There is a 35 acre slice of automotive nirvana which contains 4,500 cars awaiting your discovery along its 7 miles of easily navigable walking trails. Sound enticing? Then slide over to Old Car City which sits on US 411 a few miles north of I-75 midway between Atlanta and Chattanooga. It’s an outdoor museum or art installation or whatever you want to call it, open to the public for an admission fee.
Welcome to Part 4 where we are covering AMC, the Independents, and makes foreign to the United States. This entry has definitely got the widest array of offerings. As with the prior three entries in this series, pictures are presented (mostly) in the order taken.
Old Car City began as a general store in White, Georgia, in 1931. The couple who established the store branched out into auto salvage several years later.
Being in business for so long helps explain some of the finds seen in this series, such as this Kaiser, one of three I found that day.
The current owner of Old Car City is the son of the couple who established the general store. He quit selling auto parts in the 1980s as charging admission was more lucrative and easy. Adult admission is $30.
This Rambler wagon was near the main building. Notice the tree growing between the bumper and grille. This is a common theme, as trees in Georgia are just as tenacious in their growth as any other.
This 1956 Hudson Hornet is one of less than 10,000 Hornets built that year. Given the gold trim on the rear door, and referencing period brochures, this is not a base model, thus it is one of around 5,000 sedans built.
This Willys Aerolark is another rarity.
The Aerolark ran from 1952 to 1954, it being the base model accompanying the Aero and Aero Falcon (in 1953). 1953 saw peak Aerolark production of 8,205 two-door sedans; that dropped to a mere 1,400 in 1954.
We don’t know the model year, but we do know this was not a commonly seen car, even when new.
A Dodge Dart, a Pontiac Tempest, and a Rambler. All convertibles and up out of the elements.
Keep in mind this was once a salvage yard and all vehicles have been sitting here for decades. The VW bus predates the trees, which have lifted the front off the ground.
This had once been a very nice Hornet wagon.
Seen one of these lately? He had much more than just cars.
I had no clue what this was upon first seeing it.
This is the first Borgward I’ve ever seen outside the walls of a museum, although I suppose Old Car City is technically a museum.
One of the rules at Old Car City is to not open hoods or doors. This hood being open was a perk. Other rules of conduct are no alcohol, no firearms, and no nudity.
Only now have I learned there was a Volkswagen Karmann Ghia Type 34, but it was never imported into the United States by Volkswagen. Interestingly, in finding out the basics about this VW, I found an article that pictured this very car.
This one appears to have been hit in the right rear, as barely seen in the photo.
Taking pictures while trying to navigate around trees was a formidable challenge. Sometimes avoiding a tree was impossible.
The owner has a distinct artistic talent, as we will see later. Here, the path to a hut has been lined with transmissions.
Interestingly, Ramblers were often found alongside the foreign makes.
This was another car I had no clue about what it could be. Fortunately there was a badge on the grille.
The Standard Vanguard was first imported to the US from the UK in 1949. Production ended in 1963.
This Audi was much easier to identify.
Old Car City has become a self-proclaimed photographer’s paradise. While not a photographer, I can understand why. Having spent six hours there, the light cascading through the canopy of Georgia pines definitely presented cars differently throughout my time there. The place is also very scenic and peaceful combined with there being a seemingly infinite supply of interesting backgrounds for pictures.
Three generation of Packards.
We will see one more Javelin.
For some reason, I was oddly pumped to have seen a coffin-nosed AMC Matador.
I have an old toy car of unknown manufacturer but built in Japan of a Rambler wagon in this same color scheme. It has a Shasta camper trailer that it pulls. I’m speculating my toy Rambler and this Rambler were produced in the same time period.
Another Javelin; there is still one more to see!
Here’s the last Javelin!
It is tough to see, regardless of angle.
Something Italian to enhance the English, German, and Japanese.
Sitting next to the Fiat was this…might this be a Borgward Isabella? It appears it may be.
As mentioned earlier, the owner has a strong artistic talent. Upstairs in the main building he has some of his artwork for sale. What you are seeing is correct; he uses Styrofoam cups as a canvas. He was working on one during our brief conversation in his office.
His office has over 12,000 Matchbox cars that he has attached to the walls, with there being many different designs in which he has used those cars to great effect.
If one is ever in Northern Georgia, I would highly recommend spending some time at Old Car City. It’s truly unparalleled.
All pictures were taken March 20, 2026; mild enhancement for color was made via standard software found on an aging Apple iMac.
These are all cool, but IMO, you picked the right car for the lead photo. Poor green Javelin! An international Travelall will always remind me of neighbors in Flint who had owned one, which was the only such example I had seen for years and years when I was a kid.
My main takeaway from this is I don’t want to get into a frontal collision driving an International Scout.
If I ever perfect my time machine I’ll go scoop that VW bus out of the yard the same day it arrives.
Many Toyotas seen there. Late 1960s, early 1970s. And I believe there was a Datsun 510.
The small green coupe could be a Fiat 850 Racer Berlinetta.
https://www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/listing/fiat-850-racer/
$30. admission to schlep through a junkyard?!! No wonder I haven’t seen another soul in any of these segments! He’s probably just trying to keep his fridge full of beer! SMH
Oh, ye of little faith. As I was told average daily attendance is over 100 on the weekends and about half that on weekdays. You can spread 100 people over 35 acres pretty well. So that is about $13k per week or so…with zero overhead.
As I was told average daily attendance is over 100 on the weekends and about half that on weekdays. You can spread 100 people over 35 acres pretty well. So that is about $13k per week or so…with zero overhead.
Jason, If you had just included this line in the first of these posts, there would have been vastly less confusion these past few days about how this places operates and what it really is. You’ve rather kept us in the dark, or lost in the woods.
Every person in the midwest with an El Camino or two on blocks behind the barn just perked up and is now showing their spouse the income potential of the old wrecks, excuse me, “treasures”….
Perhaps the ’69 Charger hasn’t been there for 40+ years after all, perhaps it was added around 2015 as a business investment to juice attendance. And I wouldn’t dare sell off a single loop bumper either…not even remotely worth the effort.
But you pay $30 to go through a car musem with about 50 cars and none of them unique except a X of X roadrunner that makes it super-rare and expensive, and that’s different how? Those museums are great when you want a roadside stop or are on vacation, but hardly unique and don’t have anything that a die-hard brand loyalist would find interesting. This place is a couple hours from me (well, make it 5 going through Atlanta) so it’s on my list to check out.
I like how the sign propped across the Kaiser said “Made In THIS USA” as though to reassure viewers that the Kaiser is not the product of a parallel universe.
It looks like the trees are beginning to hinder access .
I wish I had the time and $ to go there and wander .
-Nate
Thank you for this series of posts, Jason! A thoroughly fine hike through the woods that must have been. Grateful you could take us there, as i’m not sure I’ll ever get to experience it in person. The tree growth in some of those pics is mesmerizing, like that VW bus. Feels a bit like those videos you see of the Chernobyl exclusion zone, nature taking back control and slowly but inexorably assimilating human creations. Half creepy, half beautiful, 100% entertaining.
Thank you. The place was amazing and thoroughly enjoyable. There’s nothing else quite like it and there were lots of other cars I simply didn’t photograph or include, such as the ’63 Ford Galaxie (I didn’t feature all of them) covered in dealer stickers; the very high trim ’68 Satellite that saw a second life as a taxi; all the body damage and rotted floors, which all still told a story.
I somehow figured your series would be All-Big-Three, so you surprised me with this one, Jason. You broadened my perspectives, thought these would have lowered my “batting average” of ability to identify makes & models without peeking at the badges.
You’ve been informative about things I hadn’t considered (no guns/nudity), and then also answered the “how much?” question about admission. Looks like you got a *lot* for your $30—–thanks for sharing.
I agree – I was surprised to see so many foreign cars, and there were quite a few I wouldn’t have been able to readily identify. My favorite of the oddballs is the Willys Aerolark… something I’ve never seen before.
Though honestly, my heart bleeds for that green Matador sedan. I’d have one in my dream garage, for no reason other than just to be different.
Realistically, as the tree growth and pine straw continues to suffocate views of the “remains”, it would appear less and less interesting with so much blocked out of view, thus lessening the attraction. “No nudity?!”, rather eccentric, as I should think “NO SMOKING” would be more sensible. Thanks for this wonderful tour, experienced vicariously via you, Jason! I don’t think I’d want to pay $30 just to look at and think of what once was, and will never be again! 🙂
I’m sure that no nudity rule came about for a reason. Lots of guys with cameras and bored girlfriends, so stuff happened…
It is, indeed a Borgward Isabella TS coupe. Given the size of the grill diamond ilI would suspect that it is a late 50’s model. They went to a smaller diamond in the 60’s.
Carl Fredrick Wilhelm Borgward was an amazing man. He had three or four car lines, raced and won in international events and was the second largest manufacturer behind Mercedes-Benz. He also made trucks, busses, helicopters and rail equipment. He was driven to bankruptcy by BMW. However he was not bankrupt and he pair off all his debt. His grandson, Christian Borgward restarted the company with several different models. There was one fully electric model and a concept car that was amazing. Borgward is all over the web if you are curious.
And yes, I have owned several. A couple Combis, two TS coupes and one sedan. Amazing cars, over engineered and last forever, until the rust eats them alive.
Thanks for including photos. I am now heading there on one of my summer motorcycle trips.
“Interestingly, Ramblers were often found alongside the foreign makes.”
I wonder if back in the day when it was a salvage yard, if when cars were delivered, the AMC products we like, “What do I do with this one Bob?” – “Just put it over there with the rest of the unusual and foreign cars.”
The “Big 3” were always still the most common products back then.
I really like the ’71 Javelin in the lede photo. It may be color enhanced by your aging Mac, but I like the color. The orange one reminds me of my buddy’s ’74 from back in the day… the one where we swapped in a Pierre Cardin interior from a… wait for it… another Javelin from a junk yard! Swapping out that headliner was a real b!tch!
As a fan of oddballs this is my favorite of the series. So many cars that are pretty gone and extinct elsewhere. Nice to see some cars that likely had little to no value back in the day at least saved in this format.
A Borgward Isabella but no Studebaker? But then Georgia is not Indiana. 🙂 And the International Travelall makes up for any other deficiencies in the selection.
Look again, JP, there is a sliver of a ’62 Lark in the image with a blue Datsun 510.
Ah, a 67-68 Cougar next to the 56 Hudson Hornet. Then a Mazda RX-2 behind the Celica shot. The only Mazda? A good number of Toyotas and Datsun. Those Georgia trees look to be growing like weeds all over given how dense they look in your photos. You’ll have to check back in 10 years to see what happens. Still there or gone with the owner.
That Mazda is actually an even rarer R-100! Easy mistake, as they use the same taillights.
“I have an old toy car of unknown manufacturer but built in Japan of a Rambler wagon in this same color scheme. It has a Shasta camper trailer that it pulls.”
Ha! I had the same toy in 1959. Fairly large as I remember. The detail was quite good.
I love this series! I do note a lack of the Little British Cars.
Doesn’t look like he’s sold any parts for 20-25 years, maybe the tourist attraction pays the overhead. The 54 Kaiser looks like an abandoned restoration project.
Did I see at least a few Toyota Coronas or similar?
Thanks Jason for this wondeful series. Can’y help but wonder if the yard get used as a backdrop for other
things; Product photos, weddings perhaps??
To those expressing surprise about finding Toyotas and oddball (in the US) European cars here among the big American iron, recall that White is within spitting distance of Atlanta and then not so far away Athens. Even in the 1970s, that was the part of Georgia that really defied expectations for what one might find in the deep South. Atlanta and the surrounding area has long been the international business and higher ed center of the region. So in effect, a college town. It of course has only proceeded to change and grow since then.
It seems that this junkyard probably was one of the largest in the state and likely pulled in a lot of cars from all over. Before it was all over.
Jason, thanks for the tour of this place…the ultimate home of the guy who “knows what he got” 🙂
I would be worried about snakes.
I stopped by Old Car City 2 years ago while traveling through. It was in August and I was unprepared. A word to the wise, wear long pants, and long sleeves, and bring some Off insect repellant… Georgia insects are legendary. Probably best to go in late fall or early spring. Also carry some water and snacks, you’ll be there for a while.
Also you can go across to the other side of I-75 to the fantastic Savoy museum.
, which I also visited.
In a previous post I lamented the scads of scarce parts here that are nla to restorers now. Of 200+ cars I’ve had maybe 160 were restored by me to some extent, often without the parts that they desperately needed.
That said I was clearly wrong to question the motivation or energy of the owners… who knows why people do what they do, really. However I see so many parts that I could never find, particularly for fuselage Mopars, unobtanium stuff, that I could have used.
I guess the best we could hope for is that someone would buy this place and allow many cars to be saved that otherwise would not be. As it is it certainly would be an interesting, if heartbreaking, for me at least, place to see.
Excellent series, Jason! I enjoyed having seen in the metal (and ridden on some) all the cars you couldn’t identify at once. Then again, it’s not because of prodigious memory but just by chance of Uruguayan imports. Borgwards, Standard Vanguard (I rode frequently to and from school in one 50 years ago, the ‘49 model being 28 years old then, and remember not being able to see out. The driver, a close friend’s Mom, very short, would fight with steering, brakes and gear lever…scary!!) Oh, and a neighbor had the KG 34. Interesting to look at.
Do you really think the owner would give you an honest accounting of how much money this Opossum habitat takes in? He’s either stupid or he thinks you’re stupid. Any guy who spends his waking hours customizing Styrofoam cups has ample time and energy to make up the most elaborate lies to tell to tourists. It’s a tradition among Mountain Folk.