I love to reminisce about some of the great barn/garage/storage facility finds that we have been fortunate to hear about in our lifetime. Until the day when such a lucky circumstance will fall upon us, enjoy these stories.
One of my personal favorites, the
Portugal Barn Find. While legend is, an American citizen happened to purchase this property in Portugal and stumbled upon an old locked up building that, when finally, opened revealed 100+ cars stored away. This site offers some great photos as well as a link to a more credible story that this really wasn’t a barn find at all. I know, I know, I know, it kind-of ruins the whole story, but the truth must be revealed.
Another great story is one about the 1968 GTO RamAir II – 4 speed Convertible. This guy was actually asked if wanted to buy this car. Um….YEAH!! The owner had no idea of its value and the rarity of a 1968 GTO RamAir II Convertible. He had simply come into possession of the car because the original owner of the house told him to keep it because he didn’t want to have to pay the storage fees. So the car sat, totally unmolested for 30 years, beneath a car cover, inside a two-car garage behind a home fronting a rural highway in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. You can read the full story on
Hemmings Motor News.
This is what I like to call “that lucky devil” find: For sale on ebay, 1963 Pontiac Tempest Le Mans – starting bid $500.00…ending bid, $226,521.63! At first glance most wouldn’t even give it a second thought, because your first thought would be “What a hunk of junk,” or something of the likes. Why it doesn’t even have a motor or transmission. However, if you are a Pontiac nut, you quickly might wonder to yourself, “Could this be the 1 of 6 Pontiac Tempest Le Mans ever made?” The seller of the Pontiac had no idea as to the value of the vehicle and apparently was selling it for a friend or relative who owned a storage facility and had obtained the vehicle after the original owner had passed away. Thank goodness they decided not to scrap it!
How about the “That’s what friends are for” find. Donald Schlag had a passion for all things Chevrolet and started collecting stuff while working at his dads Wisconsin John Deere dealership in the 1960s. Between the parts he bought, or traded plus annual trips to California, he started to store stuff in semi trailers. However, after attempts by others to steal Schlag’s collection, he decided to seal up all the 21 or so containers and place them end to end, allowing no one to view or get at his prized collections which included: Yenko Camaro, a pair of 1970 LS-6 Chevelles, 1972 Camaro Z/28, 2 -1957 Corvettes, numerous high performance engines, and much, much more. After Schlag died, the containers were left to his sister who eventually sold them to Larry Fissette – a man chosen out of 5 prospective buyers to acquire the containers. You can read the whole story along with pictures on Old Cars Weekly.
Aussie Man Hoards 297 Classic Cars! I don’t think the next one can be truly classified as a Barn Find, because the gentleman who owns these are well aware that they are there but this is pretty cool nonetheless.
Then, the ever favorite site I never get tired of telling people to go visit.
Rusty Rides Gallery’s host an unbelievable amount of pictures displaying an incredible collection of vehicles (including some very rare ones) found abandoned in barns and garages across the world. If you are a classic car enthusiast or collector you will spend days on this site.
In addition, here are a couple of more stories to tickle your taste buds.
20 rare and desirable vehicles laid to rest in a Maryland barnBrittan’s biggest Barn FindVintage and Classic Car DiscoveriesCalifornia Corvette Barn Find
