The Rick Grant III Estate Collection
In a private garage somewhere in Dayton, Ohio, lives an incredible collection of approximately 50 inimitable and timeless classic cars encompassing a remarkable array of vehicles centered upon a theme of European sports and racing. The space and the vehicles it holds are drenched in the eternally recognizable badges of esteemed builders such as Bugatti, Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, Porsche and Jaguar, as well as Aston Martin, Austin-Healey, BMW, Bentley and others, and their years of manufacture range almost exclusively from the 1930s through the 1980s.
This consummate collection comes from the estate of the late Richard Grant III, a humble and unassuming family man with a sharp mind, a wide breadth of knowledge and an insatiable love for the world’s most beautiful automobiles. Grant’s grandfather served as the right hand man to Alfred Sloan of General Motors fame, and his role with the company during its development of some of history’s most memorable vehicles seemed to become ingrained in the family gene pool, carrying forth in the bloodline with the birth and life of Richard Grant III.
The succeeding Grant’s homage to his family’s history is all here, alive and well in the form of a collection of vehicles that most curators would rope off or enclose inside glass cases, but not Grant. Grant, who spent decades owning and caring for the assemblage, believed in enjoying his vehicles as their creators intended and never thought twice about slipping in the driver’s seat for a tour around town. He kept his cars running, licensed and road ready-a feat almost unheard of for a collection of this caliber. Grant was known to perform in-depth research on his vehicles and ensure only the most correct restoration work was bestowed upon them, and only when absolutely necessary. His vehicles have been the recipients of coveted concours awards from organized events such as Amelia Island, Pebble Beach and Pinehurst, and his 1935 Bugatti Type 57 Binder Coupe took Best of Show honors at the 2016 Dayton Concours and Cincinnati Concours.
Grant wasn’t defined by any one aspect of his life, but his passion for assembling and caring for some of the finest automobiles ever built left a legacy that cannot be denied. Join Mecum on January 7-8, 2023, in Kissimmee, Florida, as the extraordinary vehicles of the Richard Grant Estate Collection cross the auction block for the next worthy collector looking to create a lasting legacy of their own.
www.mecum.com/auctions/kissim...