It’s sad when someone dies and leaves their estate to someone else to dispose of. But it must be tough when the dearly departed was a mechanic who apparently kept more than he discarded. Such is the case with this estate sale in Phoenix, Arizona, where the number of cars is many and a boat and camper are in the mix, too!
A little bit of everything seems to have accumulated in this mechanic’s yard in the desert. Besides a pair of Ford Mustangs (probably both from 1965), the arsenal includes a 1950s Chevrolet pickup, a 1963 Mercury Monterey (with the Breezeway rear window), another Chevy pickup from 1967-72, and a weatherbeaten Foxbody Mustang convertible (1979 to 1993). Add to that a Buick Riveria (1979-85), a Mazda RX-7 (1985-92), a Honda motorcycle (year unknown), a bed-mounted camper, and a boat (for fishing?). Plus, some assorted odds and ends.
The most interesting of this “collection” might be the two Mustangs. One is blue, the other white. Both are buried by a lot of stuff but at least they’re inside somewhere. The white one has been partially disassembled and the pieces may be inside the car. We assume both are 1965 editions (the white one for sure) and at least one V8 engine is involved, perhaps the popular 289 cubic inch motor.
No details are provided on any of this stuff, nor are there any prices. And the sale is said to have been for one day only, but that was a month ago and the listing is still up here on craigslist. If any of this looks interesting and you’re in the Phoenix area, you might want to respond to the ad and spend part of an afternoon checking out what’s there and if any bargains can be had.
The ’65/’66 Mustangs break my heart. These are my favorite cars ever. My best friend from high school had a ’65 convertible, baby blue. We had a lot of good times in that car. We lived in a small town in Washington which had the “Daffodil Parade” every spring. We drove her car past the barriers and started the parade before all the floats got started, waving at the crowd. Everyone actually believed we were started the parade. Fun memories.
Then you lived in the Puyallup area.
The parade starts in Tacoma, goes through Puyallup, Sumner and Orting
I was born in Tacoma and lived there until I was 7, then the family moved to Puyallup. We went to the Daffodil Parade every year. My friend and I watched the parade in Puyallup then drove to Sumner and “started” the parade. I assume you are also from the area?
The white one is a 66. You can see the outline of the “spears” behind the door
Looking closer, there appears to be two white ones. Maybe the hard top 66 was a parts car to fix the convertible.
And he was just about to get around to starting the restoration on one of those cars. Time waits for no one….
Talk about a rummage sale. Good luck to all of you prospectors out there.
Looks like he had a bit of everything, I’d bet he enjoyed it. The problem is now the shop needs cleaned up and nobody knows for sure what is there. I don’t like to see this situation and I’ll be sure not to leave something similar for my heirs to clean up.
@Rumpledoorskin
My father was a machinist & mechanic. We had a small farm with a garage & 7 outbuildings.
The garage was full of tools and machines. One of the barns had lots of tools in it. Many of the buildings had car parts, furniture, you name it he had it.
At around the age of 90 he started to clear things out. He gave most of his tools to my nephew in law. Sold a lot of stuff, gave away a lot of stuff and finally junked a lot of stuff. Sold the place and moved to a smaller place. He passed at 97 in a nursing home. All we had to deal with was probate. A year later got my inheritance check.
But sure do miss all that junk.
30 years ago- ” Is that car for sale?”
“Naah, I’gonna fixerup someday”
20 years ago ” Is that car for sale?
“Naah I’m gonna fixer up someday”
10 years ago ” Is that car for sale?”
Naah I’m gonna fixer up someday”
Today “Is that car for sale?”
” Yeah- we need to clear this junk out now”
@gippy
Pretty much
The breezeway Merc is cool.
My kids bought me a 66′ Mustang and now I’m finding it costs money to kept them running.
One of the rare times if you knew about this ahead of time you make a cash offer for everything including the real estate then clean it up and sell everything off probably triple your investment.
Anybody know what the boat is next to the blue Mustang? Looks like a single seat fast toy.
Cheers
kenzo
“Life is what happens while we make other plans.” – John Lennon. That’s certainly the case here! A combination of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), the dreaded “Hoarder’s Variant”, combined with a dry climate, makes this a dream for buyers, and a nightmare for the sellers! A combination of fond memories of the deceased and the totally random nature of the “storage”, will make this a challenge of the first order for the the loved ones left behind. GLWTS!
Life would be some much more orderly, IF we only knew when we were not longer going to be part of it. Would also make financial planning and long-term care so much easier.
One sure thing is, you will never see this tombstone in a cemetery: “I wish I’d stayed at work a few more days.”
My observation after 88 years on this planet so far, that these kind of “collections” often keep their owners alive long past the expected normal life span. ie: their plans to restore keep them going. The “burden” of disposing of the collections is a burden only if the heirs had no interest whatsoever in the items or the funds to be derived from the sale.