ELVIS PRESLEY MOTOR MUSEUM

“The first car I bought was the most beautiful car I've ever seen. It was second hand but I parked it outside my hotel the day I got it and stayed up all night just looking at it. The next day, it caught fire and burned up on the road...- Elvis Presley

For most who visit Graceland, former home of Elvis Presley in Memphis, Tennessee, the focal point of interest is the house of the king of Rock'n' Roll. They picture him making breakfast in the huge Kitchen, entertaining in the Jungle Room or riding his horses in the paddock.

It's arguable, however, that greater treasures lie just across the road. Here, a former shopping mall that sold tacky Elvis trinkets has been purchased by the Presley estate and put to good use. The complex now houses a parking bay for the singer's two aeroplanes, a visitors centre and, perhaps most significantly, a motor museum.



Elvis, it turns out, was a car fanatic. He was always up to something, daughter Lisa-Marie remembers, running around driving golf carts and snow mobiles. He'd pull me in a sled and scare me to death. On that long, steep driveway that goes up to Graceland, he'd be pulling me up and falling at the same time



These are images brought to life around the museum through home videos shot by former wife Priscilla. This, more than the false splendour across the road, is what really brings the man to life. You see Elvis almost out of control on his Harley Davidson golf cart. Elvis off the ground in his VW engine snowmobile he later had converted to a grass mobile. Images like this bring the rest of the collection to life. There are three 'Supertrikes' all with 65bhp 1600cc VW engines. There's a pedal car and a Beetle-engined ...