The North Carolina Find – Teaser
We’ve all heard stories and seen photos of barn finds of mythical proportions. The most iconic of these finds has to be the Portugal Find, but here today we have the pleasure of revealing what might be the American equivalent of the Portugal Find. We have heard rumors of a massive collection of cars in North Carolina, but we have never seen any proof of its existence until we received emails from two separate readers, Jim C and Alan F. This is the kind of find that makes any car nut’s legs go weak. Unlike Portugal, which was primarily composed of European cars, this collection has a little bit of everything. It’s the kind of sight that every one of us dreams about!
You name it, it’s probably in this collection. Looking for a Plymouth Superbird? No problem, there’s one here and if you decide you’d rather have its Dodge Daytona cousin, well that’s parked a few cars away. Maybe you’d like a Stutz, sure there’s one of those here too! The question isn’t whether you’d like a finned Cadillac. It’s what color of Cadillac you’d like. Given the number and variety of cars, we are going to break this find up into multiple posts, so we can cover it better. Think of this as a teaser of things to come!
Beside rare and sought after cars, there are some rather interesting and unusual cars in this collection as well. There is even a star from the Godfather in this collection, let’s just say it’s full of lead. This is the kind of find that we dream of and we can’t wait to share this find with everyone! Stay tuned for the next installment of the North Carolina Find. Special thanks to Jim and Alan for the photos and proof we needed to verify this collection’s existence!
Auctions Ending Soon
2002 Subaru Impreza WRXBid Now2 days$333
1975 Chevrolet Corvette ConvertibleBid Now2 days$4,000
1964 Ford F-100 Camper CustomBid Now2 days$2,000
2006 Jeep Wrangler SportBid Now4 days$10,500
1974 Datsun 260ZBid Now6 days$460
Comments
American equivalent of the Portugal find, with a little bit of everything—two late ’30s/early ’40s coupes, Plymouth Superbird, Dodge Daytona, different color finned Caddys, split window ’63 Corvette—all gathering dust in North Carolina??? Come on, show us more!
Don’t worry Dolphin, there is more to come!! The collection is broke up into makes, so we are going to feature it in sections based on the makes and work our way through the entire collection over the next couple days. Keep an eye on the site for the next installment of the North Carolina Find!
Those two 30/40 ford coupes in picture might have been by Ford, but they are Lincoln Zephyers.
Yes, you need to do a special on this!!! I want the superbird!!!
Heaven, I’m in Heaven, and my heart beats so that I can hardly speak…
Dibs on the split window vette.
I want the 63 Chrysler! From the color, it looks like it could be a pacesetter!
This pains me to no end. Seeing these magnificent cars just collecting dust and debris in a barn. These cars are meant to be enjoyed, shared, driven, not hidden. I for one would welcome the opportunity to purchase one or more of these cars to add to my collection. Maybe someday these beautiful machines will find new homes.
Why, why, WHY do things like this make us go bonkers!
And I swear you’re just like a pill
Instead of makin’ me better,
You keep makin’ me ill
Trust me Tony, when you see the 200+ photos you will think it was worth the wait!
200+! Sleepless nights ahead in anticipation. Big cheers to Jim and Alan and very much appreciation to Billy.
Thats billys place haha went there for my college field trip a couple of times its insane he has like 5 barns full 3 super birds a crap ton of stingrays one with just about 27 miles on it even Sonny’s bullet car the original! a whole bunch of other crazy stuff I can’t wait to hear what they say about it if he let’s them check it out
I agree, I want to see more! It’s like candy, you can’t get enough. And when you do, it just makes you I’ll. but it want more! I like the roadster pickup.
I can also confirm this treasure trove exists! I have walked the grounds and what you see is a snapshot of what is there. I use to have pictures, but have lost them going from phone to phone. Add Zephrs, 55,56,57 t-birds, 50’s vettes, cadillacs with window stickers still in place, if you’ve dream about it, chances are it’s there. Just an ordinary car guy, who had the vision to buy, trade and keep the best of the best.
Will the owner part with any of the collection?
Rumor is that even Jay Leno’s people have contacted him in the past and he has turned them away as well as many others. He doesn’t need to sell, so he doesn’t.
I hope people respect his privacy and make sure that if they post something on here, they don’t accidentally disclose the location. I don’t believe it is their place to do so. My experience has been that Billy is willing to show and tell, but you have to understand that he gets approached all the time about selling. As much as I love all his cars and would like to have any of them and I agree with David above, they are his to admire as he wishes. Just like mine are mine. And yes….he knows what he has.
Hi R,
We hope that everyone respects the owner’s privacy. While we would all love to have any number of cars from this collection, we need to remember that they are his to do with as he pleases. It is a privilege to be able to see his collection, so if you have been to Billy’s place, please share about the experience but try not to give the exact location away.
And not to build the anticipation up more than we already have, but we are currently hard at work putting together the next installment. All I am going to say is, for all those Chevy and Corvette fans, be sure to prepare yourselves for tomorrows big story!
Thanks Guys
Josh
If he knows what he has, why doesn’t he take better care of them???
Billy’s cars, Billy’s rules.
I hope there are pics of everything………..bunch of drooling aBT cars I will never be able to afford.
Is this in the smokey mountains in North Carolina (I think)? If so, I came across this about 10 years ago and might have to go back. I still have the fellows number. He had everything from rolls Royce’s to a NASCAR body from when he worked for a NASCAR team. All shoved into massive long barns that were covered in dust and vines.
I know the guy….also, most not for sale. Lots of Jag sedans.
Any Studebakers hiding there? NEED MORE PICS!!!!!!!
There are a few Studebakers in the mix Dave! Keep an eye out, as there are more posts and a lot more photos to come!
200+ pictures and if you only post 3 pictures each day it is going to take more the 2 months before we see them all!
Haha! Don’t worry Jim, we aren’t going to stretch it out that long! Not wanting to give away too much, we are going to be releasing this story in several parts. Each part will feature a particular marque or origin. Things will be clearer and make more sense tomorrow!
A Lotus 46 (Europa), or, a Lotus Cortina MK1 perhaps?
Genie blinks….Genie blinks……..gawd ………please…….where is Barbara Eden when I need her………..wait………..I’ve always needed her
Last I knew, people are free to do whatever they want with their money and pursue life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Just because we might not be happy with seeing his cars rot away, we should respect his right to do whatever he wants with his possessions and leave him alone.
Nice find, why can’t I ever come across with a find like this. If those are Zephers, that would be quite the find , they were before my time but I was at a concourse & saw a wonderful example of one of those & they are amazing.
You sure about that @ rancho bella? Most photos of Barbara are a few years old…in my teens I would agree. I’m about retired now…..
Yep, I’m sure. I like older thin women…………..take Tina Louise for instance……….this is why Gilligan was not to bright. He chases monkeys around the island and there is Tina, Gilligan, what were you thinking?………………. She is now 80.
This reminds me of the 300 plus classics I’ve had over the past 52 years. iF I stll had them at today’s value would have me sitting well financially. I guess we can all tell of the one’s we used to have.
If this guy loves the cars so much, I’m kind of shocked at the way he’s stored them! How little would it cost to pour concrete floors and make those barns air (and dust) tight? Answer: peanuts, compared to the value of just ONE of those superbirds!!
And, okay, gotta ask: any Packards in the collection??
Why doesn’t he sell one to finance a new garage?…..Love
Same reason why wife tells me I have a problem with the selling side of buying, but I have collecting down!
Wow.
The Portugal story was bogus. It was and still is owned by a car dealer.
Truth.
Seems to me this guy is not doing so bad for his own private collection. The shape of the buildings is good, new wood in ceilings, all appears to be dry. The difference between dry storage and “dust free” storage takes quite a bit of effort and money. And, when (or if) he finally decides to restore one, what difference is a little dust going to make. This is not like the guys that let their classics sit out in the trees and rot away! oh, and I do like the quote above @Don Andreina: Billy’s cars, Billy’s rules!
Interesting talk about his rules, his cars, methods of storage, etc.
Here is the thing, why but something only to never use it? Why buy to park and let it collect dust for 30, 40, 50 years? Why buy without having a proper plan in place to store and care for the collection? Its obvious the gent has the funds, why not proper buildings with basic air control. Yes cars get dusty and that’s no big deal as such, but with a concrete floor, a filtered fan system that creates positive air pressure and decent door seals one can make a relatively air tight building. Its not hard, I’ve been in one and I’d guess that gent had about $1000 wrapped up in the whole thing. We aren’t talking white room clean here….
Wouldn’t the art world be outraged if someone was keeping a Monet or Van Gogh out in the rain, or in a barn covered in dust, being damaged by the elements?
Sure it could possibly be restored but its only original once. Same with a car.
So yes its his rules but his rules are whack. Stop excusing hoarding behavior under the premise of “his rules”. Thats a cop out. Anyone who accumulates things and doesn’t use them, doesn’t care for them and does’t care has an illness. Why is it if a lady has 25 cats or a home full of Precious Momments she has a hoarding problem but a man with 5 barns full of cars has a “collection” and the right to be that way? He does have a right to be that way, however he does not have a right for society to say, “Sir you have a hoarding problem and you need help.”
Society does say that. Have a look at the latest DSM and you’ll see hoarding is ‘recognised’ as an increasing problem. I, like many of BF’s readers, am absolutely obsessed with automobiles. Euro, US, Japan, Aussie; I don’t care, because I’m obsessed, totally and utterly obsessed.
But you know what? A car is really just a thing. In most cases a production-made thing. We fetishise these things until they serve a greater purpose to us than other human lives. And I am just as guilty of that as any other.
Billy has an absolutely amazing collection of things that he loves. He probably doesn’t give a rats arse about how some psychiatric diagnostic tome would describe him. Because it seems like he’s pretty happy as things are. So happy, he wants to share. If he wanted to do one or two of these up, maybe he might. Or might not. He is under absolutely no obligation to you with regard HIS things.
Someone wants to tell me what to do with my car without my asking them, they get a much less polite answer than my hosts have earned here.
Spoken like a true frustrated car flipper…who blew his wad on other things, but now…he want’s a good deal on someone else’s property. Wah, wah, wah….for big cry babies who cannot handle personal property rights (“…right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness…”). I’ll come buy your house to see if your taking care of your property in a climate controlled room.
Think about 6 great collections, collected by one man each, what happens when the man dies, or senses his mortality, and it has to go. (Do we know any women who hoard cars?) The biggest, rivaling Billy, Harrah in Reno NV, much of it sold in order to set up (but not continuously finance) a great auto museum in Reno. Gentleman with great collection of Brass Era through the 30’s in Maine, much of the post WWI collection sold to finance the maintenance of a museum for the rest (Seal Cove, Maine); and Lars Anderson in Brookline MA, what remains is some restored, many unrestored, constant budget issues. Former Ford Board of Directors man, with 50 or so Fords, almost all in excellent condition, plus an equivalent number of other makes, sold at two big auctions. So disbursed all over the place but to people who desired them. A NH doc who just collected every kind of car, most of the best in a storage barn which burned (with the cars) the other dozens out in a field which got sold at auction, many for parts. So what will happen when Billy dies, as we all must do? And for that matter, what happens when Jay Leno dies? I expect Billy’s will be auctioned off by one of the big auction houses and disbursed far and wide, and Jay will set up a museum, but not with sufficient funds to run it. I just spent an afternoon at the Blackhawk Museum in Danville CA, where magnificent cars, far out of reach, appear to be mostly “on loan” from the collections of anonymous collectors, much as the paintings in an art museum. This may be the wave of the future for collectors (rather than drivers, fixers) of old cars – buy and lend to a museum, they insure it, house it, protect it, and the public gets to appreciate it.
Oh hell lets just enjoy the cars :)
You’re right. I’ve enjoyed Bryan’s comments in the past; maybe it was the mosquitos keeping me awake at 3:30 in the morning sending me a bit ‘latin-temperamental’ when I wrote.
As usual,most of the complaining about storage is by those who probably dont have too many cars.They might like to but they don’t. I used to have fair collection and know of many others who have 40-50 car collections and can tell you it isnt about storing them or making sure they have a pampered area in which to reside.It’s about the hunt…the finding,the gathering.Money spent on doing what some have mentioned is money unavailable for the next car.Another reason(which many here will refuse to believe) is that getting a collection of desireable vehicles and not storing them in a museum setting is amusing for some.They enjoy the gnashing of teeth when they say no,not for sale.One fellow I know has 350 vehicles in storage.I have known him for 25 years and one day I asked him what his plans were for the cars when he died.He said he could care less,he would be dead but while he is living he just enjoys looking at them.He doesnt fix any of them and has the cash to buy them and let them sit.Drives the locals crazy..except me.I get it.