Torpedo Phaeton Tourer
1926 Willys Whippet Four Coupe
1926 Bentley 3 Litre 4-Seater Speed Model
1926 Chevrolet Superior Series V Sedan
1927 Dodge Brothers Series 126 Sedan
1928 Durant D-55 Special Sedan
1928 Hispano Suiza H6B 4-Seater Touring
1928 Hudson Sedan
1928 Bugatti Type 37
1929 Ford Model A Convertible Cabriolet
1929 Chevrolet Series AC International Roadster With wire wheels.
1929 Oakland Olympic Six Not on display as of July, 2026.
1929 Henderson Streamline KJ
1929 Sunbeam Model 9
1930s 1930 Marquette 30-30 Two Door Sedan
1931 Ford Model A Deluxe Coupe
1931 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Gran Sport Body coachbuilt by Zagato.
1931 McLaughlin-Buick Model 67
1931 Francis-Barnett Black Hawk Model 17
1932 Frontenac 6-85
1933 Francis-Barnett Black Hawk
1934 McLaughlin-Buick 66S Sport Coupe
1934 Rolls Royce 20/25 Convertible Sedan
1937 Buick Series 80C Roadmaster
1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III
1937 REO Speed Delivery Pickup
1939 Rolls-Royce Wraith
1940s 1949 Meteor
1950s 1950 Oldsmobile 76
1952 Vauxhall Wyvern Station Wagon Custom-built for Samuel McLaughlin.
1952 Velocette 2 Cyl Water Cooled motorcycle
1955 Pontiac Laurentian
1955 Buick Special
1957 Dodge Regent
1960s 1960 Frontenac
1960 Rolls-Royce Phantom V Limousine
1962 Lotus Formula Junior
1963 Buick Custom Limousine Originally owned by Canadian Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson
1963 Phelon & Moore Panther with Garrard Sidecar Not on display as of July, 2026.
1965 Suzuki Sportsman
1966 Buick Special
1966 Corvair
1966 Honda 50
1966 Raleigh RM 9 Ultramatic
1969 Daimler Limousine Originally used in royal visits to the Isle of Man.
1970s 1971 Manic GT Not on display as of July, 2026.
1972 Buick Electra
1972 Yamaha U7E
1974 Rupp Dart Go-Kart “Herbie”
1975 Bricklin SV-1
1975 Can-Am T’NT
1980s 1981 Plymouth Reliant
1983 DMC DeLorean Canadian specification.
1987 Magna Torrero Concept Car
1990s 1999 Chevrolet Lumina Final Chevrolet Lumina produced at GM Oshawa factory.
2000s 2001 1964 Renault Dauphine Electric Made by Feel Good Motors.
2008 ZENN

Special events

Every September, the museum participates in a classic car rally known as the "Cobble Beach Concours d'Elegance & Motoring Festival". It is held at the Cobble Beach Golf Links course overlooking Georgian Bay in Kemble, Ontario. Kemble is located on the Bruce Peninsula in Grey County, north of Owen Sound.

Museum affiliations

The museum collaborates regularly with the Oshawa Museum and the city's Parkwood Estate, the home of Samuel McLaughlin.

The CAM maintains ties with another Oshawa museum having a similar emphasis on vehicles, the tank museum of the Ontario Regiment of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps (RCAC).

The museum is affiliated with the Canadian Museums Association (CMA), Digital Museums Canada, and the Virtual Museum of Canada.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Hidden in Plain Sight: Canadian Automotive Museum". By: Gary Grant March 4, 2019
  2. ↑ "Our Story | Ontario Chevy and Cadillac Dealership in Oshawa | OMS". Archived from the original on 2014-04-20. Retrieved 2014-04-23.