2005 Automotive Hall of Fame inductee Mario Andretti recently granted us an exclusive, candid interview detailing his childhood in Italy, his first glimpse of racing in a Hollywood movie, his early career and his favorite cars and racers. Visit our YouTube channel to view all the segments of our conversation with this living legend! Watch the interviews

By Brian Baker, Principal Historian The president of the United States is commander in chief of the world’s most powerful military and enjoys instant name recognition, but this doesn’t necessarily guarantee success in the automotive world.  Consider all the automakers with the same names as U.S. presidents: Bush, Cleveland, Clinton, Ford, Harrison, Hoover, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Kennedy, Lincoln, McKinley, Monroe, Pierce, Taft, Taylor and Washington. The first U.S. president, George Washington, was the inspiration for the names of no less than six failed automobiles. From 1899 until 1924, companies formed in Washington, D.C., Illinois, Maryland and Ohio, attempted to capitalize on Washington’s name recognition. All failed

The 2019 – 2020 Automotive Hall of Fame Honoree Lecture Series has continued on Zoom through the challenges of the recent months. On November 5, we welcomed 2017 Automotive Hall of Fame inductee Ed Welburn and former head of GM design. Welburn shared details of his inspirational automotive design career in a presentation entitled “Tunnel Vision.” Visit our YouTube Channel to view the entire lecture.

In May of 1930, 2004 Automotive Hall of Fame Inductee Battista “Pinin” Farina created an automotive body design firm bearing his name, Carrozzeria Pinin Farina (today, Pininfarina S.p.A). In 2020, this legendary company celebrates 90 years of beautiful design. Battista Farina defined Italian automobile styling. His vision of sculptural, sensuous, curvaceous forms helped his firm secure a groundbreaking partnership with Enzo Ferrari. This synergy of Pininfarina and Ferrari created some of the most beautiful automobiles