Chicago classic-car museum auctions off entire collection

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If you’ve never visited the Klairmont Kollections Automotive Museum in Chicago, Illinois, you’re rapidly running out of time—on the other hand, you’re just in time to snatch up any of the 300-odd cars that make up the collection, as the whole lot are headed to auction – with no reserve – late September, via Mecum.

Founder Larry Klairmont passed away July 2019, and though it held on for a while, the museum’s now decided to shut its doors and liquidate the hundreds of rare cars Klairmont had accumulated over his lifetime. The 100,000-square-foot facility had since the early 2000s played host to the very best of Klairmont’s collection, with an emphasis on cars that would appeal to the next generation of enthusiasts.

That means crossing the block are plenty of replica movie cars, including a Jurassic Park Jeep, some Batmobiles, and even a Scooby-Doo Mystery Machine. But Klairmont’s tastes were much more expansive than just Hollywood star cars; you’ll also see in the catalog “amphibious cars, microcars, [and a] 1905 Rapide 9 Passenger Omnibus,” says Mecum, not to mention more than a few manufacturer concept cars from across the decades, and some low-serial-number or low-mile cars, including the serial-001 1986 Jeep Wrangler and serial-001 Bricklin SV-1, both Canadian-built.

The headline cars of the sale perhaps best represent the variety in Klairmont’s predilections: the first is the Golden Sahara II, a late 1950s custom-car icon renowned for its illuminated orange tires; and the second is a 1926 Rickenbacker Eight Super Sport, believed to be the only example still in existence today.

Besides the 295 collector vehicles up for auction – Klairmont’s collection at its peak numbered some 600 cars and trucks – Mecum will also be finding new homes for the 1,000 pieces of “road art” and automobilia that covered the museum walls and ceiling.

The final weekend for the public to tour the museum will be September 13 and 14, which will double as a preview day for registered bidders (who can get in free) ahead of the on-site Mecum auction spanning September 19 through 21. As always, “no reserve” means absolutely every item on the docket will be sold, no matter how low the top bid is. We’ll update this page with any absolute steals, or record-breaking high-water prices, after the sale late September.

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