Barn Find Hunter

Tom visits one of the last remaining fire engine restoration shops, located in rural Maine. Andy Swift, a retired New York firefighter turned vintage fire engine restorer and expert, has been collecting a wide variety of fire engines, tankers, ladder trucks, and even horse-drawn fire carriages. Andy gives Tom an in-depth tour and explains the struggles and hardships that come with such a niche job and hobby, as well as what could ultimately lead to the decline of the hobby.

Tom travels to the Deep South, specifically Meridian, Mississippi, where he imposes a challenge on himself: finding a barn find within an hour before our next scheduled appointment. He wanted to discover something of substance—a desirable car. Wouldn't you know it? Within just 17 minutes, Tom finds a 1977 Ford Bronco with a 302 V8, an Edelbrock intake, a Holley Dominator 4-barrel carb, front disc brakes, and a winch—the perfect, all-original early-gen Bronco that people dream of finding.

Dan Gurney was one of the most versatile and influential figures in motorsports history. As a driver, engineer, and team owner, he left a lasting impact on Formula 1, IndyCar, NASCAR, and endurance racing. Gurney was the first driver to win races in F1, NASCAR, IndyCar, and sports cars—a feat few have matched. In 1967, he became the first and only American to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix in a car of his own design, the legendary Eagle-Weslake. That same year, he co-drove to victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with A.J. Foyt, famously starting the tradition of spraying champagne on the podium. Beyond his driving career, Gurney pioneered motorsport innovations, including the famed Gurney Flap, a key aerodynamic advancement still used today. As the founder of All American Racers (AAR), he helped revolutionize car design and engineering, leaving a lasting legacy.

This episode is packed with two rare cars and one incredible road trip story. Andy Van, known as "the race car man" in Birmingham, Alabama, kicks off the episode with a story about a 13,000-mile race across two continents in 45 days—in an old 1950 Ford two-door sedan. Andy also owns two exceptionally rare cars that immediately caught Tom's attention: a 1-of-3 Holman-Moody Ford Falcon, known as Challenger 1, which Tom never thought he’d see in his lifetime, and possibly one of the most untouched Shelby GT350 Hertz cars. Tune in to hear all the details!

Tom Cotter is usually rummaging through dusty barns and garages, searching for old cars and hearing their stories—and the significance they may hold for their owners. In this episode, Tom gets a private tour of the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum from Lee Clark, a former restoration expert and lifelong car enthusiast. The museum was so overwhelming that Tom couldn’t pass up the opportunity to share the experience with you, hoping you'll add it to your automotive bucket list.

Tom has known about this 289 Shelby Cobra for over 20 years and has been pursuing it ever since. This Cobra belonged to a gentleman named Alan, who also owned the 427 Cobra and the Ferrari 275 GTB/2 that we discovered back in 2018. It has been collecting dust in a storage unit since 1982 and hasn’t been opened since 1994. Follow along as Tom and his friend Jim uncover the mystery of this long-lost Cobra, with Alan’s friends and family in tow.

The granddaddy of all barn finds! A 1966 Ford GT40 that had been stashed in a barn since 1982 now sees the light of day. In total, only 100 GT40s were made—about 30 were built specifically for the track, while the rest were made for the road. Many of the road cars were later converted into track cars, so finding an all-original road car with all its original parts is extremely rare! Follow along as Tom and the new owner, Chad, walk around and inspect this legendary time capsule.

Tom travels to the Deep South in Alabama to tour an old, abandoned mining town called Acmar. The town has a rich history and wild stories from its heyday, but buried inside the main building are a few prominent, dusty European sports cars that spark Tom's interest.

While searching for proper storage solutions for Tom's 1939 Ford Woodie Wagon in New Orleans, he discovered that the owner of the storage facility, Brett, happens to own the 21st Datsun 240Z ever made. Assembled in late 1969, this early-production "Z" features several unique details that set it apart from later models. See what makes it special—and what this car is worth!

Tom needed a place to store his Woody Wagon in Mississippi and was lucky enough to meet JD Pass. JD may have one of the most unique collections of exotic barn finds Tom's ever run across. These cars have seen better days, but as the saying goes, "one man's trash is another man's treasure."

Tom found himself in New Orleans during the week of Mardi Gras and it quickly became clear that if we were going to uncover any lost cars or stories, we’d need to leave town. To kick things off, Tom remembered a gentleman named Eric who sold Ray Evernham the barn-find IROC Camaros featured in the 2024 Lime Rock IROC Revival episode (linked below). Eric also owns several rare and historically significant Chevy icons with deep roots in racing history. Tune in to see what he has!

Tom was invited by his friend Brian to help extract a rare Shelby GT500 KR that’s been sitting untouched since the early '90s. Julie, the daughter of the previous owner, tearfully says goodbye to her family car and a lifetime of memories as Tom and the team shepherd this heirloom into its next chapter where it will head to auction. The KR stands for "King of the Road," and it wasn’t just a name — the 1968 GT500 KR came equipped with a 428 Cobra Jet V8, underrated at 335 horsepower but believed to produce over 400 in reality. Only around 1,570 fastback KRs were produced that year, making this an incredibly rare find. Originally priced higher than a Corvette, the GT500 KR combined Carroll Shelby’s race-bred performance with everyday drivability — a true icon of American muscle.