Get ready to “rev your engines” with muscle cars, a great atmosphere, and good eats at Rick Treworgy's Muscle Car City in Punta Gorda, FL.  This magnificent museum features a 99,000 square foot building with over 200 classic ‘50s to early ‘70s muscle cars. 

You'll get a glimpse of some amazing vehicles including a '67 Mustang GT 500E, a '66 Impala SS 396, and ‘69 Camaro Yenko clone.

This is just the tip of the tailpipe. The museum has a collection that boasts GM performance cars including:

·      1967 - 1970 Z-28 Camaros

·      1968 - 1971 396 Camaros

·      1964 - 1971 SS Chevelles

·      1965 - 1971 SS El Caminos

·      1958 - 1967 Big Block Impalas

·      1964 - 1971 Pontiac GTOs

·      1964 - 1972 Oldsmobile 442s

There is also a vast array of Hot Rods and antique Chevys, including one or more Corvettes from ’54-2006.

Rick Treworgy and His Dream

The automobile has played a big part of Rick Treworgy's life, with him falling in love with cars as a child.  Model cars, pedal cars, and any toy with four wheels were always a fascinating inspiration to him.  Driving by age 16, a great time for a guy who loved muscle cars, Rick started out with a 10 year old Chevy.

Early on, Rick's interest in old cars was purely financial, since they were all he could afford.  As time passed, he found that these old cars had a “certain charm”.  He often bought, restored, and sold cars as a hobby.

Soon, his interest turned to collecting GM cars, Chevy's in particular.  After fourty years of collecting and stock piling over 200 vintage muscle cars in four warehouses, he decided to move into a central location and share his passion with others.  He found a closed Walmart store and turned it into Muscle Car City, a 99,000 square foot car museum.  The museum opened in March of 2009. 

Extras at Muscle Car City

The museum has a lot to offer car enthusiasts, including car cruises, a speed shop, a car corral, a memorabilia store, and a ‘60s themed diner.

The car cruises and showings are a strong point for Muscle Car City.  With 720 parking spaces at the museum and many car clubs from around the U.S. scheduled to make an appearance at Muscle Car City each year, there will definitely be plenty going on.

The speed shop offers a full line of hot rod, muscle car, speed and restoration parts to rebuild or improve your own ride.  For those who don't want to mess with the mechanics, the car corral may be for you.  It has hot rods and other high-performance cars that visitors can purchase.  If collectibles are your thing, then check out Muscle Car City's memorabilia store which offers a variety of vintage and modern automobile collectibles.  The memorabilia gift shop carries everything from T-shirts, posters, and jewelry to neon signs and gas pumps.

After taking in all of the metallic muscle beauty, you'll probably be hungry.  The ‘60s style diner at Muscle Car City offers a nice variety of omelets, biscuits and gravy, hamburgers, hot dogs, salads, and cheese steaks.  In addition, there are old-fashioned floats, sodas, shakes and homemade ice cream to keep your stomach “topped” off.  The diner is open daily for breakfast and lunch.

As you can see, Muscle Car City has a lot to offer to car enthusiasts, families, ... just about everybody.  The museum is located in Punta Gorda, Florida.  Admission is reasonable at $10 for a one time pass for adults and those age 12 and older.  Children that are under 12 are free with an adult.  An annual pass can be purchased for $30.  Museum hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday.  Diner hours are 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday. 

For more information, you can call Rick Treworgy's Muscle Car City at 914-575-5959.

By Carson Honaker

Carson is a computer engineer and personal trainer as well as a freelance writer.

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