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The Last One That Got Away

The Last One That Got Away
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Over the years, there have been many hot rods that got away. Many cars that I should have bought, but didn’t. Like the half roof Barracuda concept car that was once for sale at Hershey for $5,500. Or the Road Runner convertible that sold for $5,000 at an auction in Wisconsin.The latest one that got away was a ’29 Ford five-window coupe. It wasn’t the prettiest hot rod and it wasn’t $5,000, but it was a celebrity car and the asking price was just over $20,000.
 
 
James Hetfield, the front man for the hall of fame rock band Metallica owned the black Ford. I was attending the 2012 SEMA Show in Las Vegas and I decided to visit The Auto Collections-a Las Vegas attraction-to see what they had for sale.
The sign described the car as a 1929 Ford Hi-Boy 5-Window Rat Rod Coupe. If you ask me, it didn’t have the look of a high-boy and it didn’t seem like a real rat rod, either. But, it was one of a number of cars that Hetfield had in his stable in Northern California.
Hetfield also owned a very cool customized 1953 Buick Skylark convertible named “Skyscraper,” a 1936 Auburn Speedster dubbed “Slow Burn,” and a 1937 Lincoln Zephyr built by Rick Dore.
 
Chances are the other cars were out of my reach, but the Ford coupe certainly wasn’t. For just $21,500 I could have had me a celebrity car that was certain to go no where but up in the future.I believe the car sold shortly after my visit, but who knows? Maybe I’ll scoot over to The Auto Collections during my trip to the 2016 SEMA Show.and check out the inventory. This time, if I see a cheap celebrity hot rod, I’m buying it. No excuses, sir!