Shopping for Steve McQueen’s wheels at the Petersen Automotive Museum

IMAGINE a carpark full of hot rods, historic racers, movie-star cars, and a bulletproof Mercedes 600 used by Saddam Hussein.

The 1925 Rolls-Royce Aero Coupe, rebuilt in 1934 with round art-deco doors.

THERE are three keys to happiness in southern California: great tan, great body, great car. Since I’m looking at spending a few months of the year here and the first two departments are no problem, I need advice on what cars are cool in this, the world capital of appearances do matter.

Naturally the only people to see for this sort of information are AJ Gordon and Dana Williamson at the Petersen Automotive Museum. Peter Petersen’s museum is pretty cool. It’s on Wilshire Boulevard not far from Rodeo Drive, near where well-known crooner the Notorious BIG was murdered in his Chev Suburban after a party at the Petersen. And because Pete specified that the museum have only cars relevant to Los Angeles, the metal is awesome.

Petersen was pretty cool himself. A hot rod fanatic, he began in PR at MGM, set up his own spin business, then started Hot Rod magazine and with wife Margie built a publishing empire that ran from Motor Trend to Sassy to my favourite, Guns & Ammo.

In true American fashion, he sold out for a squillion dollars, became a serious philanthropist and started one of the world’s best auto museums.

I paid $36 for a ticket to the museum and vault, and AJ and Dana showed me what cars could be suitable. There are a few Australian connections including Vern Schuppan’s F 275 GTB/4. Regular readers will remember this was first owned by Steve McQueen, then by Lost in Space star Guy Williams and most lately by Adelaide warehouse resident and Le Mans star Vern, who has given it to Rob Myers to sell this month at RM’s Pebble Beach auction.

Of course next to Steve’s old Italian is his old Pom, the 1956 Jaguar XKSS, and his even older Yank, the 1912 Indian Single motorcycle.

Being in the US, the museum has to be politically correct and unfortunately has displays on alternative fuel and driverless cars. When I questioned Dana on this, he said: “Alternative fuel cars are very popular in southern California.” Like that old joke, southern California is like a bowl of granola because it’s full of flakes and nuts.

While the upstairs is great, the vault is heaven. Imagine a Westfield parking station full of hot rods, historic racers, movie-star cars, an Italian car beginning with F given to Henry Ford II by Enzo Ferrari, a bulletproof Mercedes 600 used by Saddam Hussein, a 1939 Bugatti given to the shah of Iran as a wedding present and a Cadillac Popemobile.

It was here that AJ and Dana showed me my LAmobile. I can see myself pulling up at the Beverly Hills Hotel in my black 1925/34 Rolls-Royce Aero Coupe. Originally a Hooper & Co bodied Phantom, the Roller passed through numerous owners until in 1934 a Belgian dentist sent it off to body builders Jonckheere. The body was hand-built in deco style with round doors, half-moon windows, twin sunroofs and rear fins. The 2721kg beauty is 1.8m high and 6.1m long. It’s good for 160km/h; the brakes are good only for stopping in the length of a runway.

In the 50s, Bronx body worker George Brummer helped rescue it from a New Jersey junkyard, then took 3½ years to restore it, making all parts by hand. Ten years ago Pete and Margie bought it, painted it black and put it in the museum waiting for me to come along. See you at Pour Vous on Melrose, bros. Look for the big, black British mofo.

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