PORTSMOUTH — The Newport Car Museum opened its doors to the public this morning, June 1.

The museum is located inside the 114,000-square-foot “Constitution” building that Raytheon built in the 1980s for use as a missile-manufacturing plan. Gunther Buerman purchased the building from Raytheon, along with a 46,000-square-foot building to the south off West Main Road, for $2.6 million last year.

The operators hope the museum will be a marquee attraction for visitors to New England as well as a regional gathering place for those passionate about automobiles. A private collection of some 50 automobiles at the museum focuses on six decades of modern industrial automotive design and celebrates cars as works of art.

“We believe that the wonderfully talented industrial designers that flourished after World War II were not unlike the sculptors and artists of the Renaissance Period,” said Mr. Buerman, who founded the museum along with his wife, Maggie Buerman. “Their creative passion is reflected especially in automobile design of the 1950s through the ’70s and from 1990 to the present, which is the focus of our collection.”

The museum is handicap accessible and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets can be bought at the door or online; visit www.newportcarmuseum.org for more information and directions.