What's the rarest car you have ever owned??

You did ask the folks what they rarest car "they had" was, for some that's probably a VW bug...

 

The title implies something a bit different from the original post. Most threads like this do go slightly off tangent but I personally don't mind. While there are a few responses that might be a stretch to qualify as "rare" many of the cars have been pretty interesting.

Btw, the "holy grail of speed parts" thread is similar to this one in that regard.

 

55 stud speedster I had was need but never got tidle strait,the rod i'm trying to build with my son now is 1914 hupmobile with a 53 merc flathead v8.

 

This picture is all I have to remind me of my VERY special 1 of a kind car.
I was working for GM at the time, and pulled a few strings.

1997 Camaro, 30th anniversary package, Indy pace car package, LS-1, not LT-1, police package [330 hp], 6 speed.
It was the last '97 to roll off the production line, hence the LS powerplant and the '98 composite headlighs and frontend.

Cost me $22k. Drove it for 43k miles and a drunk driver with no insurance wiped it out for me. My insurance finally offered me up $19k after a long battle. I wish I still had it.



Another rare one I had years ago was a 66 Fairlane 500 with a factory installed 427-4 speed
One of 2 with the red-red color combo, as all of them produced were for the racing program and were white-red,,, except for 2 destined for the street. I had one of those 2. Sold it back in the early 80's to a collector in NY state, and it's still in his collection to this day, one of his most prized cars.

 

1965 Pontiac Catalina Ventura 2dr ht. 4 speed, tri-power. One of those "damn I wish I'd have kept that car" along with several others. When I see a 55 Chevy on the web for 40 grand it makes me sick!

 

I've only ever seen 2 others..1 in a magazine and 1 in New Zealand belonging to a friend of my Dads back in the late 60's.

 

Here is one of approx 275 1968 Cougar XR7 GTEs built with the 427 Side Oiler. Original Paint and interior.

 

Great site! And a lot of nice cars here...makes me envious.
Although not a HAMB car, I'll throw mine up here.

A 1970 Buick GS Stage2. it's a factory test car. In the Buick world it's referred as the KB/REYNOLDS car.
No option radio delete car. Campaigned out of the Kenne-Bell Reynolds Buick tent, it was used as a test car for the factory stage2 engine program.
Dennis Manner, The engineer that headed up the engine program for the 400-455's, Stage1 and Stage2, and last the turbo V6's of the GN, worked with and supplied the complete stage2 package for this car, including the complete Stage2 hood, scoop, and aircleaner/pan.
Buick only made two of these Stage2 hood scoops which are made from metal. Kenne-Bell later reproduced and sold them in fiberglass made from using this one as the mold.
It was driven by the late Lennie "Pop" Kennedy.
Right now on the engine sits the rare Buick production iron Stage2 heads (Buick made 75 sets) and full Stage2 package...including the Stage2 4:78 gear set.
Before they cast these heads they casted the vertical boss prototype Stage2 heads...they made somewhere up to 8 sets. I have recently found the original prototype heads that were used on this car...with all the engineer stampings and all.
Dennis Manner from Buick sent me copies of all the letters sent back and forth while doing (and after) the testing for the program.
The car has 1,676 original miles. I did the nut and bolt restoration except for my bother doing the paint and body. Has all it's original sheet metal, glass, and interior. The lettering is hand painted on just like they did back in the day and used old photos sent mostly from Reynolds Buick to duplicate the lettering.
I also found and restored Motor Wheel Spyder wheels that were used early on in it's life, including the front four inch runners which are next to impossible to find. These will be on for this summer.
Also at our last Buick Nats Dennis Manner signed the car and it was displayed next to the Jone & Benisik car...the only other Stage2 metal scooped Stage2 car.

 

Nothing fancy, but my 65 Barracuda is pretty rare since it came with a 273 Commando, A/C, cooling package and HD rear suspension. I have seen way for Formula S cars that plain jane cars with a commando.

 

The best I can come up with was a 1939 LaSalle hearse.Bought it for 400.Wildest car I ever had.Still have the dash plaque that says Funeral Coach.

 

'39Merc coupe, have it now and will always

 

I bought new, my first car, a 1963 Ford Fairlane hardtop 289 HIPO, 4 speed (K car). Worth pretty big bucks now. They were 63 1/2's, limited quantity in 63.

 

I must admit that I have passed this thread a bunch of times and then after reading a couple of interesting pages and thinking of some of the dumbest things I have done, I realized that I have had a few interesting (in a couple of cases not so rare) cars through the years:

-1963 Pontiac Tempest Convertible: (like a couple other posts here) Not real rare per se, but I bought mine from my high school girlfriend's aunt for $300 and the top boot had never been on when I bought it. I worked at a parts store on Saturdays and my greedy boss knew I was pressed for cash for college that Fall (like always) and he offered me something like $800 for it (it was black w/white top and the red/white/silver interior). I went for it and found out after I left for college that Fall that he took it to the Auburn Auction and sold it for $3000. Still pissed at ME and HIM!

-1961 Mercedes-Benz 190SL. No shit story. My boss at the time(big car dealer in Chicago area) was good friends with Oprah Winfrey's partner and ultimately hooked up her boyfriend with this restored 190SL so he could give it to her for her birthday. This was in the early 90's. He gave it to her, but she could not drive a stick. I was walking in one of our buildings with my boss and came across this thing under a cover and asked him the story. It was PERFECT. He did not want it (he had and still has a collection of much cooler stuff) so he gave me Steadman's number and I bought it. About a year after owning it (it couldn't get our of its own way), I put an ad in the Tribune and sold it to a Dentist in Park Ridge for double my money. Thanks, Oprah.

-1991 Pontiac Winston Cup Car: Through my business dealings with Richard Petty, I was invited to look around his storage facility for a Cup car to buy (I was racing vintage stock cars at the time) and found that one of his 1996 bodied cars for sale was actually a 1991 road course car that turned out to be RP's last Road Course car (I have the file!!!) Had the car rebodied by Petty to 1992 specs (last year RP drove it) and after keeping it for a year, a museum in El Paso now owns it. Hated to sell it, but jeezaaas...$$$$.

-1957 Ford Fairlane Custom: Found it on the net and after visiting the widow owner in CT, found out that the car was actually a survivor custom from 1957 (Hartford AutoRama, Little Pages, Rod & Custom and once owned by Gene Pitney) and it had a rare E-Code under the hood. Needed NOTHING. I even drove it to Goodguys Indy one year and then realized what in the hell I had. Now owned by Joe Bortz Collection (www.bortzautocollection.com) who is keeping the old girl as is.

They were all fun while I had them, but like a ton of other guys, they were all used to finance something I liked better at the time. No regrets!!! I like what I have now...which are driven!!!!
Ebert

 

Had a '65 Falcon Sprint convertible, one of 300 made, all with a 289. Factory red/red, 4spd, and completely stock. It was unrestored and almost totally original. Sold it because I can't leave anything alone, and you'd have to be a real heel to hot rod something like this.





-KK

 

This is one of less than 1600 built. 1956 Pontiac sedan delivery. Originally a 261 3 speed.

 

it's easy to do that,an unrestored 190 will fetch $25,000 day and night. And any unrestored 190 is a sorry peice!! For such a gutless little car they can realise upwards of $100,000.

 

1936 Cord 810 "armchair" Beverly one of about 3000 36-37 Cords, one of about 56 with the armchair front and rear seats (not a popular option due to the center armrest making the car a 4 seater and it is difficult to get to the drivers side from the passenger side,as alot of people did back in the day to avoid the muddy streets. The flathead/lasalle RWD conversion makes it rarer (post factory of course).

 

My rarest project is a 1972 Trans Am, 455HO/4speed. 1 of 458 4speed cars of the 1286 Trans Ams built. Its white with the blue stripe, Non air, just the basics except the 8 track & console. Some Day.....Im having too much fun with the 56 & the kids make a 4 seater impractical.

Ed in NWI

 

A 1933 Willys Sport Coupe, pix from mid 60's in my parents back yard.

 

1940 Mercury Convertible Sedan

Rags
NJ......

Car is now in Oregon

 

My daily driver is an '86 BMW M535i; it's a euro-only model that was never officially sold in the US. It has a single cam engine like a 535i (although since it's a euro car it has about 40hp more than a US car) along with a Bilstein suspension, sport seats and factory body kit. No one knows for sure how many made it to the US as gray market imports, but it was probably 200 or less. I'd guess there's maybe 50 of them left today.

My toy is a 1961 Pontiac Bonneville two door hardtop, with the 348hp tripower engine (four bolt main block, long branch exhaust manifolds, etc.) and a factory four speed. The engine/trans combo makes it pretty unusual for a Bonneville, but on top of that it also came from the factory painted Mandalay Red and Cameo Ivory, which was a special order since those were 1959 Pontiac colors (the color code on the trim tag is 'special'.) I've met a couple people who knew the original owner - the story is he was a street racer who was also real popular with the ladies so he needed a flashy car that was fast.

Most people back then who wanted a hot Pontiac went with the lighter and smaller Catalina or Ventura, there were only a handful of Bonnevilles built like this one.

 

1906 buick it has a wood body and steel fender and hood and grill

 

1955 Monarch Lucerne two door hardtop,one of 250 built.

 

Maybe this is dependant on the time you live in too?
I had a 76 Granada last year. Laugh but when was the last time you saw a running driving dent and rust free Granada?

 

1957 Fiat TVR roadster..........it was really a convertable and a POS but I have never seen another one. It had kilometers on the speedo and a 4 speed column shift and aluminum body. I wished I had it now.

 

I have a 1965 chrysler 300L convertible 1 of 440 made cool car, but this one is arusty pos

 

1934 ford sedan del,,33 willys sedan del, 55 Morris Minor delivery,48 Whizzer
Still got the Whizzer !!!

 

1932 Chrysler CI rumble seat coupe. 1 of 2,539 made. never seen on ebefore i bought it, and have not seen one since. wish i still had it.

 

Could have been the 68 SS-Impala we hauled to the crusher. Check the other thread,worst thing destoyed hotrodding.

 

One that would run!