Size Doesn't Matter at Savoy Automobile Museum

Residents and road trippers through northwest Georgia have a gem of a new museum to explore as the Savoy Automobile Museum celebrates one year of operation in early December. 

From a peek at their holiday exhibition schedule, at Savoy, size doesn't matter, for there's everything from micro- and muscle cars to monster brass machines of the early 1900s under the museum's hood, er, roof a few miles west of I-75 in Cartersville, Ga. 

On my first return visit to the museum since attending the Dec. 6 media day last year, earlier this month I enjoyed revisiting vehicles in the impressive permanent Savoy Collection while also exploring four temporary exhibitions:

• 
  Fast Brass featuring snazzy (and enormous) race cars from 1907 to 1915, including a Marmon Speedster and a Stutz Bearcat on view through Jan. 29

• Big Blocks -- as in muscle car engines -- including a '67 Corvette convertible and a shimmering red Mustang Shelby revving up through Dec. 4

• Microcar Marvels, which showcases 14 of the smallest cars ever engineered, on loan from the Lane Motor Museum through Feb. 26, and
  

• Savoy Customs, presenting five "incredible custom resto-mod vehicles ... modified with modern parts and tech" while maintaining their "classic look" on view until Jan. 8.

There was also a teaser for an upcoming exhibition opening Dec. 6 titled Fabulous Fins featuring 10 U.S. vehicles of the 1950s and 60s (think Cadillac, Lincoln and the classic Chevy Bel Air). 

At its grand opening, the Savoy impressed me for many thoughtful details. For instance, some of the showrooms feature original auto-themed artwork, with many commissioned canvases for the destination. The paintings and posters span the history of automobiles thanks to a mix of unknown international artists and contemporary favorites including Billy Schenck, Allan Gorman and Steve Penley.

The largest indoor work looms over the ticket counter and a window display promoting sister museums in Cartersville, including the excellent Booth Western Art Museum also operated by Georgia Museums Inc. 

The Savoy's grandest work of art, however, is outdoors and impossible to miss. 

The monumental stainless-steel sculpture -- measuring 40.5 x 8.5 x 9.5 feet -- is artist Linda Brunker's five-ton take on streamline hood ornament design titled "Spirit of Speed." 

Also on view outdoors is the rusted hull of a 1954 Plymouth Savoy, the museum's namesake after its discovery while crews cleared the site for construction. 

On a smaller scale, a floor-to-ceiling showcase features an array of car collectibles, including die-cast cars of many colors and sizes. In this enviable and growing assemblage, I spotted the Savoy's lone Olympic tether as one of the displayed toys features Atlanta Olympic branding in miniature. 

Anyone can peek at future exhibitions and special events including car shows, lectures, "hoods up" days or other featured gatherings via the museum event calendar. 

Photos by Nicholas Wolaver