Known for his longstanding comedic career and his serious car collection, Jay Leno is a man of great taste when it comes to vehicles. Jay Leno’s car collection consists of around 136 automobiles — all spectacular and all very pricey. He also owns 90 motorcycles. Altogether, the collection was once valued to be worth at approximately $50 million; about 14% of Leno’s $350 million net worth.
With his in-depth knowledge of both classic and modern cars, helps him to define and dole out for only the beautiful cars worth of a spot in his garage. It is filled with not only rare vintage automobiles, but also amazing newer sports cars and supercars. Fans were lucky enough to see some of them on his popular CNBC show Jay Leno’s Garage (JLG) that began airing in October 2015. In his series, Leno shows off the many hand-picked cars that make up his carefully curated car collection. With millions spent on cars, Jay Leno is the ultimate car enthusiast.
So what will we find in Jay Leno’s garage? Let’s take a quick peek at the very best of the best, the cream of the car crop that are Jay Leno’s cars.
Brand New 2017 Ford GT
We will start with his most recent addition: the Ford GT supercar. He did have to go throug an application process (which of course he was approved for). He is the first to receive the Ford GT out of the first 500 units Ford has produced. He showed off his new whip on his YouTube channel with promise to viewers that they will get an up close and personal look at his black and orange striped Ford GT in the very near future. We can’t wait!
1966 Oldsmobile Toronado
As seen on Jay Leno’s Garage (JLG), the 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado was designed by David North to be a car with lots of personality to compete with the other automotive leaders like Buick. This classic Oldsmobile took on a very different look to set itself apart with a flared design that became a benchmark design for, not only Oldsmobile, but many other automotive companies as well.
The ‘66 Toronado has been upgraded with a 425 cubic inch V8 engine capable of producing 1070 hp and with the modified with a C5 Corvette chassis has the driving capability and handling of a sports car.
Nice way to kick of the list of Jay Leno’s cars don’t you think; nothing like a souped up classic car to get our hearts racing.
1906 Stanley Steamer
A very unique addition to Jay Leno’s car collection is this steam-powered vehicle and at the top of his list of favorite cars. The 1906 Stanley Steamer Vanderbilt Cup Racer is not only steam-powered, but also made of wood. This proved troublesome for Leno when it actually caught fire while he was driving. Don’t worry, Leno did not suffer any injuries. He did get a speeding ticket though since the owner’s manual for the 1906 Stanley instructed drivers to speed in order to extinguish the fire. Now that’s a good story!
As seen on the JLG episode about the Stanley, Jay Leno shows off his love for his Stanley and tells us that when he got the vintage vehicle, there were a lot of problems with it. Leno and his team of mechanics started to fix up the Steamer by upgrading the boiler to a 30 inch boiler and a bigger burner. Other mods to increase the power on this car are two electric pumps to maintain pressure and XK120 Jag drums giving it hydraulic brakes. When the steam car is fired up it can maintain 65 mph at 500 pounds of speed.
Not too shabby for a 100+ year old car.
1986 Lamborghini Countach
Next up: the ‘86 Lambo Countach. Owned for over 25 years now and his favorite version of the car, due to it being the last carbureted car produced. The car is equipped with a Quattro V12, 5.2 liter engine with a 5 speed transmission. In the mid-80’s the fact that the Lamborghini produced 455 horsepower, which as the comedian says on his show, made it king.
Even though the car looks like a speed demon, it can’t quite hit 200 mph like many other similar sports cars out there can. While he used it as his daily driver, Leno admits that it does feel kind of like a brick when you hit 100 mph. This makes sense since it weighs about 4,000 pounds.
The ‘86 Lambo’s top speed is between 170-175 mph. The beast has 990 hp with 1600 pounds of torque. Another great addition to his collection and a fantastic episode.
1994 McLaren F1
One of the best looking cars in Jay Leno’s books, the McLaren F1 is timeless; never gets old. This three-seater automobile, in which the driver sits in the middle, gives them a full panoramic view.
Equipped with a 12 cylinder engine lined with gold for heat protection, the ‘94 F1 has 627 horsepower, hits 240 mph, and goes 0-60 in 3.2 seconds. While the car is packed with power, McLaren opted for no power steering or braking, in order to give the driver the real feeling of driving. Extremely light, the F1 weighing in at about 2,400 pounds.
1937 Fiat Topolino
Leno purchased this car after its previous owner passed away. Oddly enough, the previous owner stored this classic car in his living room. Yup that’s right. But while this may be unusual, it also means, the car was in impeccable shape when Leno got his hands on it.
A classy and stylish Italian car with only 13.5 hp and has a top speed of about 50 mph, as Leno explains on JLG. His Topolino is completely original, unrestored, and with that comes the same amazing gas mileage of 50 miles per gallon. The Topolino is unique in that the generator is larger than the extremely compact motor.
While this might of been a pretty basic car back in the day, it is now one of Jay Leno’s cars and and prized possessions.
2014 McLaren P1
You’ve likely heard of the McLaren P1 and its greatness, but Jay Leno gets to live it when he drives his very own. In the first week, he put just under 1,000 miles on his P1.
Before Jay Leno went to Pebble Beach to test drive the P1, when it first made it to American soil, only 80 P1s were spoken for. But after people saw Leno in the car, all 375 units were sold to some very lucky people. McLaren says in the JLG episode that they thank Leno partially for the success of the P1. Leno explains that the reason why the McLaren P1 is so different is because it is a road car that doubles as a race car, as opposed to automotive manufactures turning race cars into road cars. The duality is flawless.
No surprise that its top speed is 217 mph. If that doesn’t get your heart racing….
1955 Mercedes 300SL Gullwing Coupe
Another amazing car in Jay Leno’s garage, this legendary car that was first introduced in 1954. Leno’s 300SL was found in a container in the desert with no transmission and no engine. What a perfect find for someone who loves to fix up old cars.
While he did fix it up, he did not restore the vehicle. The classic sports car weighs 2,800 pounds, with a 3.0 liter, 300 Series Mercedes Benz engine, 220 hp, and the first car to ever have direct gasoline fuel injection. Interestingly enough, other than the steering wheel, nothing else in the vehicle is made out of plastic, which makes it all the more surprising that it is not actually that heavy.
2006 EcoJet
The 2006 EcoJet is not a car for production and was built in none other than Jay Leno’s garage. This car is one of a kind and unlike any of Jay Leno’s cars we’ve looked at thus far.
With a body entirely made of carbon fibre, paired with an aluminum chassis, makes the eco-jet ultra-light, weighing in at about 2,400 pounds. The car runs on anything that it can burn, but Leno uses biodiesel, a fuel made from soybean, to made it as green as possible. Even the paint is environmentally-friendly.
Based on the C6 Corvette with an automatic transmission, Leno’s crew also built a custom step down gear transfer case that takes the power to the transmission for proper functionality.
1955 Buick Roadster
First of all, Leno has an entire section in his garage dedicated to his Buicks. Purchased by Leno in 1972, this classic Buick has not been restored modified or upgraded. Even the upholstery is original. This Roadster is definitely an authentic 50s car with all the chrome. The all-American car weighs a whopping 5,000 lbs. and the V8 engine houses 330 hp.
Jay Leno drove this car quite a bit in the 70s. He even used it on his first date with his wife, Mavis. Clearly the date went well. I’d like to think it is because of his sweet ride. While Mavis holds his heart now, his Buick was his first love.
Blastolene Special
Ending the list of Jay Leno’s cars with a bang, we have none of other than the infamous Tank Car. Jay Leno’s Tank Car, designed by the Blastolene brothers, Randy Grubb and Mike Leads, was never really meant for road use, but for show. Of course when Leno got the tank, his first priority was to modify it to be street legal. Yup, that’s right the 20 foot long, 10,000 pound tank is fully equipped to driven on the road legally.
Watch out if you see this tank car on the road! It weighs 10,000 pounds and it ain’t stopping for nobody.
It is truly amazing at how many fantastic cars Jay Leno owns and gets the joy of riding. He is a true collector of all types of automobiles, classic and new. Jay Leno really is “The Car Guy".
I salute you, Jay!
