Autoworld (museum)

The core of the museum was formed by the collections of two collectors: Charly De Pauw and Ghislain Mahy.^[1] Mahy was a passionate mechanic from his youth and bought his first car, a Ford T, in 1944. This turned out to be the start of a collection that grew into about a thousand vehicles, amongst which many Belgian brands such as Minervas, Germain, FN, Imperia, Fondu, Vivinus, Nagant, Belga-Rise and Miesse.^[2]

 

For half a century, the collection took shape in the former Wintercircus in Ghent. In 1986, a selection of 230 cars was transferred to Brussels, where they are housed in the South Hall of the Cinquantenaire complex, also called Palais Mondial.^[3] The remaining 750 cars are located in Mahymobiles, an automobile museum located in Leuze-en-Hainaut, Belgium.^[2]

The museum has developed over the years and the exhibition space is now divided into several sections. The museum also organises temporary exhibitions throughout the year, as well as vehicle orientated events, such as anniversary celebrations of different car marques and automotive industry events such the AutoSens conference.^[4]

The permanent collection exhibits cars from the end of the 19th century up to the 1990s. These include Minervas, a 1928 Bentley, a 1930 Bugatti and a 1930 Cord, and several limousines belonging to the Belgian royal family. In addition to passenger cars; motorcycles, sports cars, fire engines and carriages from the 19th century are also on display.^[2]

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  Berline de Gala, Paris (1852)
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  Fondu CF (1906)
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  FN 1300 Sport (1925)
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  Minerva 40 HP (1930)
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  Belga Rise 8C (1934)
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  Audi A2 prototype (1990s)
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  Vintage road signs

• Art & History Museum
• List of museums in Brussels
• History of Brussels
• Culture of Belgium
• Belgium in the long nineteenth century

• Jacques Kupelian, Alain Van den Abeele, Herman De Croo, Autoworld Brussels (in French), Centre mondial de l'automobile, 1985, 167 p.

•   Media related to Autoworld at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website