Towards the end of the 20th century a new trend begins to appear in the promotion of the automobile industry. Industrial production and distribution sites are redefined and transformed into visitor attractions and centres of innovation and architectural expression. Automotive (and/or mobility) museums follow to a certain extent the design philosophy of conventional museums, but also show differences in their building programme, incorporating facilities dedicated to the automotive industry. This research paper will study typical examples such as the museums of Porsche and Mercedes-Benz in Stuttgart, BMW in Munich, and Audi in Ingolstadt in terms of their architectural and design identity, their connection to the surrounding space and the city as well as their impact on the local community. Subsequently, it will evaluate the results of the research and seek to relate issues of corporate visibility, car production methods and car museum building programme. The aim of the paper is to examine the possible paradigm shift in car museum design and the possible link between this and the production process as well as the marketing of the car. In the light of this paper, we can conclude that automobile museums are not consumed by trying to preserve and teach their history, but instead are leading the way in presenting contemporary and future trends in the automotive industry, as well as in architecture, urban management, and culture. These museums have moved beyond their traditional role of displaying historical artefacts and have redefined the link between cars, architecture, museums, and the urban environment.