Chicago’s Klairmont Kollections Automotive Museum, long a staple in the Midwest collector car community, is preparing for its final lap. This September, the museum’s world-class collection—assembled by the late Larry Klairmont and his fiancée, Joyce Oberlander—will cross the auction block with Mecum Auctions.
The Klairmont Kollections feature roughly 300 vehicles and thousands of pieces of Road Art®, ranging from early 1900s antiques to muscle cars, customs, movie cars, and eccentric one-offs like the Golden Sahara II with its illuminated Goodyear tires. Highlights include a 1926 Rickenbacker Eight Super Sport (the only known surviving example), a 1929 Kissel White Eagle Speedster, a low-mile Corvair with just 20 miles, and serial number 001 examples from Bricklin and Jeep Wrangler.
Alongside the cars, visitors to the collection have marveled at a staggering variety of automobilia—neon, signage, toys, and memorabilia that covered the walls and ceilings of the 100,000-square-foot Chicago museum.
Larry Klairmont’s life story is as unique as his collection. A WWII Marine veteran who survived Saipan and Iwo Jima, Klairmont built successful businesses in laundromats and real estate, eventually channeling his passion into one of the most eclectic private automotive collections in the country. With Oberlander, he transformed that collection into a nonprofit museum that welcomed and educated the public for more than two decades.
Now, the collection will find new homes. Public preview days are scheduled for September 13–14, followed by a bidder-only preview on September 19. Mecum will host the live auction on-site at the museum September 20–21.
“It’s going to be a very emotional event,” Oberlander shared, “but we’re looking forward to finding new homes for these truly exceptional cars and artifacts. These are pieces that deserve to continue on being preserved and admired.”
For collectors, this is a rare opportunity to acquire a piece of automotive history straight from one of Chicago’s most celebrated collections.
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