Work has begun at the National Motor Museum on a new-look entrance hall and upper gallery.
The £600,000 project will also re-introduce visitors to the story of motoring in Britain with a contemporary display looking at the development of motoring in the UK.
As part of this project essential works have started in the Museum this month as the first phase of the re-development gets underway. The Museum will remain open to visitors during this time.
Jon Murden, Chief Executive of the National Motor Museum said: ‘This will herald an exciting new look to the Museum from the Spring of 2026. Creating a new welcoming space and re-interpreting the galleries with entertaining and informative displays with the overarching story of motoring from its earliest times to the present day.’
The new exhibition is called Driven: Britain’s Motoring Story and looks at the social and cultural impact of the car.
It will have six distinct areas focusing on how Britain has changed over the decades. It is supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Garfield Weston Foundation, the Wolfson Foundation, and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Community Foundation.
Gail Stewart Bye, Senior Curator of Objects and Exhibitions at the National Motor Museum said: ‘The stories behind the vehicles are going to be at the forefront of this display; the people who drove the cars, the impact on our lives and landscape and the influence on science, art and design. We’re still going to go under the bonnet to look at nuts and bolts and the huge technological changes to the engines and their capacities that you would normally associate with a motor museum.’
