MUSEUM PIECES
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The Michelin museum in central Clermont-Ferrand – L’Aventure Michelin – opened to the public in 2009. It charts the origins of the firm, including the evolution of Bibendum (the Michelin man), and the company’s subsequent successes in Formula One, Le Mans and motorbike racing. The story of how Michelin worked with NASA to develop tyres for the space shuttle, and became one of the biggest suppliers of rubber to airlines and the agricultural sector is all here. One section houses possibly the coolest and most ingenious car ever built – the Milles Pattes (Millipede) pictured right – built by Citroën for Michelin as a 1970s lorry tyre test rig. Imagine a Citroën DS, but about 50% wider than the road car, with two engines and 11 wheels (including a truck wheel in the middle).