A tour of private car collections

B.W. COOK

The seventh annual Southern California Private Collection Tour is set

to take place Saturday, Oct. 4. For automobile enthusiasts, this is a

very important event. Three outstanding local car collections will

open their doors, showcasing automotive art rarely seen by the

public.

It’s all part of the annual Newport Coast Concours d’ Elegance

produced to benefit the Assessment Treatment Services Center. The

21st annual Concours is the most important fund-raiser of the year

for ATSC. This year, the Concours takes place Sunday, Oct. 5, at

Hidden Valley Park in Irvine.

Back to the special day on Saturday. Organizers report that they

will begin with a breakfast spread for the patrons donating $150 per

person for the tour of the three private collections. The

tax-deductible ticket will also include admission to Octoberfest at

Hidden Valley Park after the collection tour. Proceeds will go to

ATSC.

After breakfast, the Rick Rawlins collection will be the first

stop on the car tour. Rawlins’ fleet includes some early and rare

Panhards, Packards, Bugattis and a 1911 SPO Raceabout, the only one

known to exist in the world.

The next stop is Joe’s Garage and Auto Museum, a unique collection

of race cars, collector vehicles, customs, classics and hotrods in a

setting featuring panoramic murals depicting California’s automotive

history.

The final stop on the tour will be the collection of local car

enthusiast Don Weber. Weber’s garage features an impressive

collection of Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Indy cars.

This very special tour is limited to 100 people. Space is still

available. Please contact Lauren Irigaray at (800) 400-1998 to make

your reservation.

Funds raised will support the nonprofit youth counseling program

of ATSC, whose motto is “Arrest the problem, not the child.”

* THE CROWD appears Thursdays and Saturdays.