A large stash of vintage Lincoln cars and parts has turned up in California, and the pictures on eBay show a fairly ridiculous scene with years upon years of parts and cars squirreled away. The seller notes the collection includes 11 classic Lincoln cars, ranging in years from 1925 to 1938, and that all of the parts collected are intended to complement those vehicles. You’ll find the collection here on eBay with a suggested opening bid of $50K and a Buy-It-Now of $84,000.
The top photo shows my favorite car in the collection, which I suspect is the 1938 Lincoln seven-passenger sedan. The eBay listing breaks out the individual models, which includes the following: a 1925 seven-passenger (body by Murray); a 1928 seven-passenger (body by Murray); a 1929 coupe (body by Judkin); a 1929 Town Sedan; a 1929 five-passenger sedan; a 1930 seven-passenger sedan; a 1935 five-passenger sedan; two 1936 seven-passenger sedans; and another 1938 seven-passenger limousine with a body by Willoughby.
The seller says the reserve price is set at $66,000, and that this collection is only being sold as a lot. Each vehicle includes an engine, transmission, differential, front wheel assembly, and steering mechanism. That’s more than we can say for most forgotten collections, as the vehicles have often been pillaged from over the years. The collection seems fairly organized for what it is, as it appears none of the vehicles have seen daylight for many years.
To me, it doesn’t have the feel of a restoration shop that’s liquidating but rather an older owner that can no longer keep up with a collection of vehicles that were among the most beautiful and powerful from his youth. That’s just a guess on my part, but it’s clear that a Lincoln collector could acquire several desirable cars and never need to hunt for spare parts again with an acquisition like this. Do our Lincoln experts feel the reserve price is reflective of current values?
Really rusty cars for California cars. Only one coupe in the whole batch, don’t get me wrong I like the sedans too especially the suicide door one’s. The fact is they’re just not as desirable as they once were and they’re really rough. I wouldn’t pay any more than $25k to $30k for the whole package. Frankly the only real value hear is the coupe. That would be the one car I’d want the rest no thanks. JMHO.
I’m inclined to agree with you. As far as big cars go, I’d rather have a coupe than a full-sized sedan. I think the cars are big enough with the coupe body; get a sedan and you have to employ an intercom system to talk to anyone in the back seat. I look at the array of parts in this collection and wonder how many cars you could actually complete with them. I’d rather come across a complete car and go from there. However, if you had a collection of Lincoln cars to restore, this stash of parts sure wouldn’t hurt–if you could afford it…
This collection has been on Ebay for quite some time. Originally they had been asking 120K for the collection
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1925-Lincoln-Other-/352509701931
The rust issue, Mark, is probably that these cars were sourced from around the country over the years the owner collected them.
I think someone’s inherited an older relatives collection and is trying to get a decent return on same. It’ll be interesting to see where the cars and parts end up…
But the guano-patina is so environmentally awesome!
It’s a crying shame that these cars were hoarded. Likely the cars are currently in the same condition they arrived in. At what point in your collecting do you realize “I’m never going to finish this project”? That ‘come to Jesus’ meeting should have come long before car #11 joined the fleet. I get the passion the collector had for these Grand Dames, but this is insane.
Restoring all 11 would be a mind-blowing [to say nothing about the bankroll] task.
$66k .. way too steep. Cut that figure in half. Even at that price it’s going to be tough to find someone to take the lot.
We don’t know what would have happened had he not acquired them. They may not exist today without this guy “hoarding” them.
True enough that some of these cars may not be still with us if they hadn’t been hoarded, however, if they were sold off individually, they would stand a far better chance at life. Trying to place 11 very needy cars of this vintage at one time is going to be a monumental challenge. I have a strong suspicion that most of this collection will end up crushed. Tho I sincerely hope I’m wrong
Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think this
collection was profiled here last month.
I still see the ’50 Frazier ragtop in the
current crop of pics. These are far better
shots than the first ones we saw back then. The ’38 sedan reminds me of the
V-12 model that Dad and I helped a friend
of his rebuild in the fall of ’66. That’s when the car bit and bit hard! I was so
proud of the job I did cleaning parts
while tearong the engine down–and even
more so when I helped them put that
engine back together again and hearing
it run again!! What a grand time that was!
I was 12 when it happened and it’s
something I’ll never forget!
The Frazer is a ’51 and would be the one I want
Restored, the limousine isn’t even worth that much money. Barrett-Jackson has sold two recently; one sold for $39K while the other sold for $60K. The limousine would be more interesting if it wasn’t a Willoughby; that coach style is blah (IMHO) compared to the LeBaron or Brunn coach bodies.
Value and condition aside, they are Lincolns…….and they exist because someone stashed them there…so….imagine if they were 21 window VW Sambas…………….the market would be going nuts! :)
Mountainwoodie. So true, and a VW of any description will NEVER be a Lincoln!
What is absurd is all these people stating their personal preferences for certain and body styles and then re-calculating the asking price. The worth of this collection has absolutely nothing to do with such things. Every Lincoln in the collection is an historically important artifact as each represent a unique realization of the stupendous engineers and designers who built them
I seem to remember hearing about a guy with a bunch of Lincoln’s who would not even let people see inside he would bring one part out at a time to sell it ,if this is in Van nuys its him for sure ,
I have no problem paying the asking price. However before I dump that much money a on site inspection is a must. I have bought a couple high dollar cars off of barn finds, and have been very lucky because I bought them without a inspection. However with all the parts involved here, I would have to take inventory and do the math first. That’s my personal opinion.
I suspect this is a family selling off a deceased family member’s collection. Probably the main reason for selling everything as one lot is because the family has no clue which parts go with a specific car, and figure the buyer will sort everything out.
After looking at all your comments I say the best course of action is an auction.
canadainmarkseh,
While I agree an auction is a great way to disburse the collection, it still needs to be sorted by a knowledgeable early Lincoln restoration expert to determine where each part belongs. The costs involved in hiring a person to inventory everything will likely pay off when everything is auctioned off, as buyers will be more willing to spend money knowing what is, and is not, included with a car.
I can not imagine that there are many people alive that have the passion or experience to take on this collection…
Oh my friend you are soooooo wrong. L.O.L, there are many of us who could. There are a whole bunch of us who can. Unfortunately, our hobby is dieing. Lack of interest from the younger generation. Also there are no computers or video screens in classic cars yet. When I am dead there may be some cars with those amenities in them that will turn classic, but unless father’s start taking time with their sons and daughters our hobby is in trouble. If you don’t have kids grab the neighbors kid and teach them.
Wrong Way,
As far back as 50 years ago, I heard the same comments, repeated about every generation. Many thought there would be no interest in cars of the 1960s.
I remember back in the early 1970s when many in the hobby said no one would ever want to restore cars from that period, with all the plastic parts, the “complexity” of all the parts compared to pre-war cars, and the belief no one would be interested in 1970s cars 25 years later. LOL
I remember plenty of people claiming no one would want to restore or even own antique Japanese cars of the 1980s, suggesting those cars would never even last that long . . .
I’ve heard those same comments all my life, and I’m still finding younger kids interested in old cars. Their definition of old is a lot different than a lot of ours but the bottom line is ‘INTERESTED.’ I’ve been watching a bunch of YouTube videos on old cars from the 50s being yanked out of the boonies and fixed up quite well by guys young enough to be my grandkids. The hobby is still very much alive, from what I see…
Ya gotta be careful about grabbing them at the grocery store ! Some people get all upset when STRANGErs talk to their kids these days
I will share a story to bolster your point Wrong Way A number of years ago ,,maybe 15 …maybe 20 Time flies so I received a ring from a woman who explained to me that here 6 year old son my crazy for Subaru’s …hey he was 6 years old ..But she asked if I might have anything he could display on his wall I looked about and have /had an early 70s Subaru wagon I popped off a hub cap and gave her a call She came around and I would not take any money for it A few days later I received a thank you note written in crayon telling me how much he loved cars ……I count that letter as one of my prized possessions ,who knows what came to be of him ….but I look back over the years thinking of the youngsters who have passed through that did pursue the fever one is an engineer for one of the motor companies and some took on good careers so they would have enough money to squander on the addiction
K.B.Roadsend,
Your Subaru story is a good example of how even the smallest act of kindness can have a major impact on someone else.
I used to work closely with the local county high school vocational department. They would send one or two gifted auto shop students to work at my restoration shop for the summer. Instead of just teaching students how to replace a carb or starter motor, I would teach them how to rebuild the parts. One spring I had a call from Dr Wilson, the department head, explaining how they also had a very bright young man who loved old cars, but he was hard to reach, very hyper, and always getting into minor trouble at school. He was a “dead head” and owned a 1965 Cadillac hearse. He was set to graduate soon, and had no real job prospects.
I offered to take him on as a helper for the summer, and when he found out I liked old hearses too, he opened up a bit. By the time summer was over, I had realized this kid had a genuine gift for electrical systems and electronics, as well as a great mechanical aptitude. A friend of mine owned a radio & TV shop, and was looking for an installer for his newly created car audio division. I suggested my guy. Within a year he was the manager, and about 5 years later he owned the company.
When he got married, I provided one of my Rolls-Royce limousines for the wedding, and at the reception his father stood up and asked everyone to be quiet. The father asked me to stand, and announced to everyone at the wedding that I was the man he credited for turning his son’s life around. I had to insist it was also Dr Wilson who cared enough to call me, and deserved credit as well.
He went on to own a large architectural salvage company, he’s still married, and they have 2 adult children today.
The sad thing is, most collectors of this vintage car has stopped collecting additional cars, or have died. Yes, there is a market and I hope they find that special person that has the bank roll to take this project on. Best of luck to the current owner.
Isn’t there an early Lincoln club that can be brought in to do an inventory? I attended their show in Nashville sometime in the 1990s. I think that’s a fair price for everything, but I don’t have it! I’m a little curious about what appears to be a Kaiser 4dr convertible in one of the photos. THAT I would love to see up close. Is it included in the price?
California is a big state with various climates through out. Therefore being a CA car doesn’t guaranty no rust.
Why is everybody on this site so negative a 4-doors? I see these sorts of comments on just about every post. Personally..I’ve never owned a coupe and never want to do so. The most magnificent cars in our American automotive history have always been the big 4-doors. I’ll never understand this obsession you all have with coupes.
Sometimes you feel like a nut ,,,,sometimes you don’t !
Depends on what day it is No doubt most of these Lincolns would have been turned into the third washing machine by now had they not been at least been preserved to this current state
A great many people think I am for certain the worst “hoarder” in the world having gathered a pasture full that I have trimmed back to just about 1’000 units ,and they certainly think I have wasted the past 49 years wearing out my wreckers bringing them home But when you truly truly are feeding an addiction ,a love affair with the automobile you have little concern what others think of your way of doing things I have saved them from stacks heading to the crusher cut them away from trees and kept some from being buried by land grabbers and “came to the rescue of families who just didnt know what to do to get allll that junk off of the land they just inherited from that crazy old maid uncle they had not even visited in years but they will certinly enjoy spending his lifes savings
.Can anyone really explain what is wrong with people like us who NO every auto ever made was someday someones pride and joy the man who designed it ,the person who helped build it or the young couple who bought it to go on their wedding trip then needed something different as life went on There are automobile enthusiast there are people who collect autos as though they were bonds to make em money BUT it is the real NUTZ that keep the wheels going round and round