This addiction started out innocently. Terry McCrindle saw a 1/18 scale model Roadrunner 25 years ago at a local Dodge dealer and the hook was set.
He never envisioned the extent of the addiction.
Terry owns a full sized 1970 Super Bee, but like any average car guy he can only dream about a stable full of rare Hemicudas and Daytonas. He does own (in his own words), “the largest collection of vintage MOPARS in the area and they all fit in my house”.
Terry’s first investments in the hobby were mainstream pieces like the aforementioned Roadrunner and the 1/18 version of the Little Red Express. He admits “I got a little excited at first so I took them out of the boxes. Later on I found out that was a bad idea”.
Initially Terry found these models at swap meets, car shows and hobby shops but he soon learned that odd businesses like farm-oriented shops, gas stations, 24 hour convenience stores and professional hockey games were sources for his beloved scale model cars.
As his collection expanded, Terry built more shelves with more capacity in his house to accommodate his rapidly growing mini-fleet of MOPAR legends. His focus remained on Chrysler Corporation legends over the 25 years consequently he’s acquired some extremely rare examples.
The rarest, in his opinion, “is a Dick Landy 69 Charger but a few others are pretty rare too”. Terry learned to focus on the racing heritage Dodges and Plymouths because so many are limited editions. That is an automatic “bump in value because they only made so many of the good ones so they go into drag cars” according to Terry.
Other examples include the Atlantic Chrysler (came with its own locked box and key), 74 Monaco police car and the dusty version of the legendary Kowalski Challenger in the Vanishing Point movie.
Many of these models come in various factory colors and options so Terry’s goal is to own every incarnation of these iconic muscle cars. MOPAR color schemes were legendary in the late 60s and early 70s so these examples really stand out when they’re on display.
Terry’s a hardcore car guy so he does include other brands in his collection including the full representation of American Graffiti cars. That in itself exemplifies the commitment Terry has to the hobby because that particular movie is the Holy Grail for car guys.
Terry also acknowledges American Motors with a display of their vintage muscle cars and Jeeps.
Terry’s focus is on the 60s and 70s but he has a great history of MOPAR that travels back to the 30s Airflow series. Fins are also evident in this comprehensive collection as are less glamorous MOPARS from the 50s and 60s.
Terry had a brilliant idea last summer when he realized how few people had actually seen his collection. He built shelves in his enclosed car trailer and hauled the collection to various MOPAR shows in his area. The trailer can accommodate 280 of his beloved mini-cars and he was a major hit at the shows.
This was a labor of love because setting up the shelves, labeling the cars and securing them in the trailer for transportation was a huge job for Terry. He spent many hours on the project just to add his collection to the car show experience and the result was spectacular.
He confessed that he loved showing off his collection but Terry and his wife grew a little tired of the question “are they were for sale”?
Terry has no regrets though because he realized that “too many guys get these giant collections and nobody sees them until the estate sale”. He didn’t want that to happen but he also didn’t want 500 people in his basement so this trailer idea made perfect sense.
This collection will continue to grow as long as auctions, gas stations, online buying, farm suppliers and any other sources for this fascinating hobby continue to exist.
That’s the life of a model car addict.
Jerry Sutherland
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Copyright 2011
