An interest in classic cars, and ownership of an iPad have happily collided with availability of the Road Inc. iPad app.

This app has been making various "Best Apps" lists since its release in late 2011, and deservedly so. For one, it is simply a beautiful app. The car photography, and the ability use the touchscreen interface to have a 360-degree view of the car via the 'Showcase", gives you a terrific overview of the car's exterior design.

But the pictorial view of the car doesn't end there. Tap the 'Archives' option for each car, and a new world of investigation of the 50 Ancestor, Veteran, Vintage, Post-Vintage, Classic, Modern Classic, Contemporary Classic, Supercar, and Race car awaits. There's 2,500 archival and studio photographs, plus cutaways, sketches, factory schematics, videos and more for you to admire.

There's more than looks on offer as well. Also under the Archives menu, are engine noise samples, original brochures and promotional material, maintenance manuals, press cuttings, correspondence, fact sheets, and an essay on each car commissioned for this app.

The Road Inc. app ships with a few cars already downloaded, you can then, for almost all the list of cars that follows, simply tap to download. If you're worried about space on your iPad, you can download them a few at a time, and then 'veil' back the cars - that is to delete the car's info from your device, that you can again download at any time.

"Every part of Road Inc. has been reviewed by experts, from the authentication of 3D reconstructions to the technical data sheets, or from the selection of finishing materials to the racing trophies, so as to provide an experience that is not only visually pleasing and enjoyable to use but is also as historically and technically precise as possible."

The list of Road Inc. cars

The cars on offer in the Road Inc. app are:

• De Dion-Bouton Vis-À-Vis Type D (1899)
• Ford Model T (1910)
• Bugatti 35 B (1927)
• Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 (1929)
• Bentley 4.5 Litre Blower (1930)
• Bugatti Type 41 Royale (1930)
• Avions Voisin C25 (1934)
• Rolls-Royce Phantom II (1934)
• Delage D8 120S (1936)
• Delahaye 135 Compétition Court (1937)
• Duesenberg SJ (1937)
• Peugeot 402 Darl'Mat (1938)
• Willys Overland Jeep MB (1944)
• Volkswagen Beetle (1948)
• Jaguar XK120 (1950)
• Bentley Continental R (1952)
• Mercedes Benz 300 SL (1954)
• Pegaso Z 102 B (1954)
• Porsche 356 A (1955)
• Jaguar D-Type (1956)
• Lancia Aurelia B24 S (1956)
• Chevrolet Bel-Air (1957)
• Rolls Royce Silver Cloud II (1959)
• Ferrari 250 GTO (1962)
• Aston Martin DB5 (1963)
• AC Cobra 289 MK II (1963)
• Citroën DS 21 (1966)
• Ferrari 275 GTB4 (1966)
• Jaguar XJ 13 (1966)
• Pontiac GTO Jaguar XJ 13 (1966)
• Porsche 911 (1968)
• Porsche 917K (1970)
• Maserati Ghibli 4900 SS (1972)
• Lamborghini Countach LP400 (1974)
• BMW M1 (1980)
• Ferrari Testarossa (1984)
• McLaren F1 (1994)
• Bugatti Veyron 16.4 (2006)
• Pagani Zonda Cinque (2009)
• Mercedes Benz SLR McLaren (2009)

Also with the app, but locked initially, are the following cars:

• Mercedes-Benz 540 K (1937)
• Chevrolet Corvette (1958)
• Citroen 2 CV (1959)
• Cadillac Eldorado (1959)
• Jaguar 3.8 E-Type (1961)
• Pontiac GTO Hardtop (1966)
• Ferrari Enzo (2002)

These cars have been locked since the Road Inc.'s release, but finally, on April 11, Pyrolia pushed through an update for the app, and these cars care now available for download.

Road Inc. price and availability

Road Inc. for the iPad is available from Apple's App Store, and at the time of writing sells for $6.99. If you're a car enthusiast, and would like a car museum always at hand, this is seven bucks well-spent.

A version of the app for the iPhone has been 'Coming Soon' for some time now.