Haynes Motor Museum

The Haynes Motor Museum at Sparkford, Yeovil, has been expanded several times since John Haynes, OBE, opened it many years ago. A further extension was seen there in June when Stirling Moss, OBE, declared open the Hall of Motorsport. Some of the great competition cars from the main hall have been transferred there, and new exhibits include the BRMs not seen in public since they were raced in the 1970s by Lauda, Regazzoni, Siffert and Rodriguez, together with Stirling’s Lotus 23B and BMW-powered Elva Mk7SS. This new hall also has an exciting life-size mural of racing pits, and another which re-enacts the accident which befell a Porsche 911 at Thruxton so as to emphasise in an honest and non-sensational manner how race safety is maintained. I have a great admiration for the way in which the Haynes Museum displays its enormous range of exhibits, from 1900 Clement on, in six well-lit and staged halls, a reception area of A7s, a motorcycle area, and bus and tank shows outside. The Museum has its own workshops for this purpose, with hot-air paint oven. So, another reason for a visit to Sparkford, to one of the most interesting Motor Museums in the UK.