MINGO COUNTY, WV — A West Virginia man added another disabled vehicle to his yard Tuesday after confirming that it still had what he described as “a perfectly good motor.”
The 1994 pickup arrived at the home of 48-year-old Randy Collins on a trailer because it has not started since 2017.
It currently has no title, no transmission, three tires, one door and a small maple tree growing through the passenger-side floorboard.
Collins insists it is not junk.
“You can’t call something junk when it still has useful parts,” he said. “I might need something off it.”
Collins was unable to identify which part he might need or which of his other six vehicles it would fit.
The newest addition joins a collection that includes two pickup trucks, a minivan, a four-wheeler frame, half of a Jeep and what neighbors initially believed was an old refrigerator.
Collins confirmed the refrigerator is actually a 1988 Chevrolet Blazer missing everything except the roof and glove compartment.
“That glove box latch is still good,” he explained. “You throw stuff like that away, then six years later you need one.”
According to Collins, he acquired the pickup from his wife’s cousin in exchange for a pressure washer that also did not work.
He described the transaction as “too good to pass up.”
The truck’s previous owner reportedly assured Collins that the motor ran when it was parked.
“When was it parked?” Collins asked.
“During the Bush administration,” the owner replied.
Collins considered that sufficient documentation.
His wife, Melissa, learned of the purchase when she looked outside and saw three men unloading the truck beside her garden.
“We already have vehicles sitting in places where grass used to grow,” she said. “He keeps saying he’s going to fix them, but the only thing he has fixed is the yard’s ability to drain.”
Collins denied that the vehicles have reduced the property’s value.
“If anything, the place is worth more,” he said. “Do you know what scrap metal is bringing?”
When asked whether he planned to sell the vehicles for scrap, Collins became defensive.
“I’m not scrapping them,” he said. “They’re worth too much.”
Neighbors said Collins follows the same process whenever a new vehicle arrives.
First, he walks around it three times while nodding. Next, he opens the hood and says, “That ain’t bad.” He then sprays penetrating oil on one bolt before going inside for the remainder of the year.
Collins expects to have the newest truck running “one of these weekends.”
Before repairs can begin, he will need to locate a transmission, four wheels, a fuel system, most of the interior and paperwork proving the vehicle legally exists.
The maple tree will remain for now.
“I don’t want to tear anything up,” Collins said.
At press time, Collins was scrolling through another online listing for a car described as “rough but complete.”
The listing included no photographs of the passenger side.
Collins had already sent a message asking whether it still had a good motor.
The Holler Herald — West Virginia’s Least Reliable News Source
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