Class, and classic, act: Since 1953, Brown’s Classic Autos, 9024 E. Bahia Drive, has provided car enthusiasts a full automotive menu, including restoration, builds, service, consignment and sales of collector cars and worldwide auction representation.
Led by owner Walt Brown Jr., Brown’s has also recently expanded its High Performance Parts Department, establishing strong relationships with Classic Instruments, Borla, Imagine Injection, Roush Yates and GM Performance. The premium showroom is a block north of WestWorld, just off the Loop 101 between Frank Lloyd Wright and Bell Road in north Scottsdale.
Current builds at Brown’s include a 1965 Mustang Fastback, which will feature the first application of the Roush Yates FR9 NASCAR motor in a road car. “The car will have an extensive travel and show schedule when it’s completed in January and features sponsored parts from some of the best suppliers in the industry, such as Wilwood and Ride Tech,” Brown says.
The team of professional techs at Brown’s Classic Autos has also recently completed a 1934 Ford “Fordor” that competed in the 2015 SEMA Battle of the Builders competition. In addition, a 1963 Corvette Coupe features an aggressive pro-touring build.
Walt Brown started with a small garage and now has a 30,000-square-foot shop, capable of providing full services for domestic vehicles and collector/special-interest vehicles.
“We are a concierge-level facility for the discerning car collector,” Brown says. “Our eight full-time technician/ fabricators can do everything from basic maintenance and oil changes to tuning and customizing engines and completing frame-off restorations or custom builds,” Brown adds.
Other services include EFI installation, gauges and electrical, air-conditioning upgrades, modifying suspension and brakes and installing custom headers and exhaust systems. And, Brown’s works with only the finest local and national vendors such as Vintage Air and Wilwood.
“Our master builder, Tony Arme, is well versed in creating outstanding work within budget and on time, so if you have a show or auction you must get to, Brown’s will deliver according to your schedule,” he says. “If you can dream it, we can build it.”
One local customer wrote to Walt after the Brown’s team completed work on his classic 50s truck: “When I set out to restore my little brother’s truck, I never imagined how challenging it would be.
“With his passing in 1990, I knew I had to take my time and get it right. I wanted a ‘driver’ that both my wife and I could feel comfortable behind the wheel in. It would be my very first Hot Rod. It had to be right . . . it had to be beautiful . . . it also had to be blue.
“I never wanted a show truck, I wanted a driver. What I got was both. Our 1956 Chevy Pickup turns heads wherever it goes. We owe a big thanks to Tony and his team.
“Brown’s Classic Autos has become like family to us now.”
Cars, Cars, Cars
Brown’s Classic Autos also regularly inventories between 35 and 45 cars in its showroom –– 85 percent of these top-quality consignments.
Current inventory includes a 1926 Ford Tudor, equipped with a 289-CID powerplant; a custom 1937 Ford Coupe; 1960 Cadillac Series 62 white-on-red convertible, with the original 390 CID engine and four-speed automatic; and a 1955 Ford Thunderbird, with dual-tone interior.
Also: a 1967 Oldsmobile 442 with a 400-CID engine; a rare 1969 Olds Cutlass W-31 blue-on-white coupe with the high-performance 350-CID Ram Rod motor; a 1969 Camaro, equipped with a 502-CID; a 1971 Chevelle SS with the LS5 454 motor; and a 1990 Chevrolet Lingenfelter ZR-1 Corvette.
“At Brown’s, trust and professionalism have always been our priority, so you are assured that when you consign your vehicle with us, it will not only be cared for at the highest level but a full toolbelt of sales techniques, including the internet, will be used to find a quality buyer at the best price,” Brown says.
The company is also the official Superformance dealer for Arizona and the Southwest Region. Brown’s showcases these superlative continuation Shelby Cobras as part of the showroom, with videos and plentiful information on these outstanding cars.
These include the Superformance MKIII, recalling the revolutionary Cobras of the 1960s, developed by the legendary Carroll Shelby and his team; the GT40 re-creation of the car that beat Ferrari and finished in the top three positions in Le Mans 24 Hours in 1966; and, another Scuderia Ferrari slayer, the great Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe CSX9000, a continuation of the only American-made car to win the World Manufacturer’s Championship in 1965, with drivers such as Dan Gurney and the Valley’s Bob Bondurant driving.
Financing is available for all vehicles through Woodside Credit, accessible through Brown’s website.
Investing in great cars can be great for your pocketbook but most importantly for your lifestyle, Brown says. “Investing in anything produced in a limited quantity is a fine investment,” he says. “Some people are not good at investing in stocks, for example, but a car is something you can touch, drive and be proud of. And that’s an experience you can’t get in the stock market!”
Gavel Smarts
Brown’s also provides national auction representation services and includes all of the major auction houses such as Barrett-Jackson, Russo and Steele, Bonham’s, Mecum, RM Auctions and Gooding & Company. And, Brown notes, the Scottsdale auctions are upcoming in January.
“In our company tutorial, we will walk you through the auction process, so that you can be a savvy buyer as well as have a lot of fun,” Brown says. “For instance, we’ll show you how to show your interest but not appear openly that you absolutely covet a particular car. We’ll help you if you want to appear in person at one of the auctions, purchase by a representative or on the phone.”
Says Brown: “Our team works as a unit every day to maintain Brown’s Classic Autos as one of the most unique and advanced classic car and hotrod shops in the nation. Please visit us for any of your classic and high-performance car needs.”
For more information on Brown’s Classic Autos, see BrownsClassicAutos.com or call 480.998.4300.
