A Ford dealership that looks stuck in time has been discovered in Germany with a selection of untouched motors still inside.
The showroom displays six 1980s modern classic cars from the blue oval brand in the window that remain unregistered today.
YouTube channel Auto Retro tracked down the abandoned dealer in the city of Ingolstadt, which closed down some 40 years ago though still to this data houses a number of timewarp models that – given their unused condition – should be worth thousands.
The showroom consists of three zero-mile Ford Sierras, a Fiesta, Escort and an Orion saloon.
The German car dealer stuck in time: An abandoned Ford showroom in Ingolstadt has been found by British classic car hunters – and it still has six unregistered 1980s classics inside
YouTube channel Auto Retro tracked down the abandoned dealer which closed down some 40 years ago. However, it houses a number of timewarp models that – given their unused condition – should be worth thousands
Auto Retro says in its video that it travelled 1,000 miles from the UK to locate the abandoned dealership.
It suggest that the original owner of the showroom died almost 40 years ago but still to this day it remains in the custodianship of his widow.
It has not been opened to the public since his passing, though the business operator has retained the premises and is said to have regularly cleaned the dealership until a few years ago when she was moved to a care facility.
This explains why the showroom and vehicles are relatively dust-free, given how long its doors have been closed to car buyers.
Auto Retro found the whereabouts of the abandoned independent motor trader using Google Earth
Inside are three entry spec Ford Fiestas, including one estate (the blue model seen on the left) and this pristine green hatchback
Also on display in the showroom is a Ford Orion (closest) and an Escort 1.1 Laser
Having first seen photos of the stash of timewarp cars snapped in 2010, the Auto Retro team said they located its whereabouts by using Google Maps and its ‘Street View’ and ‘Earth’ function.
However, it was unsure if the dealership and cars had remaining in the same condition today because the Google photos had not been updated for years.
In its video description, the YouTube channel says the dealership had been closed in the ‘mid 80s’, having been a major independent retailer stocking over 300 vehicles at a time.
‘The owner continued to be an independent car dealer until his death in 1994. He had 300 cars on site, including 150 new Ford cars left over stock from his dealership days,’ the synopsis says.
The original owner of the showroom is believed to have died almost 40 years ago but still to this day the dealership remains in the custodianship of his widow
‘In 1995, the family who owned all the buildings sold off the majority of his cars including most of the new ones.
‘These unsold cars you see here were moved into the showroom, which was then left as a memorial to the owner.
‘The widow kept the building maintained, clean and tidy, and presumably the cars cleaned etc. She would from time to time allow people to come in and view the cars.
‘At some point someone stole some parts from the cars (guessing the wheel trims and one spotlight) and this put an end to welcoming visitors.
‘The widow kept the place maintained but ended up in a care home.
‘Now the family have not kept up the upkeep of the cars/building and this is how they stand today.’
The showroom still contains three unregistered Sierras – one of which is an estate.
There’s also a silver Fiesta S MkII, an Escort 1.1 Laser MkIII, and a gold Ford Orion 1.6 diesel.
The widow kept the building maintained, clean and tidy for years after her husband’s passing. ‘She would from time to time allow people to come in and view the cars,’ Auto Retro claims
The most valuable of the six timewarp cars in the showroom is the silver Fiesta S, which was a rare sporty version of the MkII supermini
How much could the unregistered Fords be worth?
The big questions is how much could these motors be worth today, given they will likely have no miles on the clock and have near-pristine interiors?
Values for many of these cars have soared in recent years, especially those that have seen little use at all.
Collectible Fiestas are also expected to rise in value in the coming months on the back of Ford’s decision to end production of its hugely popular supermini this summer.
Manufacturing of Britain’s most bought car of all time ended in July after 47 years of continuous production and over 22million global sales – 4.8million of them in the UK.
This is Money asked experts at Hagerty, which specialises in classic car insurance and vehicle values, to give their verdict on the potential value of the six-car haul.
They told us early Sierras are worth in the region of £6,100 each today, based on auction sale values and existing policies.
Recent auctions also suggest a low-mileage MkIII Escort would be worth around £4,600 today and an Orion £4,400.
The Fiesta, being a rare sporty ‘S’ version, could command up to £12,000.
However, Hagerty’s specialist team says that because they are all ‘factory original undriven cars’ they are likely to be ‘huge outliers’ and could be worth three times these estimates.
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