COLE'S CLASSIC CARS, LLC
ORLANDO, FLORIDA

The second classic car my father purchased was the very rare 1940 Packard Darrin which is #11 of 30 Darrins built by Dutch Darrin at his Hollywood Blvd shop. This Darrin was originally built for actor Chester Morris who starred in a TV series "Boston Blackie" in Hollywood, California. It happened on a beautiful spring day in 1965 when my dad and his buddy went to go see a 1932 Auburn V-12 roadster. It wound up not being exactly what my father was looking for. His friend remembered a Duesenburg collector nearby in South Bend, Indiana. So they drove out to his mansion to see if he knew of any classic cars for sale in the area. The collector, Mr. Fitterling said he did and gave Dad the man's name and number. They headed downtown for lunch and to call the man with the cars for sale. The seller was Mr. Sy Morris who owned a big scrap steel company in town. He said he had two cars for sale, which he had inherited from his brother who passed away in Detroit, Michigan. After speaking with Mr. Morris, he said the cars were just underneath them in the building's parking garage. An hour later, Mr. Morris pulls up in a new Cadillac Limo, and we drive around back and waited while he turned on the lights. Way in the back corner under two covers were a 1929 Ford Station Wagon, and a yellow 1940 Packard Darrin with red wheels. Dad asked "how much for the Packard?" Mr. Morris said, "$3,500." Dad said, "how about $3,000 and a brand new TV from my store." It was a really quick deal. Mr. Morris picked Dad up in his private jet the following week in Muncie, and he drove the Packard back home from South Bend. It was 1967 when Dad saw an ad for a restored 1934 Packard 1101 Convertible offered for $5000 in Hemmings Motor News. He called the owner, Mr. Lee of Jackson, Tennessee and told him he was very interested in buying the car. Mr. Lee said he would hold the car for 3 days if Dad could make it down to Tennessee. So he gassed up his 1960 Pontiac Bonneville, grabbed some cash and hit the road. Dad's good friend John Smith rode along and they arrived that Saturday excitedly awaiting to see the Packard. It was beautiful with soft brown exterior, black top and orange-red interior. You guessed it, Dad bought himself another Packard not knowing how he was going to get it home. After talking cars all day and the fact it was getting late, Mr. Lee invited them to stay the night. WOW! What southern hospitality! The next morning they hooked up a tow bar to the two cars with John driving the Pontiac and Dad in the Packard, and they headed home to Indiana. The Packard's restorations were finished with the help of Mr. McCrea. These first three antique cars have been a big part of our family for over 48 years now and hold many wonderful memories. This classic muscle car combines power with sporty styling, making it the 1965 Motor Trend Car of the Year. Beautiful dark red vinyl interior contrasts nicely with the clean white exterior paint. This is an ultra-rare modified Chevrolet Camaro prepared by Yenko Chevrolet, under the command of Don Yenko. Chevrolet had strict limits on the engine power in its standard models, so Yenko purchased hundreds of Chevy's and modified them to make them more sporty and powerful. Only 201 of these cars were sold in 1969, making it a sought-after collector's item. Our mission is to provide you with luxurious automobiles for that special event or occasion. Cole's Classic Cars can supply you with antique, exotic, racing and special interest automobiles from the roaring 20's up 'til today's newest styles. Whether it be for use in a convention display, fashion, movie, advertising, commercial or any other event, we will supply those special vehicles that best fits your needs. Coles Classic Cars is family owned and operated, serving Central Florida area since 1971. We have done many exciting jobs here in the sunshine state, for example - the Super Boy Episodes, Movie Star Motorcades at Disney, The Movie "OSCAR", Commercial for Lacrosse Sports, Music Videos with "Natural" and "Vin-Detta", numerous commercials with Movie Stars, magazine shoots with Alloy out of New York City, Cosmopolitan, Fortune, and High Performance Pontiac. We also specialize in finding any kind of hard to find props for stage set-ups.