It isn’t every day that over 500 classic cars come up for sale as one giant lot, but this tow storage yard in Apache Junction, Arizona is being auctioned off here on eBay and is composed of over 550 cars. There appears to be a mixture of years and makes and since it’s a storage yard, the majority are intact and complete.
Typically the cars found in a lot like this are picked clean of most of their vital parts, but since the family that owns this yard ran a towing business and was storing these cars, most are complete. It appears there are cars from the ’40s all the way up to ’80s and most look solid. The hot Arizona sun has left them sun baked and allowed surface rust to form on many of the older cars.
This collection appears to be composed primarily of common family sedans, but we’ve spotted a few rare and desirable cars in the mix. The seller’s starting bid of $500k is a lot of money, but the used parts alone could be worth that much. Which ones would you like to drag home?
If I won the lottery, I would be powerless to stop myself from buying that. Wagons and hardtops and coupes, oh my!
I do not see any Corvettes in there!!!!
2nd pic down next to the old ford truck is a convertible 65 chevy impala
~ i repeat, hot, dry junk.
OH MY, I could be lost in there for weeks.
So could I
i see a impala, cant tell if its 64 or 63 but im lookin for one, lol
there’s a 67 2 door sedan impala in there, in good shape
What type of ownership rights are they able to convey? 550 cars with no titles sounds like 550 nightmares to me.
No title phobia.
Overrated, as ownership / possession is not challenged and is clear.
Any DMV in any state will issue Lien sale papers with which you can then get a title, if you so desire.
Figure out if you’re gonna spend the time and the money on the car.
Then, getting a title SHOULD NOT be problem other than some time spent.
For those two thumbs down, I could show you how, but I won’t.
there might be a ’57 chevy, definitely a 56 and maybe a 65 ford galaxy but nothing that makes it worth this kind of money….
My wife will not be happy if i winn the lottery jackpot next weekend! ;-)
The $500,000 doesn’t even meet reserve, and where and when are you going to put these cars – the lot isn’t included, but leaving them there is “negotiable”?
Just save them all !!!!!!
With begining bid at 500,000, there are possibilities, Could re-sell all of the Wagons, and 2 doors, any trucks, and 40’s cars complete as it. Then part out the leftover 4-doors and whatever, for their drivetain, fenders, windshields, hoods, interior trim ,etc. May double your money, but will take a year or two.
The term, “CLASSIC” is greatly overused and abused. A car does not “Become” a classic just because it has gained a few years. A CLASSIC CAR is one that is BORN that way! Examples are Duesy, Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Isotta-Frachini, Packard and many others that were built with quality and precision in mind. But, alas it seems that last years Fords and Chevys are being refered to as “Classics” and the old car world seems quite comfortable with it. So be it.
I’ve been to Apache Junction and I never saw this!
I love the fact that you can see the contents of this auction from outer space…well, near space to be exact—a satellite photo. That’s the ticket: tell your wife you want to buy something so big they had to show a satellite photo of it to get it all in. That should work.
This could be a deal, but…
– You will either have to have a very large back yard or warehouse to keep them in, or else get the seller to let you keep them where they are for, say, 10 years or until you can deal them all
– You will be working a long time to R&R or even just to market all of these cars, so you will need to live in Apache Junction
– You don’t live in Apache Junction? Then think about moving there (It’s out in the desert outside Phoenix)
– You will need to come up with something north of $500K, exact number unknown
Me? I’ve got 5 cars and a truck. Call me chicken, but that’s plenty.
I wonder if one the yards owned by DVAP I know they have several storage yards full of cars
I want all of them I hope thay get a good home not the crusher that would be so sad
Save all of them
Starting bid at over a half mil?! Ha!-imagine the logistics of removing and taking ownership of 550 junkers? “Leaving the classic cars on the current location is negotiable” – for a half mil I hope the land is included.
That’s o.k.
Not everybody has the ability to think inside a very small box.
I see a 60s Lincoln convertible,
These won’t last long. With the price of scrap steel these days, I give you odds that who ever buys this, will most likely bring in a crusher to clean out the lot. And there are some Mopars in there. I thought I saw the rear of a 64 Polara. Possibly a 59 New Yorker in the far back.
Thanks to the internet people know what stuff costs. There is plenty of stuff there worth more than scrap. That could be a gold mine for many who have the dough and time to part out and sell what is there.
Everyone’s in the junk business since “cash for clunkers”GOOD F***ING LUCK. See how much you can make, and don’t forget to claim all you make on your tax return.LOL
With land + 550 cars & trucks? And how many acres?
even just a walk around the yard would be good,love all old american cars
“all old american cars” … just don’t pay any attention to the VW squareback in the 3rd pic.
That caught my attention first actually :-)
owner collected all the wrong cars ,,,seriously they look like theyre all dried out ,,rusted out PUSS-BOXes to me
I’d love to have another rust free 64′ skylark. I wanna do a GS version with a 455 big block since 65′ was the first year with a 401 nailhead
… and I suppose they all run. At some point, cars become scrap metal. I’m really confused by the amount of rust on cars sitting in the desert. But there is a mid-60s Bonneville convertible in there….
The relentless sun bakes the paint off. Exposed metal will eventually corrode. That’s why a lot of the worst rust on these cars is on the horizontal surfaces.
Any one who wants to use such a priceless collection for scrap shall be punished by the Lord! I see many idiots making stupid comments, it makes me sick. I hope and pray that these cars see a good home. It would be a sin for some greedy people trying to use this vast collection as any other use. Just take one car at a time, and inventory each, and because they are rusted, don’t mean anything. I see nothing but stupid people here that don’t know anything about vehicles in general, let alone collectable and vehicles such as these. I prey that these vehicles find a good home. I will be following this very closely.
Sorry — I didn’t mean to offend. I lived in Arizona for many years, and I seldom saw that amount of surface rust, except when something was located near an industrial site which caused some environmental issues. I’m not really stupid, nor am I an idiot. I do have opinions which I felt comfortable with sharing — simple as that. And I’ve restored a few cars over the years including some pretty rusted examples. I’ve welded in new floor panels on more MGs than I want to talk about, replaced a couple of sheet metal frames on Lotus Europas, re-built a couple of old Cadillacs (1949, and 1959) and did a body off-restoration on a 57 Corvette. My garage currently has a couple of classic Minis, and a couple of fairly late model Mercedes sedans. I really do know how much work it would be to bring cars such as these back to drivable condition. And I really do feel that with the amount of time left in my life, there would be much more satisfying and rewarding things to do. But each of us has our own ideas about such things. BTW, after you do a mild wash of rust remover/weak acid, you usually wind up with a surface that requires hours and hours of sanding to prep it for paint. Of course it can be done. Good luck to you all.
Rust in the desert isnt the same as rot in the northeast. What you see there is surface rust and I bet most would come off with a mild wash of rust remover/weak acid type chemical.
If I had the money, I would make sure everyone of them was rerstored or hot rodded!
Wish i could buy in to that. I like that 65 impala cnvrt. And what might be a 64 or65 pontiac 2door mybe a gto? Someof the comments are people that dont have much knowledge. That rust is mostlikly surface rust-not a big deal. And to the people that think they are worth scrap,your not a true car person. As far as the 500,000starting bid . In wash state we get average of $400 for a complete car for scrap. lets see 550 cars at $400 each,that comes to$2,000.000. I would set up a large a/c bldg hire a small crew and deal with each one. either sell them for restore,parts and yes there would a few that would get scraped. That would be a job set from heaven for me and good money to be had.
I think the seller is a bit optimistic.
Your math is a little off Erik. If the seller could make that much on scrap, he would have already done it. I doubt he is in this to preserve cars.
If there are really 550 *complete* cars and you could get $400 each, that is only $220,000. Then there is transportation and hiring dismantlers that would seriously cut into that $. I think that $250 is much closer number just for scrap, which is only $137,500.
Just to break even you have to make an average of $900 per car ! You might be able to sell some of the classics for double that, but not much more. The number of cars worth any $ are probably a small percentage of this lot.
I think this is more in the $200,000 range and A LOT of work. I would be curious to see what happens on the auction.
I would like to see the ones that are worth it saved, but the price has to be reasonable.
……I talked to Jim Horak the seller, he sent me gobs of photos and a inventory list of the lot, like the price or not, there are some gems in the bunch…..
So why isn’t the list posted somewhere.
What Notch said…
reminds me of Fort Auto Parts in Huachuca City, AZ. Unfortunately when you let these things sit out in the sun for 50 years, they just turn into junk. Plastic, upholstery, glass and even metal can’t endure the sun out west.
http://kurtmunger.com/junk_yard_eventid205.html
http://www.mgexp.com/archive/Huachuca_City_Junk_Yard/918596
http://kurtmunger.com/junk_yard_eventid205.html
Mat this looks very cool but I got to say I am not sure if I would go roaming around this place, I am not a fan of snakes & rats.
What I want to know is, why the —- does the term “WIFE” always have to enter into the negotiations for such obvious male dominating activities. Buy her a Corvette and move on. with it.
Chuck,
funny you would write that. When I advertise a car for sale I always make mention,
“if you need to ask your wife for permission to buy the car, don’t call me, you have bigger problems”.
It saves me time………….
I know the desert well. And as others have mentioned, what looks like horrible rust is not. Rest easy……………
It seems to me some folks have had a bump on the head calling those junk and scrap. There is alot of restorable motors among that lot and the ones that arn,t could have the useable parts removed and the rest of the car raced in a DD. At least the thing is going out in style that way rarther than just squashed. It just seems that people have no value for any form of history anymore with all this new fangled eco freindly plastic cr*p folks drive round in now. But where will those things be in 30-40 years time. A drinks carton !.
What about the 1960 Edsel on the 2cnd pic?!
Just for some closure: no bids, did not sell. I’m sure he will sell the cars, but probably not as one gigantic lot. Maybe in small same-make groups, but the transport & storage logistics make even that way a problem for most people. I wish the seller luck with this sale.
BTW, the way I read the listing the land is not included in this sale. That’s why he offered “negotiable” storage where the cars sit.
Yes I read it that way as well, so how do you transport several hundred mostly not rolling cars from the outback, still would be fun to just walk around & look.
We have loads of cars like that over hear in NJ but most in indoor storage.
I would buy the lot, sit on it for 20 or so years, wow what a retirement fund
I would have.