The Museum of Historical Technology not only sees itself as a pure classic car museum, but also offers comprehensive insights into the product world of that time. On entering the building, visitors embark on a journey back in time to an epoch long past. In a shopping street there is a multitude of old shops, which inevitably evoke some nostalgic feelings. On display are a historic pharmacy, a typical "Aunt Emma Shop", a photo shop, a toy shop, a 1950s café with tobacco shop, a driving school, a contemporary ARAL filling station and a radio-electrical shop, the complete shop window façade including the original entrance door from the former Dümmler company from Wittlich, which was re-installed 1:1 in the cylinder house.
On a total museum area of 5,000 m², visitors will find over 100 beautifully staged old and young cars from German production. The oldest vehicle in the collection is a DIXI DA 1 from 1928, which was taken over by BMW just one year later and was still produced at this location until the end of the war. Museum Director Martin van Stek is particularly proud of a BMW 321 from 1945 with a Russian type plate in the engine compartment. In this last year of the war there were virtually no vehicles manufactured in Germany. The BMW plant in Eisenach had survived the war with only minor damage and full parts warehouses, so that production could be resumed there as early as October 1945. The vehicles went mainly to the Russian generals.
The DKW brand is strongly represented in the "Zylinderhaus" and thus almost the complete model range can be shown, starting with a DKW F1 Roadster from 1931 up to the last two-stroke DKW F 102 from 1966. Among them are extremely rare vehicles such as the DKW Monza from 1958.
A rare piece is the Audi 225 Front Luxury Cabriolet with a beautiful bodywork of glasses. Only 6 of this car from 1935 are still known worldwide. At the "Concours d`Elegance" in Schwetzingen, a beauty competition for classic automobiles, this vehicle won the "Car of the Year" award in 2017.
With the Horch 930 V, the "Zylinderhaus" shows a top product of the Auto Union of the 1930s. Charles de Gaulle, who later became French President, drove a representative limousine of at least equal value to Mercedes-Benz until 1959.
Borgward vehicles are another focal point of the exhibition in the "Zylinderhaus". Visitors can marvel at an impressive variety of models with the brands Goliath, Hansa and Lloyd. Of course, the famous Borgward Isabella - both as a coupé and as a convertible - is not missing from the museum.
For all bicycle lovers there is an extensive collection of motorcycles, mopeds and bicycles from different decades on a separate floor. Until the end of the 1950s, the most important means of transport, there were hardly any of the almost 200 manufacturers of two-wheelers in Germany left.
The museum also features an idyllic scrap yard that is integrated into the museum and grows with nature, reminding all classic car screwdrivers of past times when they were looking for useful parts with their own toolbox in their hands.
Next door, on a 60s campground in a dream-like location, the Cylinder House conveys the holiday feeling of the Germans, who were so popular at the time and who flocked in large numbers across the Alps to southern regions with beaches and guaranteed sunshine.
For the young (and of course also for the young at heart!) is well provided: At various pinball machines and playground equipment from the 70s you can freely pass the time and experience how much fun the old mechanical devices are still today.
The museum manager Oliver Peitz has built up a well-trained Zylinderhaus team with a great deal of commitment, which can provide interesting information on all exhibits. Guided tours of the museum can be individually designed and organised. Bernkastel has one more attraction. Many guests have already visited the cylinder house and were enthusiastic. The beautifully designed restaurant right next door offers good plain cooking with regional influences and a gourmet area that leaves nothing to be desired.
For conferences and seminars, but also for private celebrations, two event rooms for up to 300 people will be available from next spring.