The Basque Rolls-Royce Museum

After about 40 minutes of driving from Bilbao on roads windings through the green countryside, our GPS said that we were finally close but there was still no sight of the castle-like Loizaga Tower, where the museum is housed. We continued down the narrow country road that was barely wide enough to fit a single car, all the while wondering if this was actually where one of the best kept collections of Rolls-Royces in the world was located. After all, we weren’t even in Britain, where the cars originated from, but rather amongst farms and green pastures deep within the Spanish Basque Country.

So how did such an impressive collection of antique and classic cars end up way out here on the grounds of what looks like an ancient castle? The answer to this question can be traced back to one man, Miguel de la Vía, who is responsible for both the massive car collection as well as the property. De la Vía was a very successful businessman and one of the richest persons in the Basque Country. He began restoring the 14th century Loizaga Tower in 1985. At that time, the tower was merely a ruin left over from the time when the Ochoa García de Loyzaga family used it to defend their territory. The renovation and reconstruction of the tower lasted until 2000.

Miguel de la Vía was also a very passionate car collector and while the reconstruction works were taking place in the Loizaga Tower, he began to build his private collection of cars, which can be seen in the museum today. This collection is made up of 75 classic cars, 45 of them being Rolls-Royces. It is also considered to be one of the five most valuable collection in the world. Moreover, all of the cars are in top condition and ready to be driven.

What many people do not realize is that Rolls-Royce sold its cars as chassis before World War II. The chassis included the mechanics, engine and radiator. The bodies of the cars were actually built by master coachbuilders selected by the buyer. For this reason there are so many different styles of Rolls-Royce vehicles. The coachbuilders spared no costs in their creations which would feature embellishments of gold and jewels, crocodile-skin upholstery, steering wheels made of ivory and dashboards carved from precious woods. Rolls coaches such as these can be found in the museum along with many others that have their own interesting surprises.

Although the collection at the Museum of Old and Classic Cars focuses mainly on Rolls-Royces, there are other prestigious vehicles and elegant sportive cars, such as a Jaguar, Lamborghini, Ferrari, Cadillac, Hispano Suiza and Ford Model T. There are also several carriages from the 19th century and even a British fire truck from 1939.

Of all 6 showrooms at the museum, the last one, which is located in a stone room within the walls of the tower, is the most impressive. This showroom contains the first models of the series Silver Ghost from Rolls-Royce and is the model that made the company famous. Its name, Silver Ghost, does not come from the color of the car but rather from the motor and its silent operation. While most owners enjoyed the fact that the Rolls-Royce ran so quietly, there was at least one instance where a maharaja in India complained to the company, stating that his car was too quiet and did not properly announce his coming.