What is it like volunteering at the Lane Motor Museum?

"OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars" (jakeauern)
02/15/2018 at 11:22 • Filed to: Embiggen this

Have you ever wondered if they made a type of car? Well. Volunteering at the Lane is a continual exercise in“What is that???”.

Me in the Worlds Smallest Production Vehicle - Peel P50. Picture by my friend Morgan.

My journey started somewhere in July when I went to see Torch talk about the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . I had been to the museum once or twice before, but being there in this special event just ignited something. My friend talked to Rex(one of the Education Coordinators) about him volunteering but I didn’t think I had the time. Fast forward a month and I saw Rex comment on an article under the Lanes Kinja Account. I made a quick “We met a the Lane and I would love to volunteer” comment and he responded, here is my email, let get this going.

Corphibian, Toyota Sports 800, and many more. Picture by me.

It took me a few weeks to get in there as I was traveling and getting organized but one day I decided to pop in there and get the paperwork done. Thus my journey began.

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The first part of your day is walking in and signing in. It behooves you as the more hours you accumulate, the more trusted you are. After 6 hours, you earn free membership for a year. After 12, they let you drive cars as needed. Not a bad deal.

MG Metro 6R4 and Renault Clio V6. Picture by me.

After signing in there are a few tasks for the volunteers. One of the biggest is just walking around and keeping an eye on guests. Not in a creepy way but more in the making sure people don’t do dumb stuff. While this may seem ridiculous, the amount of people that touch the cars is unbelievable. Families with children and adults are equally uncaring. There are dozens of one off cars in there, many of which have years of restorations done , and someone not paying attention will scratch the paint, chip it, or get in the car without regard for the vehicle. The single most touched car below.

Lotus Evora S - Picture by me.

The second tasks we may do is dust the vehicles. We usually use a California Duster to knock dirt and grime off of the cars. The Lane is actually housed in an old bread factory, and much of the gunk is still on the ceiling. When the train passes by this gunk will fall on the cars. While it does not harm the paint, it just looks like the car is dirty and the California Dusters help that. The cars that seem to attract the most gunk are the Honda N-One, Toyota Century(on loan), and Nissan GT-R LM Nismo. I believe this happens because they are all fairly shiny(of course), and have long flat surfaces where it does not just fall to the ground.

Toyota Century - Picture by me.

One of my favorite things to do is teaching people about the cars. After numerous hours of exploring and learning, I have picked up on some things that are not on the placards displayed by the cars. Some facts like, the Davis upstairs is #9/16 made and that the museum just acquired #1, the prototype. Other facts like the Century, although it is a very, very large car, is most comfortable for those under 5'10". Any bigger and the head room is non existent. I also can open doors and hoods for those people very interested.

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And then there are the basement tours. Every employee at the Lane has different tastes in cars, has different favorites, and talks about different cars out of the over 350+ in the basement. Learning tidbits here and there is a great pleasure as we caboose(follow and make sure they don’t slip and and die on oil) the crowds that span from 5-25ish people. Cars that often get pointed out include the MG Metro 6R4, 2CV Skinny, Vanden Plas Princess(with the Rolls Royce generator engine), the coal coal powered Citroen Berline 11 Gazogene and the BMW 320(1/17 known surviving).

BMW 320 - Picture by me.

The other things that are cool include attending the Volunteer Drive Days-

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Being able to post these -

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As a car guy I know I am truly luck to be around all these vehicles, and then get rewards for doing so is even better. As you can tell tell there are endless cars here. Nearly 550 and counting. This is what leads to so many “What is that???” moments. Every time you turn around there is something new. Cars are purchased randomly, moved out of the shadows, and sometimes just appear right in front of your face, where they have been for years. It never gets old.

Thanks for your time all and please feel free to ask any questions you may have.

DISCUSSION (21)

dtg11 - is probably on an adventure with Clifford > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 11:28

The Lane is far and away my favorite car museum I’ve been to. Even my non car loving family enjoys the museum, simply because the cars are so unique and unusual. I’ve been twice and I’ll definitely be going again

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > dtg11 - is probably on an adventure with Clifford
02/15/2018 at 11:30

Soon to be announced -2nd Annual Nashville Oppo Meet June 2nd! Make plans!

dtg11 - is probably on an adventure with Clifford > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 11:35

It’s roughly 8 hours from home, but I might be able to swing it, depending on work/vacations/money/etc

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > dtg11 - is probably on an adventure with Clifford
02/15/2018 at 11:38

We’re doing C&C, the Lane, lunch, and then a drive to somewhere. Still some TBD.

dtg11 - is probably on an adventure with Clifford > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 11:46

that sounds like a lot of fun, I’ll have to keep that in the back of my mind

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > dtg11 - is probably on an adventure with Clifford
02/15/2018 at 11:46

We’re trying to space it where we can still go to the Main C&C but not to close to the big Oppo meet in August, which I am also planning on attending.

f86sabre > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 11:48

Nice piece and props to you for volunteering. Is this something you think you might want to make a career out of? Being an archivist ins’t a bad gig.

https://io9.gizmodo.com/trailer-for-star-wars-costumes-takes-you-inside-lucas-a-1652009786

https://siarchives.si.edu/blog/some-archival-career-advice

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > f86sabre
02/15/2018 at 11:50

Tat is one of my “Won the Lottery and am Bored” Jobs. I’m a corporate accountant and at 23 I think I can get myself in a good position and then eventually jump ship and have fun like being an archivist. I have to pay for premium gas and premium tires on the ISF somehow.

HammerheadFistpunch > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 11:53

What a fun and diverse collection and a neat opportunity. Makes me want to see if the Land Cruiser heritage museum needs volunteers. I know they have 2 full time staff, but they are in expansion mode right now.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > HammerheadFistpunch
02/15/2018 at 11:55

If you get a Volunteer spot with the Cruiser museum I will be your personal guest and you can fly out to Nashville and be mine.

HammerheadFistpunch > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 11:58

deal, though you can visit the cruiser museum for free so I feel like I would be getting the better part of that deal.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > HammerheadFistpunch
02/15/2018 at 12:02

It’s free? That is really cool. We have what feels like a Cruiser Museum at my dads shop some weeks. Have had up to 4 FJ40s in the bays at a time. Have also seen a FJ45 Troopy, dozens of J100s, dozens of FJ60/62s, and dozens of FJ80s.

HammerheadFistpunch > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 12:03

Yup free! the diversity at the museum is something else, I can tell you. Its pretty fun to walk around.

Mercedes Streeter > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 12:05

I love this piece!!! I scratched the Corvette Museum off my bucket list in 2014, but it sounds like the Lane is even more insane. It’s only in TN, maybe I’ll try to get there this year! :D

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 12:05

Sounds like fun! I’d love volunteering in a car museum, I should probably give the DAF museum a call some day.

Also, it seems like a lot of the cars come from the Netherlands. Does the Lane have a special connection with the Netherlands, or is it just due to are large quantities of classic cars? (I know we have a lot of Citroëns, rumours go we have more DS’ses than France has. Which is funny, because Andre Citroën was of Dutch decent)

DaftRyosuke - So Long and Thanks for All the Fish! > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 12:06

You actually answered one of my questions that’s been plaguing me for a while.

When I visited the museum in 2015, I of course did not touch any of the cars out of respect as an enthusiast. But I stumbled upon a video of someone at the museum and they were getting in and out of the cars at will. The comments were all like, “If they didn’t want people in and out of the cars, they wouldn’t leave them unlocked,” and, “I’ve been there before, they don’t care.” I’ve always had doubts in that comment section’s truth, but I’m glad to get an answer from someone who actually worked there.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > DaftRyosuke - So Long and Thanks for All the Fish!
02/15/2018 at 12:08

yeah there is one car that we allow people to get in/out take pictures but for the most part it is just no touch. When you buy tickets we say please do not touch and there is a sign as you walk in. It’s annoying people don’t listen.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer
02/15/2018 at 12:10

I don’t know why there are so many Dutch cars. I can definitely ask Jeff on Saturday. I imagine one of our connections is up there or the cars tend to be more diverse. I’ll check.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > Mercedes Streeter
02/15/2018 at 12:10

June 2nd 2nd Annual Nashville Oppo Meet!

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
02/15/2018 at 12:13

Thanks! Would be interesting to find out, I’ve been wondering about that for quite some time.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer
02/15/2018 at 12:15

I’ll set a reminder in my phone!