These 60 Vintage Cars Were Found On a French Farm after 50 Years of Neglect
These 60 vintage cars were found on a French farm after 50 years of neglect!
It is like in those fairy tales when you find out about a hidden treasure buried somewhere. The same happened with these cars, they were left there to rot, hidden from any curious eye where they were found 50 years later.
Who was the owner of the cars?
The collection of sixty vintage cars from the 1930s to the 1950s was discovered by late Roger Baillon’s grandchildren.
He was a guy who made his fortunes owning a transport and truck company located in western France. His dreamed about turning his car collection into a museum, including a mini railroad loop that would allow visitors to ride the cars.
That didn’t happened because his business failed in the 1970s, and his plans for a museum became a thing of the past.
He then went and sold 50 of the cars that were previously part of the collection, and forgot about the remaining ones which were left to collect dust and rust in a shed, until his grandchildren discovered them.
Baillon passed away around 10 years ago, and at the time his son inherited his estate. After Baillon’s son recently passed away, his heirs got into contact with the auction house and made the decision to sell the collection.
The cars were just left there to rust under a collection of coverings and sheds found on the family farm in western France.
All the cars are some of the most collectable cars in the world with total worth estimated at $14.9 million.
What kind of cars this collection held?
As you can see these cars are not like others, they are famous and special. For example there is a Tablot-Lago, which was once owned by Egyptian King Farouk, the tenth ruler of Muhammad Ali Dynasty.
Another example is a Ferrari owned by great actor Alain Delon. And the collection wouldn’t be complete without some Maserati, Bugatti, Delahayes, Delages, Hispano-Suizas and Panhard-Levassors.
Which one is the priciest car?
The most expensive car found in this collection is a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spyder, which is worth $9.5 million or even more.
Why? Because the car is a rarity, with only 37 models ever made and sold, all of which were carefully documented and this one was believe to be lost.
The pricy vintage Ferrari was sharing the garage with another high-priced vehicle, a 1956 Maserati A6G Gran Sport Frua. The car has an estimated value between $990,000 and $1.5 million.
It breaks our heart to see that not all the cars in Ballion’s collection were kept under more protective coverings. Most of the pieces were left out under steel roofs, which didn’t do much to protect them against the elements and against time itself.
The car that is in the worst shape was overtaken by ropes of ivy, which invaded the car’s steering wheel.
The passenger compartment was also full of weeds, as if the car were a greenhouse instead of a mode of transportation.
This story reminds me of the one in Dubai where a luxury car ‘graveyard’ was found.
What happened to the cars?
Some of the cars that were salvageable required a lot of touch up work to restore their original glisten and shine, but the restoration work is worth it, especially considering that some of the models are no longer manufactured, and haven’t been in years.
Now, some of those cars were restored and sold to new owners that are proudly driving them through town.
Would you have sold the cars or just keep them for yourself?
