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Detroit Electric, Route 66 Electric Vehicle Museum
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Buckeye Bullet in the Electric Vehicle Museum
Buckeye Bullet 2.5 "Speeding Toward the Future" description
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The City of Kingman Office of Tourism and Historic Electric Vehicle Foundation have co-operated the World’s first Electric Vehicle Museum since 2014. The current location, a 3,600 square foot space at the Kingman Visitor Center, houses only 28 of the Foundation’s collection of 110 EVs (and counting).
In October 2021, the City of Kingman acquired a new 20,000 square foot facility in the Historic Downtown area to better accommodate the famous collection. Several firms have submitted architectural design proposals, which are currently being reviewed with renovations expected to begin in 2022. The City of Kingman and the Historic Electric Vehicle Foundation are working together to make this new exhibit a world class destination!
The semi-permanent display of electric vehicles on loan from the Historic Electric Vehicle Foundation began with 10 vehicles in 2014. The exhibit has continued to grow and promises to be one of the most interesting collections of transportation artifacts you’ll see along the Mother Road!
The wide range of vehicles includes a 1909 Ellwell-Parker baggage tug (one of two known to exist in the world), the world’s first electric street rod (built by Wilde Evolutions in 1995), a 1930 Detroit Electric and several California manufactured electric micro cars from the 1940s, 50. s and 60s.
Other noteworthy exhibits on display include a Rolls-Royce-style EV golf cart once owned by Willie Nelson, a Mercedes-style EV golf cart once owed by Waylon Jennings, and the Buckeye Bullet 2.5 (pictured) which was the fastest EV in the world (clocked in at 307.6 mph) until the Buckeye Bullet 3 completed a test run at 341.26 mph in Sept 2016.
The micro cars were legislated off the roads in late 1960s by the newly formed Department of Transportation (precursor to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration). In 1997, Canadian company Bombardier successfully lobbied the US government and small neighborhood electric vehicles became legal once more. The exhibit has a prototype Bombardier on display.
An especially unusually artifact on display is the late Ed Rannberg’s high performance electric drag bike, the “Kawashocki”. Ed was one of the pioneers in the EV movement in the US and has an award named for him, “The Rannberg Cup”, presented annually by the National Electric Drag Racing Association in recognition of those who have done great things to promote EV awareness.
Access into the Museum is included with paid admission to the Arizona Route 66 Museum.
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