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Automotive Lifestyle
VINTAGE: 30 Of Charles Collom’s Cool Cars
Mega-collector is selling off part of his diverse stash at Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas; here’s three of the best.
Charles Colloms' 1957 Chevy Bel Air convertible and 1956 Ford Crown Victoria coupe are due for the auction block on Saturday. (Photo: Tom Jensen)
(This article was originally written by Roger C. Johnson for the Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas catalog.)
There are car collectors and then there are “master” car collectors. Charles Collom definitely falls into that second category. His collection is large, comprehensive, immensely interesting and he treasures each car.
Just because he has decided to thin his collection a bit by offering 30 of his machines at the Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas auction, not to worry – there are 50 more staying at home for him to enjoy. And he's beeen picking up a few more to bring back home.
It seems Collom has always been a car guy, and his taste is as diverse as his collection suggests. It consists of classic ’50s stockers, a heavy sprinkling of traditional and modified muscle cars (which is also traditional), a VW bus, a C10 Chevy pickup and a 1951 Ford with a high-performance Cadillac V8.
There’s even a Cobra tribute car with 429 cubic inches of enthusiasm that helped satisfy Collom’s hunger for two-seater thrills when his 1990 ZR1 Corvette is off at the carwash.
Besides his basic love of automobiles, Collom’s interest in them runs particularly deep in a number of personal ways. He’s a lover of the intricate mechanicals that are the backbone and soul of any vehicle. He enjoys the impact a given car model may have had on the industry and the market in general.
He’s particularly fascinated by the way cars touch the people who own them and create memories that last forever — even as these cars leave his family. Thanks to Collom’s enthusiastic love of cars, each one of these will be capable of fulfilling new dreams in another person’s collection.
Several of Collom’s cars have sold already, but there are still some left for bidding. Three stars of the collection:
The 1990 ZR1 Corvette (Lot #314.1), which sold earlier today in Las Vegas for $20,350 including buyer fee, was a popular collector car even before the first one was produced. How could it not be? It had everything a serious gearhead would want.
There was the aluminum 5.7-Liter V8 generating 375 horsepower, thanks to Lotus-inspired four-cam aluminum heads. A six-speed manual transmission and a fully independent suspension round out the car’s drivetrain. This was, and always will be, a factory hot rod, pure and simple.
The ZR1 was virtually “mini-tubbed” at the factory for the wider rear wheels and tires required to capture that additional 135 horsepower over the standard production small block Vette of the day. The rear fenders were actually re-engineered to cover up all this extra-wide tomfoolery. The end result: the “King of the Hill,” — one of the most desirable collectible Corvette.
The 1956 Ford Crown Victoria (Lot #623.2) is a perfect example of what was great about American cars from the ’50s. Tasteful, unpretentious, clean and modern-looking, this two-year body style actually looked better in ’56 than the original from the year before — the reverse is generally the norm.
The crowning touch over the roof is a carryover from ’55 and still radiates gobs of styling foresight and class. This could be the very first Ford that looked like it was moving, even as it stood still. This same year, Motor Trend magazine gave the “Car of the Year” award to the entire Ford brand. And this is the model that drove that lineup.
The Crown Vic was treated to a body-off restoration so it defies its own age in every category. Dusk Rose and Colonial White exterior with matching interior combine to make this Ford period-correct down to its hubcaps. A 272cid Y-block V8 with a modern Edelbrock four-barrel carb helps give this Crown Victoria sufficient performance to match its sleek looks. The engine bay has been wonderfully detailed.
There are car collectors and then there are “master” car collectors. Charles Collom definitely falls into that second category. His collection is large, comprehensive, immensely interesting and he treasures each car.
Just because he has decided to thin his collection a bit by offering 30 of his machines at the Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas auction, not to worry – there are 50 more staying at home for him to enjoy. And he's beeen picking up a few more to bring back home.
It seems Collom has always been a car guy, and his taste is as diverse as his collection suggests. It consists of classic ’50s stockers, a heavy sprinkling of traditional and modified muscle cars (which is also traditional), a VW bus, a C10 Chevy pickup and a 1951 Ford with a high-performance Cadillac V8.
There’s even a Cobra tribute car with 429 cubic inches of enthusiasm that helped satisfy Collom’s hunger for two-seater thrills when his 1990 ZR1 Corvette is off at the carwash.
Besides his basic love of automobiles, Collom’s interest in them runs particularly deep in a number of personal ways. He’s a lover of the intricate mechanicals that are the backbone and soul of any vehicle. He enjoys the impact a given car model may have had on the industry and the market in general.
He’s particularly fascinated by the way cars touch the people who own them and create memories that last forever — even as these cars leave his family. Thanks to Collom’s enthusiastic love of cars, each one of these will be capable of fulfilling new dreams in another person’s collection.
Several of Collom’s cars have sold already, but there are still some left for bidding. Three stars of the collection:
The 1990 ZR1 Corvette (Lot #314.1), which sold earlier today in Las Vegas for $20,350 including buyer fee, was a popular collector car even before the first one was produced. How could it not be? It had everything a serious gearhead would want.
There was the aluminum 5.7-Liter V8 generating 375 horsepower, thanks to Lotus-inspired four-cam aluminum heads. A six-speed manual transmission and a fully independent suspension round out the car’s drivetrain. This was, and always will be, a factory hot rod, pure and simple.
The ZR1 was virtually “mini-tubbed” at the factory for the wider rear wheels and tires required to capture that additional 135 horsepower over the standard production small block Vette of the day. The rear fenders were actually re-engineered to cover up all this extra-wide tomfoolery. The end result: the “King of the Hill,” — one of the most desirable collectible Corvette.
The 1956 Ford Crown Victoria (Lot #623.2) is a perfect example of what was great about American cars from the ’50s. Tasteful, unpretentious, clean and modern-looking, this two-year body style actually looked better in ’56 than the original from the year before — the reverse is generally the norm.
The crowning touch over the roof is a carryover from ’55 and still radiates gobs of styling foresight and class. This could be the very first Ford that looked like it was moving, even as it stood still. This same year, Motor Trend magazine gave the “Car of the Year” award to the entire Ford brand. And this is the model that drove that lineup.
The Crown Vic was treated to a body-off restoration so it defies its own age in every category. Dusk Rose and Colonial White exterior with matching interior combine to make this Ford period-correct down to its hubcaps. A 272cid Y-block V8 with a modern Edelbrock four-barrel carb helps give this Crown Victoria sufficient performance to match its sleek looks. The engine bay has been wonderfully detailed.
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