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Man Discovers Passion for Cars and Buys 15 Special Ones in Two Years, We Pay a Visit

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It's Never Too Late to Become Fascinated by Cars, This Man Bought 15 of Them in Two Years 102 photos
Photo: Florin Profir/ Autoevolution
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I saw my first big car collection back in 2011. There was this race driver that had multiple buildings filled with cars and motorcycles, and I got to visit one of them. There was a Subaru Impreza WRX STI 22B inside, a Gemballa 959, a tuned Ford GT, and many more amazing machines inside. Since then, I've been fortunate enough to see several more collections, and I'm always happy when that happens.
That's how you get sucked into the world of Hot Wheels, I guess. 1/64th-scale cars are easy to buy and keep on display, and they don't require any expensive maintenance. Just remember to dust them off now and then. Just think of it this way. If you're a big fan of Japanese sports cars, but you're on a limited budget, you might have to face a difficult decision when talking about 1:1 vehicles. But you can get all the Mazda, Nissans, Subarus, Toyotas, Hondas, and Mitsubishis you want for a few hundred bucks if you take it down to the 1/64th scale.

Fear is the mind-killer

Still, this story isn't about diecast cars. It's about a man that has managed to kickstart a project most of us can only dream of. I met Lucian not long ago as he was asking RX-7-related questions on a dedicated Social Media group. We rotor heads have to stick together, so I immediately picked up the phone and told him everything I knew about rotaries and FCs in general. Lucian was eyeballing a second-generation convertible RX-7 he had found in another country and wanted to know more about the car before pulling the trigger.

"It was a bit of information overload for me at first, but then I also had a chat with Mike and decided to go for it. After all, the car was in great shape and it wasn't all that expensive. I just told myself that if the engine is going to quit on me, I'll just go ahead and rebuild it." Being in charge of a successful business meant that Lucian wasn't able to travel abroad and see the car first, so he opted to trust the seller and have the car delivered right to his place.

At this point, I had already found out that there were more impressive cars inside his garage, so I decided to ask our photographer to come along for a quick tour one early morning. I'm sure that any automotive enthusiast would have been awestruck upon arriving at LCF Auto Gallery's location. And the name itself should be a hint as to what the owner is trying to achieve there: a place for petrolheads to come together and celebrate some of the most exciting automobiles ever built.

It's Never Too Late to Become Fascinated by Cars, This Man Bought 15 of Them in Two Years
Photo: Florin Profir/ Autoevolution
I'm used to talking to people that love cars and have done so for their entire life. But when I popped the question to Lucian, I was quite surprised by his answer. "I've only had this passion for a few years now, but it has become a big part of my life since. Although I'm not at a point where I can just go out and buy an exotic supercar, I was still able to purchase some nice cars over the past two years. I've committed more and more time and resources towards this hobby, and I don't think I'll stop here."

The Toyota MR2 was my first Japanese car

With over a dozen cars on display or tucked away in garages at the location, I was curious to learn about which one of them fueled his fire and how things evolved from there. "The first one that I bought was the 1981 BMW E12, which is the last year for the first generation of the 5-Series. I soon bought two more similar cars, which are undergoing a complete restoration as we speak. The red Toyota MR2 was up next, and the first Japanese car I wanted to buy. It has a naturally-aspirated 2.0-liter engine that puts out about 156 hp, and as you know the engine is mounted behind the driver so that's pretty nice to have."

Even though choosing a Japanese car was pretty much a random occurrence for Lucian, he instantly realized he was onto something there. But before getting something from the same category, he bought another BMW. This time he opted for the larger 7-Series, a 1988 E32 running on a 5.0-liter M70 V12. He was relaxed enough to hand me over the keys during the photo shoot, and somehow this was my first time driving a V12-powered vehicle! Although Lucian had bought an 850 at the same time, that car is no longer in his possession which is kind of a pity.

"I think the Ford Probe was the next car that I got. If I were to explain that decision, it's probably due to nostalgia as I remember being somewhat fascinated by it when I was younger. I bought another BMW after that, and I'm quite proud to have a 1968 2000 CS in my modest collection. The Mitsubishi 3000GT and Nissan 300ZX came after that car, and so I was back in the Japanese league again."

It's Never Too Late to Become Fascinated by Cars, This Man Bought 15 of Them in Two Years
Photo: Florin Profir/ Autoevolution
"I'm glad I chose to fly over to Germany for the 3000GT and then drive it back home, I couldn't believe how capable this 20+ year-old car was. At this point in life, I needed to do something to bring my wife on board too. So I decided to get her a car too, and she immediately fell in love with the Triumph Spitfire. Things didn't stop with the RX-7, as I also bought a 1932 Fiat Balila. This is the oldest car I have right now, and it's certainly in a league of its own."

You can never have too many cars

Given my soft spot for all things rotary-powered, I was curious as to how and why he chose the RX-7 instead of something like a Toyota Supra or a Honda S2000. "Given that I already had three '90s Japanese cars, I felt like I had a pretty good understanding of the spirit of that era. The RX-7 was part of that elite group of sports cars that awed the world, and I just knew I had to get one."

"Japan came up with some strong competitors for the European market in the late '80s and '90s, and you can't help but want to drive at least one of those icons. Sure, I'd buy a Supra and an NSX in a heartbeat too, and I'm sure I can think of a few more similar cars that I want in my garage. It always feels like there's at least one more car left that you should buy."

Lucian's gamble of buying an RX-7 without seeing a compression test beforehand turned out to be a good decision after all. The engine is still running strong with good compression numbers, albeit with a minor idle issue. The car looks mint inside and out, and it's no wonder that he has barely driven it so far. All of his prized possessions are well taken care of and never taken out in the rain or snow, so he'll have to wait for another month or two before he can enjoy everything the turbocharged rotary engine has to offer.

It's Never Too Late to Become Fascinated by Cars, This Man Bought 15 of Them in Two Years
Photo: Florin Profir/ Autoevolution
One thing's for sure, he doesn't plan on tampering with the car in any way that could affect its value in time. So this FC won't be getting any performance or visual upgrades anytime soon. At this point, it was obvious to me that Lucian isn't going to stop buying the cars he loves and wants to drive.

So I wanted to learn more about his plans for the future. "I want to share my passion for cars with the world. So the plan is to build a dedicated showroom where people can come and see them up close. I know that I will need to build a team of enthusiasts around me to get there, but I'm certain that it will be quite successful. Right now, it's only a matter of time."
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WEEKEND Toyota MR2 nissan 300zx mitsubishi 3000gt BMW E12 BMW 2000 CS car collection
About the author: Dragos Chitulescu
Dragos Chitulescu profile photo

The things Dragos enjoys the most in life are, in no particular order: cars, motorcycles, diecast cars, and drifting. He's seen (and driven) many vehicles since he started his writing career back in 2009, but his garage currently houses a 1991 Mazda RX-7 FC3S Turbo II and a 1999 Suzuki SV650-S.
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