The National Motor Museum in Beaulieu in the beautiful New Forest is a great place to visit if you are a classic car enthusiast as it has in excess of 250 vehicles including classic cars and motorbikes going back to when such vehicles first appeared on our roads. It also has well known vehicles such as Bluebird and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

A world record was set at the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu for the longest line of toy cars

National Motor Museum Beaulieu – Image credit: Herry Lawford.

However, if you had visited the museum on Bank Holiday Monday (May 5th 2014) you could have witnessed a world record being broken. No we are not talking about another Ferrari 250 GTO being sold at auction for a record price although the collective value of these vehicles will no doubt have been substantial. In fact, it was for the lengthiest line of toy cars in the world.

The previous world record had been set in Germany in 2013 with 14,310 toy cars being placed nose to tail in a line. Well, we are pleased to inform you that the new world record set at the National Motor Museum involved 24,189 toy cars – that is almost 10,000 more vehicles than the previous record. The world record still has to be verified by Guinness World Records.

You may well be asking where all these toy cars came from? Well, apparently, a number of Sainsbury’s’ supermarkets agreed to act as collection points as did various schools and charity shops.

By the time the toy cars were all in a line, a distance of 1.91km was covered running not only around the museum but also the delightful grounds outside.

There were obviously toy cars of all shapes and sizes but included some that had been donated by some well-known people. The likes of Sir Stirling Moss, the famous racing driver, gave a toy Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR. Back in 1955 he was victorious in the full size version in the Mille Miglia race. Nick Mason from the group Pink Floyd and the motoring TV presenter Vicki Butler-Henderson were also donees.

Many of the toy cars are to be sold on May 17 and 18 at the Spring Autojumble at Beaulieu with the proceeds to go to a worthwhile cause – Naomi House hospice. However, those cars that are felt to be particularly valuable are to be sold independently.

Well done to those who organised the event and donated their toy cars.