COLLECTION CARS TO GO ACROSS THE BLOCK AT DEXTER

Ted McClellan, a Cape Girardeau businessman and fancier of old cars, will be in Dexter this weekend.

"I sure wouldn't want to miss this event," said McClellan, owner of Hobart Sales and Service, a restaurant equipment and supply company here.

The event is an auction of antique, classic and collectible vehicles to be held Saturday at Smith's Classic Cars along Highway 61 West at Dexter.

Two of McClellan's cars will be among 160 vehicles to go across the auction block.

One of McClellan's cars is a 1940 Ford convertible, said Sherm Smith, owner of Smith's Classic Cars and sponsor of the one-day sale. The sale, which starts at 10 a.m., is expected to attract hundreds of buyers, sellers and spectators.

McClellan's Ford convertible was previously owned by a mechanic and "is a sweet-driving car," he said.

"The previous owner drove the car in the 3,000-mile Route 66 marathon," said McClellan, who acquired the vehicle about eight months ago.

McClellan owns a number of antique and collectible vehicles, including a second 1940 Ford convertible, a 1939 Ford police car, a '57 Chevy convertible, and a couple of Corvettes.

McClellan will take a 1957 four-door Chevy with only 23,000 miles to the auction. He is also taking a 1950 Chevy convertible to the car corral.

"We have a great facility here for the auction," said Smith. "We're full up. We have cars from the 1920s through the 1990s."

Dexter businessman and auto enthusiast Ron Sells is a partner in the auction. The Heartland Cruisers of Puxico, a classic auto club, will drive the vehicles through the auction.

The special "car corral" will allow other sellers to display vehicles for sale. Also on the grounds will be a special swap shop area where car buffs may locate some of those hard-to-find parts. Fifty to 75 cars will be in the car corral.

The oldest vehicle in the auction will be a 1928 LaSalle five-passenger coup. The newest will be a 1994 Dodge Viper featuring a six-speed manual transmission with a 10-cylinder, 400-horsepower engine.

"In between are 158 other beauties," said Smith, who was in the newspaper business for more than 30 years before turning his old-car hobby into a full-time venture.

"This may be the biggest classic car auction ever held in this area," Smith said.

The largest previous auction of antique cars held in Southeast Missouri was the disposal of an antique car collection of the late Charles N. Harris at Cape Girardeau in 1983.

The Dean Kruse Antique Auto Auction Co. conducted the Cape Girardeau sale, which consisted of 153 cars ranging from a 1901 Oldsmobile to a high-priced 1937 Bentley Drophead, which crossed the block on a $41,000 bid.

McClellan still has a car he purchased from the Harris sale, a '57 Ford Thunderbird.

There may not be a Bentley in the Saturday auction, but a pair of Chevy convertibles will be in the spotlight -- a 1957 270-horsepower vehicle and a 1955 BelAir.

"These are rare cars," said Smith. "The 1957 Chevy is an American phenomenon."

Also up for bid will be a classic 1966 Mustang; a 1967 Plymouth Fury with only 11,000 miles; a 1961 Chevy Super Sport (SS); a 1958 Jaguar limousine with right-hand drive, and a 1976 Cadillac El Dorado convertible with 25 miles on the odometer.