Latest news with #DennisCollins
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
1962 Chevrolet Corvette Discovered After 14 Years Behind a Fence in Florida Yard
⚡️ Read the full article on Motorious A rare and desirable 1962 Chevrolet Corvette has emerged from obscurity after spending more than 14 years parked behind a fence in a residential Florida yard. The discovery was made by noted car collector and YouTube personality Dennis Collins, known for chasing down forgotten classics across the country. In his latest adventure, Collins boarded a flight to the Sunshine State after receiving a tip about a C1 Corvette that had been quietly deteriorating just feet away from daily life. Upon arrival, he found the Corvette sunken slightly into the ground, surrounded by overgrown foliage and shielded from public view by a wooden fence—a time capsule hiding in plain sight. 'This is exactly the kind of find that keeps me hunting,' Collins remarked in a video documenting the trip. 'A 1962 Corvette, the last year of the C1, just sitting here for over a decade—unbelievable.' The car, while showing the effects of long-term outdoor storage, remains remarkably complete. From the classic quad headlights to the iconic body lines, the '62 represents a pivotal moment in Corvette history. It was the final year for the solid rear axle and the first to offer a 327 cubic-inch V8 engine, making it especially sought after by collectors. While details about the car's mechanical condition remain unknown, Collins expressed optimism that the vehicle can be restored. 'It's rough, but it's all there,' he said. 'This could absolutely be brought back to life.' The find has already stirred excitement online among Corvette fans and barn find enthusiasts alike. As Collins begins the recovery and assessment process, the story of this hidden Florida Corvette is quickly becoming another chapter in the ever-growing legend of classic car rescues.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Filthy Barn Find 1971 Corvette 454 Rescued
Read the full story on Backfire News For many aspiring barn find hunters, tracking down a 1971 Corvette 454 with the big block LS5 would be enough to make them think they've died and gone to heaven. But the funny thing with true barn finds, which this sports car is, comes from the fact they've been neglected for years on other words, when you wash off all that magical barn find dust and start digging into them, you can find all kinds of problems. Rodents will chew wires, critters will build nests, frames will become rotting graham cracker, and you would have a huge mess on your hands. Of course, Dennis Collins is familiar with all these risks. The man has been around the block more than a few times. Usually he films rescues, but the people who sold him this rare C3 Corvette didn't want to be on camera or have him film their barn for unmentioned reasons. The first glimpse we get of the American sports car is it strapped to the trailer as they're hauling it back to the shop. The thing is winking with one headlight popped up, something we personally know all too well. It's also filthy, so you can't get a feel for the body's condition entirely. Covered in a thick layer of grime that doesn't wash away in the rainstorm they drive through, the 'Vette needs to be power washed with some cleaner applied and allowed to soak in first. While the '71 Corvette has been painted white but was originally gold, the interior looks to be the original black vinyl. The only apparent modification is an aftermarket steering wheel has been added. More importantly, it's a numbers-matching car, the LS5 bearing the same VIN as the tags on the door and dash. Even though the thing is rough, the fiberglass appears to be in good shape and the engine does fire up, but it's in need of a good tune-up. Still, the C3 Corvette is in better condition than we initially feared, so we'll call this one a win. Image via Dennis Collins/YouTube
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Texans Raid California Shop For Classic Jeep CJs
Read the full story on Backfire News It's always a lot of fun to watch car hunters check out some fresh quarry, like these guys going all the way from Texas to Los Angeles, California to see if a stash of classic Jeep CJs kept at a shop were worthwhile restoring. One of the great things about California vehicles is they usually are rust-free and clean, so that whets the course, these aren't just any car hunters. At their helm is Dennis Collins and he's once again in his element, checking out old Jeeps, assessing their features, VIN codes, and overall state of each one. The Jeeps are in a rust-free, overall good but somewhat disassembled state. That's not a big deal since Collins' restoration team would strip off parts to repaint the classic rigs anyway. Satisfied with what he sees, he tells the guy he's offering what he did initially on the phone. That must've been a generous amount, because the owner of the shop immediately has several guys pushing cars out of the tiny yard out so they can wheel each of the CJs into the road, blocking off a lane so they can be pulled onto a carrier. It's a different way of doing things since most shops and wrecking yards would use a forklift. But the human labor is effective and that's what matters the most in the end. As the old Jeeps are pulled out, Dennis can finally really look at the interiors. That's when he notices the Limited in the lot is incredibly rare. The cabin sports all leather seats, leather dash pad, leather-wrapped steering wheel, a leather pad on the roll bar, carpeting on the tailgate and rockers, and other plush items not easily found on classic Jeeps. He understandably seems pretty happy about that. Which of these California Jeeps would you want to keep and what would you do with it? Image via Dennis Collins/YouTube
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Moldy Ford GT Supercar Left To Rot Starts Up, But Probably Shouldn't
Read the full story on Backfire News Just like seeing a Dodge Viper left to just sit and rot, it's hard for us to see a first-gen Ford GT supercar allowed to mold inside a garage for a decade and a half. We remember the excitement these special machines generated when they first came out, with people lucky enough to snatch up one of the only 4,038 made act incredibly was around 20 years ago and a lot can go down in two decades. Unfortunately, we don't get the backstory for this supercar at all. Why is a mystery because it's not even mentioned. Instead, the guys in the video are more of a focus. One of the most interesting things about barn find cars is the backstory. Without that, it's just a thing that's been allowed to sit. We bet there's one hell of a story about why this Ford GT was just parked, considering it happened only a few short years after it was originally purchased. The guys who rescue this barn find Ford GT sure are a far cry from Dennis Collins or anyone really savvy about this type of work. They stop at the Home Depot to get plastic suits to wear over nice clothing, instead of just wearing grubbies, and drive a Lamborghini Diablo SV there. But the one is still wearing his nice loafers while climbing over piles of junk stacked up around the moldy supercar. This is what happens when influencers try doing blue collar work. Also, we're getting Breaking Bad vibes when Walt and Jesse bumble around trying to stay ahead of the law while wearing a similar getup. We certainly hope these guys were just trying to ham it up for the camera. But wait, it gets even worse. Without even pulling the dipstick or checking any other fluids, these two fire up the V8 and drive it to the awaiting wrecker. Yes, they did that and you can scream inside your head or out loud, whichever you prefer. As an aside, it is pretty amazing the Ford fired up like that. Hopefully no damage was done, but it isn't our problem, thankfully. Images via VINwiki/YouTube
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Barn Find Hunter Snags 9 Corvettes In One Swoop
Read the full story on Backfire News Just finding one pristine classic Corvette stashed away that someone's willing to sell would be enough to make plenty of enthusiasts giddy, but a famous barn find hunter recently came across nine Corvettes. Spanning from a 1960 C1 convertible all the way to a 1994 C4 ZR1, each one seems to be in excellent barn find hunter in question is Dennis Collins. He has a team that's constantly on the lookout for interesting vehicles that have been stashed away, including some which are almost falling apart. After all, he needs genuine parts for the better examples he comes across. But these Corvettes might not need much restoration work at all. The paint looks at least pretty good and so do the interiors. Sure, they could use some polishing and a little bit of elbow grease, but these are far from barn find condition cars. Some of the Corvettes are even all-original, numbers-matching examples. That's means they're worth a fair chunk of change, which must be why the woman who sold them to Dennis had a big smile on her face. We would love to know the backstory on these Corvettes. Our best guess from what little we saw was the guy who collected them died and his widow decided to list them for sale. Dennis swooped in there and made an offer she couldn't resist. The rest has to do with the team scooping up the cars. What we do know is the cars have all been sitting without running for at least three years. Each one had a tight cover, not just a tarp thrown over the top, keeping them clean, including the interiors for the convertibles. They had to roll most of them out of the garage where they were stored. But considering how many rescued cars we've seen with frozen hubs where they can't roll, that's actually impressive. A few fired up, not surprisingly among them was the ZR1, which drove out to the carrier under its own power. Which of these 'Vettes would you keep? Image via Dennis Collins/YouTube
