Ural Ataman Classic Car Museum – Istanbul, Turkey

This has to be one of the nicest private collections I have seen, the Ural Ataman Museum in Istanbul, turkey has not only a wide ranging collection, the main hall is themed like 50s Americana.

It’s the first thing you notice when you walk in, the bright neon lights of an American diner with music playing and hordes of signs, pictures and model cars. This is the kind of garage I’d like. Then there are the cars themselves. The main hall having a wide range spanning the 1940s to 1960s, largely all from the USA, but with a couple of Europeans thrown into the mix.

The large space, bar area and diner roof double as a function room and many events are held there each year, I wondered if it could be hired for a private party, but when I visited there was no one else there to start with so seeing as I don’t know anyone in Turkey it would be like visiting the museum.

What first got me was the nice range of 1940s and 50s American cars either side of the entrance.

The pair of 1956 and 57 Bel Air convertibles were really nice. The 57 seeming to combine a fussier grille and a toned down style at the same time but still looking fantastic. apparently this year is the least desirable, which is good, that means cheaper.

European cars also feature in the main hall with a really nice example of a Jaguar E-Type convertible along with avery nice Aston Matin DBS V8.

Through to the next hall were more European offerings from Alfa Romeo and Triumph, though there was a definite preference towards Awmerican cars as there were even more throughout the museum downstairs.

The pairt of full size Chevrolet Impala convertibles were really nice, only a year difference between them 1964 to 1965, but quite different in style, highlighting the changing trends. One thing that didn’t change between the models was the rather large size, the later car appearing even bigger but probably not in reality. Maybe the trend for ever growing cars isn’t just a new phenomenon.

There were an exensive collection of motorcycles along with a couple of more unusual things, one of which war a large Ford fire truck and an old Ruston Hornby of Lincoln power turbine generator.

There is quite a large gallery for this one below.