Will Shiers' DISCOVERIES

Our intrepid salvage yard explorer brings you junkyard jewels from across North America.

1. Spread over 100 acres of hillside, Alabama’s Gibbs Junk Yard is my kind of place. This incredible yard consists of a maze of tracks, with cars sporadically sprawled along them. Some are parked in clear view, whereas others are buried deep in the forest, protected by a plague of ticks and mosquitoes. Once there were thousands of vehicles here, but the inventory has since been reduced to about 1000. The variety of cars is staggering, as demonstrated by this picture. Where else are you going to find a 1940 Chevrolet abandoned next to a late Nineties Ford Focus?

2. Despite being badly bashed and abused, there’s still no mistaking this first-generation AMC Javelin. Launched in 1967, this was AMC’s first foray into the pony car market. It was reasonably well received and managed 40,000 sales in its first year. However, to put this figure into perspective, Ford shifted 472,121 Mustangs during the same year. With some serious corrosion, and so few spare parts left, surely this car’s days are numbered.

3. I was surprised to discover that this midSeventies Pontiac Firebird was wearing Alabama licence plates. The sort of corrosion you see here is far more typical on cars that have resided in the Salt Belt states. Like the Javelin, it has little going for it, and I’m surprised that it hasn’t been fed to the yard crusher by now.

4. This 1975 Cadillac hearse is one of the first vehicles you see when you enter Gibbs Junk Yard and gives you a good idea of the eclectic mix of machines you’re about to encounter. GM supplied just 1328 commercial chassis to the coachbuilding trade in 1975, making this a real rarity.

5. In 30-plus years of scouring American junk yards, this is the first Buick Reatta I have ever discovered. These two-seaters were only in production between 1988 and 1991. GM had high hopes for this stylish grand tourer and expected to produce 20,000 units per annum. But instead, a total of 21,000 were sold during its four-year production run.

6. I know a Festiva is neither a classic, nor an American car, so arguably doesn’t deserve a place on these pages. However, despite being designed by Mazda and built in South Korea by Kia, it does of course wear a blue oval on its grille. These were exported to the US for six years (1988 to 1993), during which time 350,000 were sold through Ford and Mercury dealerships.

7. Gibbs Junk Yard is old school and doesn’t offer an international parts shipping service. So, if you spot any spares you want from this 1979 Pontiac Grand Prix, you’ll need to book yourself a flight.

8. Common sense told me that that a humid Alabama forest would be teeming with insects, and that I should avoid venturing off the beaten track. However, I stupidly ignored my own advice, and spent ages poking around in the undergrowth. Despite wearing boots, jeans, long sleeves, and a hat, I still found ticks buried into my neck and chest later that day. But I wouldn’t have found this 1963 Ford Galaxie if I hadn’t gone exploring.

9. The Chevrolet Avalanche, according to the sales literature, combined the best elements of an SUV and a pickup truck. GM’s Convert-a-Cab system, which was a divider behind the second row of seats, could be folded down to create an extended pickup bed, or left up to increase internal cab space. To me the Avalanche is a modern vehicle, yet incredibly first-generation trucks like this are already 23 years old.

10. What an undignified end to this once loyal workhorse. It’s a 1971 Ford Econoline, one of 8.2 million E-Series sold since its 1961 launch. Although the van is still in production, it’s only offered as a chassis cab these days. The panel van variant has been replaced by the Transit.

11. A 1966 Lincoln Continental slowly gets engulfed by the Alabama undergrowth.