Florida Man’s Car Collection and Its Many Corvettes Are Going Up for Auction

The owner of this particular group of cars – which includes seven Corvettes – was quite the eccentric fellow.

We see entire car collections hit the auction block on a regular basis, lots that oftentimes consist entirely or at least partially of Corvettes. Lately, more than one of these large groups of Corvettes have emerged for sale, giving collectors the chance to own a piece of them or in rare cases, the entire lineup. That will once again be the case at an upcoming Harris Auctions-led estate sale, where the very intriguing collection of the late Leroy Gonzalez will be sold off in Seffner, Florida on December 3.

Gonzalez passed away back in January at the age of 84, according to the Tampa Bay Times, and he was quite the eccentric collector. He made his money in real estate and used it to buy all kinds of strange things, including a pair of 14-foot-long fiberglass sharks, which were reportedly inspired by a friend who apparently harpooned the real thing from a helicopter once. We’re not so sure that the many crazy tales associated with Gonzalez are true, but we do know that he also owned a pretty darn cool car collection and was clearly a gearhead at heart.

“He loved red Fords and Corvettes from the ‘60s,” said John Harris, auctioneer and Gonzalez’ best friend. “He knew what he liked, and he went after them.” “He drove them right off the lot to the barn,” added his son, Richard Gonzalez. “I knew he bought them but had no idea he still had them. He never talked about them. For my dad, it was about the chase. He found the car and then moved on to the next one. It wasn’t about getting them to brag. He just wanted to get them.”

In total, Gonzalez amassed 27 different cars in his time, a lot that includes seven Corvettes – a 1958 model, a 1963 split-window coupe, 1964 convertible, 1965 convertible, a 1966 coupe, a 1967 convertible, and a 2002 drop top. The cars all look to be in fantastic shape from what we can see in the photos, and would make a fine addition to anyone’s garage, we’d say.

But while these Corvettes are certainly enticing potential buys, they also come with a pretty cool story that the new owners can share with the world – each was owned by a unique individual, one that has clearly captured the imaginations of those in the Tampa area over the years.

Photos: Harris Auctions

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