Racers Den: Vegas Baby!

Another beautiful #tbt (Throw-back Thursday) here at the Racers Den. My wife and I were recently reminiscing about “the before times.” Not pre-covid, but the days when we were young and traveled the world without our kids. She turns to me and says, “remember that run of years where we seemed to constantly be in Vegas?” To which I replied “I sure do, honey. Do you remember that fabulous Car Museum that they tucked away in a converted parking garage at the Imperial Palace?” (now known as The Quad Resort & Casino) – “Yes! That was also home to our #1 breakfast spot on the strip, Hash House-a-Go-Go!” she exclaimed. Obviously, we remember these trips differently.

That said, The Auto Collections at The Quad Resort & Casino location physically still exists, but is currently closed to the public. Back then, the entry fee per person was a modest $25, which included more than 125,000 square feet in floor space, housing more than 250+ classic cars. Unlike other static private collections, each trip we’ve taken to Las Vegas (which have been numerous) we always made it a point to revisit the Collection because it was constantly changing.

Most of the cars must have been posted up as collateral to pay off someone’s gambling debts, because everything… and I mean everything had a price tag associated with it. #forsale …for the low, low price of — and for 12 easy payments, you too can enjoy this new sportscar! Since you can’t get access to the Collection anymore, we’re going to take you down memory lane and revisit what used to be.

So this is the part where I went a little overboard, and got a little emotional. Growing up in the Grouppe-B, Trans/Am and Camel-GT/Can-Am/IMSA eras, seeing one of… and getting close enough to touch one of… my heroes cars in-person was incredible. Admittedly, I might have wept a little. This particular Group-44 Audi 5000 Quattro was driven by the legendary Hurley Haywood. I could have taken it home for a cool $250k. In retrospect, by today’s used car pricing, it was certainly a bargain and a missed opportunity!

The Nash was definitely a sight to see, as it ranks on the large list of “uncool” cars of all time. BUT! Having a pristine Yugo takes the top billing as “something you don’t see everyday” especially in a vehicle museum. Take a moment to really bask in its completely beige glory. (above)

Before there was the Aztek, by Pontiac, there was the Audi Aztec. Designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro at Italdesign. Stepping around the corner from the Nash and the Yugo, we merge my passion for Volkswagen-Audi Group (VAG) products with the previous oddities, a little of the macabre, and present you with the movie-car from the 1990 film starring John Hurt and Raul Julia entitled “Frankenstein Unbound” – I hope this one-off concept/research vehicle ended up somewhere safe, maybe somewhere like the Volo Museum in Illinois.

[Editors Note] “The collection is closed – my daughter and I were there on the last day it was open, in an odd twist of serendipity.  Every time we would go to Vegas, which was about 5x per year back in the day we would visit the collection.  I loved it and practically grew up there.  During high school and college, etc. I slowed my trips to Vegas and on the rare occasion I went, I didn’t miss going to the collection.  On our last trip to the collection, we spoke with the people who sell the cars and they told me it was done. If you Google “Auto Collection LinQ” -or- “Auto Collection Quad”, you’ll find a 2017 article from the Review Journal discussing the closure.” – DW

It’s a shame that such a cool museum like The Auto Collections at The Quad Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, NV had to close. My wife and I are still hopeful that with the help of enthusiasts maybe one day it will re-open with all it’s gusto, and we’ll be able to marvel over all sorts of beautiful machinery that doesn’t produce the constant ringing, pinging and binging of the slots.

Merry Motoring...
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