Foreign Collectors at Keeneland

I'm a fan of just about every kind of classic car but the foreign models made up to 1975 hold a soft spot in my heart. It was these models I first read about in the car magazines before and during high school. The Foreign Collector class at this year's Keeneland Concours d'Elegance did not disappoint me. This 1933 MG J2 was pulled from a hay loft in Indiana as nothing more than a bare chassis. It was in such bad shape that a new, authentic body had to be fabricated.

What could be more European than the first car to conquer America. This example is a 1957 Volkswagen Euro Ragtop Sedan. It was still running with a current registration in 1999. In 2003 it started a four year complete restoration.

This 1956 Jaguar XK 140 OTS Special Edition was already showing hints of the styling that would be unleashed on the world a decade later in the E Type. This car was found buried to its frame in dirt and at first it was believed that it couldn't be pulled out in one piece. It was and then totally restored. It received a score of 99.46 out of 100 at its very first Concours event.

When can a 200 cubic inch engine churn out 300 horse power? When it is a 1966 Ferrari 275 GTS. Only 200 of these were hand built in the Maranello, Italy factory. The powerful Colombo V 12 gave this car a top speed of around 160 miles per hour.

This 1953 Nash Healey is truly a blend of international auto making cultures. With England's Donald Healey masterminding it, the car sported the 140 horse power six cylinder Nash drive train and wore a body styled by the great Italian firm Pininfarina. Only 60 of these were ever produced.

While Toyota really opened the American buyer's eyes to Japanese cars, it was this Datsun 240Z that made them think in terms of sports cars. Powered by a 2.4 liter inline six, this car could easily reach 120 miler per hour. This 1972 model has appeared in numerous adds for Nissan, particularly for the 350ZX and the 370ZX.

Sporting the same mechanicals as its spyder brother, this 1966 Ferrari 375 GTB is the closed top gran tourismo that replaced the famous 250 series. Enzo Ferrari admitted he was inspired by the Jaguar E Type and while this car didn't have a great deal of success when it first came out, it is now one of the most sought after models in the world.