VanDerBrink Auctions has earned a reputation for hosting massive car collections. It was the company behind the hoard of low-mileage cars and trucks from Lambrecht Chevrolet in 2013 as well as the sale of 400 classics in North Dakota just last month. Its latest sale in Box Elder, Montana, includes more than 500 vehicles.
This treasure trove of cars, trucks, and tractors belonged to the late Lewis Dielman. Dielman visited auctions to grow his flock of vehicles, but his reputation soon meant that sellers came directly to him. The auction offers everything from Brass Era open cars to a Fox-body Mustang. The vast majority of the vehicles are American cars, with plenty of pickup trucks from the ‘40s through the ‘80s, including Chevy, GMC, Ford, Dodge, International Harvester, and Studebaker. For those with even more room in their garages, the auction offers up a WWII surplus GMC deuce-and-a-half, several firetrucks, and a well-worn but still beautiful fuel tanker, among its many heavy-duty truck offerings.
For fans of mid-century metal, there’s a 1958 Biscayne, a 1956 Buick Century, and a 1956 Dodge Royal Lancer, all two-door hardtops. If muscular ‘60s machines are more your liking, there’s a 1963 Grand Prix, a 1966 Charger, a 1967 Galaxie 500 hardtop, and a ’67 Mustang notchback ready for restoration. Several of the cars are sold incomplete, as parts-only, but offer a good start for a project. While most of them show obvious signs of being stored outside, with paint that is faded at best and plenty of surface rust, many vehicles from the Dielman collection were stored inside, offering a quicker path to restoration or at least roadworthiness.
The Dielman collection includes more than 500 potential projects, including rare makes like Franklin, REO, and Hupmobile, dozens of vintage tractors, and even 1970s ATVs. The majority are just cool 1950s and 1960s American coupes, sedans, convertibles, and wagons, as well as pickup truck workhorses from the same era that deserve a new lease on life.
In-person previews of the Dielman collection will be held on July 18 and 19, although bidding has already started. The auction is online only, with auctions set to close beginning July 28. We’re sure that plenty of these machines will be returned to the road in the months and years to come. Good luck, bidders!