There’s an undeniable appeal attached to the discovery of abandoned and forgotten exotics unearthed in barn finds. However, a tour of a barn packed with an eclectic collection of maintained vehicles is just as fascinating — not to mention, a great deal less heartbreaking.
Paul Harding, founder of Super Duper Garage, has amassed a wide selection of desirable genre-crossing cars that he had to rent a barn to fit them all. So, Jonny Smith from The Late Brake Show pays a visit to explore the fascinating arsenal.
While the election wasn’t amassed overnight, one of Harding’s earliest cars, a ’59 “low light” Volkswagen Karma Ghia, remains, awaiting restoration. It’s just one of a total of 38 cars (!) collected through the years.
Jonny’s attention was drawn first to the Honda Benly café racer motorcycle spotlighted in the sunlight entering through the barn doors. Harding restored the 125cc 4-stroke motorcycle from the ground up, making his own modifications along the way. Parked next to it is very different Honda: a completely stock Accord Type R which is one of Pauls’ favorites to drive.
Watch: Lamborghini Espada Was Abandoned In Barn For 30 Years When Owner Disappeared
It’s not just one man’s stash though. At the time, the barn housed several of Paul’s clients’ cars, including a McLaren 650S, Honda DC2 Integra Type R, Vauxhall Monaro VXR (currently lacking an engine), 2.5L Triumph 2500 mk2, Vauxhall VX220 Turbo, R32 Mk2 Golf, and his best friend’s car, a Mitsubishi Tommy Makkinen Evo. Much to their dismay, this Evo has barely driven about 50 miles in the last 2-3 years.
Paul has a few engine-swapped cars in his collection, including a Mazda RX-7 with a 2JZ. There’s also a Golf Mk2, which boasts a completely stock interior and exterior with a Golf R32 3.2L V6 engine lurking beneath the hood.
Harding has a veritable fleet of BMW E36s, including an M3 Evo rocking a Corvette LS3 6.2L V8 crate engine pushing 534 hp on the dyno. Its Corvette engine is actually lighter than the original and is located further back in the engine bay, resulting in agreeable driving dynamics.
There’s also an Audi 80 Cabriolet, MK1 Mazda MX-5, and a wreck that happened to be a Volksrod hot rod he’s been working on are all safely stored in the back of this barn. Jonny then moves on to the gorgeous Porsche 911 array, which includes SC models from the 1983, 1984, and 1985 model years. The ’84 911, in particular, is extraordinary, finished in an eye-catchy Guards Red paint with black and gold Martini stripes. Further ahead are two 996s, one of which has an exciting backstory of a man in his 70s who had built it to thrash around track days.
With so much to choose from, which would you go for?