CHILLIWACK'S FAMOUS PINK CAR SELLS AT LOCAL FARM AUCTION
You couldn't miss the Pepto-Bismol pink 1972 Plymouth Duster as you entered Chilliwack on the Trans-Canada Highway as it cuts through the Fraser Valley an hour east of Vancouver. It sat eight metres above the ground atop the Pick-A-Part auto salvage sign as westbound drivers approached the Lickman Road intersection. “When you see the pink car, turn off the highway,” people giving directions would say.
In 1988, soon after John Davy opened his self-serve used auto parts business on 12 acres beside Highway 1, he bought the pink Duster at an insurance salvage sale for $100 as stock for his wrecking yard. He was told some grad students had made the white car pink with house paint. One of his employees jokingly suggested putting it atop the Pick-A-Part sign alongside the highway. They did and made it so the headlights and tail lights would shine at night like a beacon. It was an instant icon: Chilliwack's unofficial mascot.
Two years ago, Davy sold his property to locally owned Southern Irrigation, which had outgrown its nearby office building. The pink car was part of the deal. “We got the idea to use it as a fundraiser for our charity — the Salvation Army,” says Southern Irrigation's Albert Oostenbrink. “Our marketing team took photos and video and put a lot of time into the campaign.”
Social media lit up and the local newspaper did a front-page feature on the car to further the pink car's iconic status. Southern Irrigation organized a GoFundMe campaign to benefit the Salvation Army. If $50,000 was raised, the owners would auction the car off for charity. At $100,000, they would keep the pink car as a Highway 1 attraction by incorporating it into the landscaping of their new building. With $500,000 raised, Southern Irrigation would have the car fully restored to be used for community events.
The fundraiser fell flat with only $3,000 raised. The car was subsequently consigned to the Beekman spring equipment auction, which serves the Fraser Valley farming community. Beekman Auction is matching the final bid with all sale proceeds going to the Salvation Army.
The night before the auction, the once white 1972 Plymouth Gold Duster, now pink, was the first sale item visitors saw when they entered the auction preview at Chilliwack Heritage Park, across Highway 1 where it had been displayed atop a sign for 35 years. The pink Duster got plenty of exposure among the tractors and equipment displayed for auction. Another major attraction was the 600 pizzas the Beekman Auction folks had ordered to provide a free dinner for 1,500 people expected to attend the preview.
“Everybody has a different idea for the pink car,” said Beekman Auction partner Gary Baars. “Some people want it displayed in town. Another suggestion was for it to become the centrepiece for the traffic circle across the highway from where it used to be displayed.”
As the first item to be auctioned, bidding was swift and frantic, taking all of 40 seconds to sell the famous pink car. The winning bid was $9,250 from local poultry and egg farmer Brian Pauls. His property is also alongside the Trans-Canada Highway just five minutes from the location of the old Pick-A-Part sign with the pink car on top.
“We are going to feature the car on our property at our Botanical Tulip Festival beginning April 12 so people will be able to see it there,” he said. “Long-term plans are to display it year-round so people can once again see it from the highway.”
And the image of the pink car alongside Highway 1 on the route to Vancouver will live on.
Southern Irrigation has commissioned a huge mural for its new building. Front and centre in the soon-to-be-revealed masterpiece will be Chilliwack's iconic pink car.