Verne Frantz 1963 Anniversary Gold Impala For Sale On Bring A Trailer

[bb767]

Thanks everyone for the replies. Wonderful memories! Verne was very truly a unique individual. I met him around 2003 and shorty thereafter I would go to his shop about 4 times a month for an afternoon and evening, working on various projects with him. I got to do that for about 10 years before I retired and stopped being based at EWR airport. ( I was an international pilot for Continental Airlines) In that time I really got to know him well. I rapidly concluded he would forget more than I will ever know about full size Chevy's, especially 409 cars. We both agreed that what goes on in the shop, stays in the shop. We had so much fun working together out there!

Here's a picture I took of him in 2007 when we rolled one of his 62' 409 cars out of the shop to do some work. I really had to work hard to persuade him to pose for me. He never liked this picture but it's one of my favorites.

Anyway, Verne asked me to be the person to direct the selling of all his various cars and huge hoard of parts after his passing so Janet wouldn't be bothered with it. As such, his '63 Impala is the first to go. I think BAT will be a good venue to sell it. I've uploaded close to 200 pictures of it that will appear in the auction. BAT tells me the auction could go live anytime now. Once it does, I'll post a link to the auction. There's a reason Verne owned it for 27 years, it's a sweetheart of a car. I'm confident it will do well and the new owner will not be disappointed. Thanks again everyone for a nice trip down memory with Verne.

Thomas

[Mr70]

Back when I bought the lighted MOTiON sign from Verne in 2004,he asked that I spend more than 1 day with him.As he wanted to show me all of his cars & parts he had collected.I wish I spent the week,as his stories & collection were incredible,and his wife never stopped cooking either..

[RPOLS3]

Verne was one of the the most unselfish people I have met in the hobby. He was always willing to share his vast knowledge of these cars with those that were interested. He was a tremendous help to us in making corrections to our 409 over the years. I spoke with him briefly in person at the show when he coordinated the 409 Invitational at MCACN but corresponded regularly via e-mail over the years. Another great loss to the hobby. Thank you for helping take care of his car stuff for his wife - not always an easy or fun task.

[bb767]

The auction for Verne's 1963 Impala is now live on BAT. Here is a link to it:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1963-chevrole t-i...

It's a 7 day No Reserve auction ending May 31 in the afternoon. For those unfamiliar with Bring A Trailer auctions, any bid placed in the last 2 minutes of the auction extends the auction by 2 additional minutes. There is no sniping of auctions possible. That is a very fair way to conduct an auction I think.

Anyway, take a look and feel free to add a comment or two. Especially if you knew Verne and or the car. Verne was special and so is this car. Thank you everyone.

Thomas

[njsteve]

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/19...let-impala-31/

[Lynn]

I am high bidder, but know I won't be for long.

[njsteve]

Sold for $41,305.

[Lynn]

Glad it brought some decent money.

[BJCHEV396]

Yup,well sold.

[bb767]

Next up for auction later this year, Verne had 2 - 1962 Impala Super Sports. Both are 409, 4 speed cars. I'll post a heads up when I get them on BAT.

Thanks everyone for all the positive comments. Verne is missed by us all.

Thomas