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Cover Story
The new Allen Unique Auto Museum
by Terri Benson
If you haven’t visited the new Allen Unique Auto Museum, it’s time to jump into your car and get down there. Located on River Road across from Western Slope Ford, the big building is hard to miss. Owner Tammy Allen has always liked cars. She grew up watching the Barrett-Jackson car auctions with her father. It took years of convincing before he finally believed she shared his interest, but when she did he bought her a 1988 Amaretta at an auction. That car started her looking at automobiles as art, and she considers her collection of classic and custom cars as a very large art collection on wheels. Allen didn’t start actively collecting until her children grew up and she had the time and money (from the sale of her family’s business, Veco Drilling) to indulge her avocation. The first car she collected was a 1952 Cadillac. Without a lot of experience under her belt, the $100,000 price tag “was way too much,” a more knowledgeable Allen said. The first time she went to a Barrett-Jackson auction to buy for herself, her father went along to keep her out of trouble. “My plan was to buy a couple cars, and have some fun,” Allen said. “I ended up with about 30 cars.” Since Allen started collecting she hasn’t stopped. Her current favorites are the Black Bart Studebaker, the pink Caddy, and the “bad ass” custom Mercury called Wasabi, the name descriptive of the color. The Wasabi is also her most expensive car at $330,000. The most valuable is a 1938 Caddy V16 convertible. She thinks the most unique auto is the Messerschmidtt car, which resembles an airplane cockpit on wheels. The best deal she ever made was for a 1957 210 coupe built in five days at Jesse James’ Monster Garage and signed underneath by the five “legends of custom cars” who worked on it. As she sat at the auction, Gene Winfield, one of the signers on the car, called her. He was watching from out of town and told her it was a steal at $40,000. The car was worth $100,000. She took his advice and never regretted it. The current value of her collection is in the $7 million range. She’d like to get her hands on a Buggatti, but after finding out a tire change or engine service can run $40,000 she said, “For now, I’ll spend that $40,000 a pop on a whole car. But some day…” Another classic on her “bucket list” is a vintage Rolls Royce. Collecting cars has historically been a male-dominated field and Allen has dealt with her share of patronizing males. When she first began buying at auctions with her father, reporters would approach them and ask him about “his” purchases. He reveled in setting them straight by referring them to Tammy, the “real” buyer. “The last time I went I took my sister, a friend of mine and my daughter, Misty,” Allen said. “We sat in the front row and the guys loved it.” Currently, Allen is a strong proponent of girl’s interest in cars, recently inviting a troop of Girl Scouts to the museum with their fathers and grandfathers. “It was great seeing how the men interacted with the girls,” Allen said. “It was a great bonding experience.” Allen is looking into a franchise called “Ridemakerz” which is a “Build-A-Car” concept similar to “Build-A-Bear.” The company markets heavily to fathers and sons. If Allen adds this project to her already full plate, she hopes it encourages girls to enjoy cars as much as she does, and not to be intimidated by them. “I don’t pretend to know the mechanics of a car,” Allen said. “I take people with me who know that area, and I study the catalogues ahead of time and learn what I can before I see the cars.” Allen hopes to attend more auctions in the future, and not just the big ones. “I’ll have to force myself to sell a few of the cars I have to make room for more of the cars I want,” Allen said. “That’s hard because I get so emotionally attached to them.” Her selection criteria is based on uniqueness, hence the museum name. They’re either rare, an attention grabbing color, custom design, or “They just make people smile, like the stretch Mini Cooper,” Allen said. “They have to speak to my heart.” Several of her cars have back stories, such as the JFK ambulance or the Evel Knieval car that her auto repairman swears is haunted because of odd things that keep happening when he works on it. She’s nostalgic for the classic cars, wistful as she remembers push-button headlight switches on the floor, and swivel front seats in the Plymouth Fury. She’s not alone, as many people have donated accessories to the museum just to have them displayed where everyone can see them. “One man donated his father’s tools, a couple gave us the parking meters, and another man had a copy of a newspaper from the day JFK died,” Allen said. Grand Junction and the surrounding area is becoming a Mecca for car enthusiasts, what with the Gateway Auto Museum and the Cussler Museum in Arvada only a few hours away. Allen says she lived in and visited the area on and off for more than 30 years and always loved it because it “felt like home.” After buying those first 30 cars she found out the oil and gas companies held all the large buildings and ended up stabling them in a hanger at the airport, occasionally taking friends and family members out for tours. Moving to the new facility has allowed her to showcase the cars much better. Allen designed and decorated the entire building, from the black, white and hot pink colors, to the deco furnishings that resemble cars with wheels, to stiletto shoe-shaped chairs, to the placement of the cars. She has enough space in the building to rent it out for events including photo shoots, car clubs, weddings, and catered dinner groups and parties. She hopes to add on an outdoor patio this summer to expand the event space. The new building is also seeing some unusual uses. In May, Simon Cowell’s X-Factor, and in June, American Idol, will be holding auditions at the museum, thanks to some contacts at Fox News. Most of the museum cars are available to rent through Allen’s “Executive Transport” limousine service. “People have really responded to the idea of being chauffeured around in a one-of-a-kind car,” Allen said, adding she’s had to turn away business due to a lack of experienced drivers. One of her goals is to get licensed as a car dealer. With all the contacts she’s made at the auctions, she feels she could significantly expand her business by assisting others buying and selling custom and classic autos. For now, she continues to enter car shows, not only to win, but because she loves the camaraderie of all the people who show and attend. “We’ve learned a lot about our cars from people who see them at the show,” Allen said. “One man asked us how we got to the lug nuts on Black Bart, the Studebaker, and when we looked closely we realized we had no idea. Come to find out, you have to get them off from behind the wheel. We never would have known if someone at the show hadn’t pointed it out.” All the autos in the museum belong to Tammy or her family. Their recent grand opening “special event” had over 200 attendees, and the Saturday general admission with car show had over 1,000 attendees. They find several people are returning again and again, bringing in friends and family from out of town. Allen’s personal transportation stable includes a SmartCar, white Mercedes with eye lashes on the headlights, purple convertible SSI, Toyota Tundra, Chevy car hauler and trailer custom painted with hot pink and black flames, and a Merciac (Pontiac TransAm interior, Merc ’51 front end and ’56 back end). One day in the future those might be considered classic, but for now, you can see some of the best at Allen Unique Autos, 2285 River Road, open Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., or by appointment at 263-7410. Admission is $8 for adults, $5 for children ages 4 - 12, and kids under four are free. Take a look inside an Allen Unique Auto Tammy Allen has collected classic and unique automobiles for years. Recently, she opened the Allen Unique Autos Museum, where much of her exquisite private collection is on display to the public. Each vehicle at the museum is one-of-a-kind and was hand-selected by Allen herself. Over 80 of her vehicles are currently on display at the gallery, which is open from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Fridays through Sundays. Additional times may be arranged by appointment. The museum is located at 2285 River Rd. in Grand Junction. Admission is only $8 for adults and $5 for children. Some of Allen’s Unique Autos include:
Allen Unique Autos also rents out the museum for events and parties, and has a varying selection of pristine vehicles for their limousine service. For reservations and other information, call 263-7410 or visit www.allenuniqueautos.com |
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