AutoHunter continues to impress with its terrific selection of vehicles offered on the ClaccisCars.com auction platform. The range of vehicles is equally impressive, hitting collector car high notes in both foreign and domestic brands, vintage to modern.
My turn to pick out favorites among the AutoHunter collection puts me solidly in the Big 3 camp this time around, with six lovely cars from Chevrolet, Ford and Plymouth pulling into my dream garage.
What’s not to love about the ’62 Vette, the final year of the C1 generation, fitted with a factory hardtop and resto-modded with a performance-tweaked Chevy 350 and a set of polished 15-inch American Racing wheels?
This handsome roadster would be a head turner everywhere it goes, and fun to drive with prodigious power and a 4-speed manual transmission. Finished in Roman Red, which the seller advises was a factory color in 1962, with a reupholstered red interior, this Corvette looks clean, crisp and ready to romp.
Beneath its authentic appearance, the Corvette is powered by a modern rebuilt V8 bored out to 357cid, and which the seller says was fitted with “various performance parts.” These include high-flow aluminum heads, 4-barrel carburetor, electronic ignition, aluminum intake manifold, performance camshaft, long-tube headers and dual exhaust.
This Vette looks like a sports car that could be shown and driven, and thoroughly enjoyed on every level.
2004 Dodge Viper SRT10 roadster
A more-modern take on sports car performance can be found with this V10-powered icon of style and power. Finished in Bright Silver Metallic with a black interior, this Viper appears to be in showroom condition, driven only 16,000 miles in its 16 years of existence, the seller noting that it has gone just 3,000 miles in the past four years of ownership.
This to me always begs the question: How could anyone buy and own such an awesome machine and not drive the hell out of it? If this were my car since new, it would have at least 116,000 miles on it, although that undoubtedly would lower its current value.
As it is, this future collector car remains in apparently excellent condition, unworn and never damaged, according to the seller. The V10 engine is a thing of beauty, cranking out 500 horsepower and 500 pound-feet of torque, fed through a Tremec 6-speed manual trans and a limited-slip differential.
Vipers are wonderful cars, and I would advise whomever buys this low-mileage example to drive it. A lot.
A clean and mostly original California native, this Nova is fitted with its numbers-matching drivetrain that includes a performance-modded 283 V8 and 4-speed manual transmission. This was a hot setup for these lightweight Super Sport coupes, and it’s a rare delight to find one in unmolested condition, as documented with its original Protect-O-Plate.
Among the upgrades for drivability are a rebuilt suspension and front end, a front disc-brake conversion and a Shiftworks Sport Gauge addition. Engine performance has been enhanced with a custom-grind camshaft, Edelbrock 4-barrel carburetor, aluminum intake manifold, Hedman Elite headers, Petronics ignition, MSD plug wires and dual exhaust with Magnaflow mufflers.
The Nova has been repainted in its factory color of Butternut Yellow on a rust-free body, although the seller notes that a small rust spot is emerging on the trunk floor. New old stock items such as the grille, SS emblem and chrome locking gas cap were sourced to replace the original trim pieces.
The Nova presents as an attractive driver that provides an authentic glimpse into the 1960s world of muscle car performance.
This 4-door sedan has a definite Christine movie vibe, the cult horror film about a possessed vintage Plymouth that takes over the life of its nerdish teen owner and slaughters anybody who gets in its way. A weirdo classic flick that I highly recommend.
The movie link is not-so-subtly addressed on the car’s Michigan license plate, which spells out CR1STNE. Movie fans and Mopar buffs will be quick to note that the malevolent Christine car was actually a 2-door 1958 Plymouth Fury, but this sedan looks close enough with its sweeping hardtop roofline and Carnival Red and White paint.
Besides, who’s going to argue with pure evil?
The Plymouth is primarily stock with a 301cid V8 and push-button Torqueflite automatic transmission, and is apparently in running order. While the body and trim look good, the interior needs some refurbishing.
Unless, of course, this Christine will remake itself like new overnight, as did the one in the movie. Now that would be a major selling point.
1962 Ford Thunderbird roadster
There was much angst and sadness when the 2-seat 1955-57 Thunderbird became a 4-seater in 1958, although it’s hard to fault Ford’s decision since sales climbed with the new configuration. But for those yearning to go back, there was a fiberglass insert that turned a 4-seat ‘Bird into a dramatically long roadster.
This roadster in Silver Mink Metallic with a black interior underwent a full-on concours restoration on a low-mileage car that was completed in 2004, according to the seller, then entered into numerous major events in which it won best-of-show or best-of-class honors every time. Sixteen years later, the car still looks gorgeous and ready to win again.
The T’bird is powered by its original, rebuilt 390cid, 300-horsepower V8 and 3-speed automatic transmission, and it rides on great-looking Kelsey Hayes wire wheels. The roadster insert is just the icing on a beautiful piece of cake.
Perhaps the most sought-after model in Chevy’s Tri-Five generation of cars, the ’55 Nomad is a strikingly designed wagon that mixes luxury, practicality and sportiness in equal measure. I’m always inspired by those wide-open rear wheel wells, a one-year-only feature that hit just the right stylistic note, and the chrome strips on the tailgate.
This example is an absolute beauty, with a frame-off restoration completed in 2006 and driven just 200 miles since, according to the seller. Painted in its original shade of Dusk Rose and India Ivory over a gray-and-ivory interior, the Nomad’s numerous chrome highlights gleam like new. It sits on color-matched wheels with polished hubcaps and fresh wide-whitewall tires.
The Chevy’s original 265cid V8 sits in a pristine engine compartment, linked with a 2-speed Powerglide automatic transmission. The photos show that the underside looks just as cleanly restored as the body.
As always with a car this nice, the question becomes whether to drive it and enjoy it, or preserve it as a sparkling showpiece. Obviously, the owners since its restoration chose the latter route, judging by the ultra-low mileage. But it’s up to the next owner as to what this Chevy’s future holds.
Awesome collection and selection. currently the Nomad has my heart, as I also owned a 55 nomad years ago. Keep up the good work.