Places to stop on the way to the Iola Car Show – Le Mieux Toyota Car Collection – Green Bay
Bob Le Mieux, Sr., of Green Bay, Wis. was successful at selling BSA, NSU and Honda motorcycles, as well as Ski-Doo snowmobiles and Toyota cars. However, his first car was…
Bob Le Mieux, Sr., of Green Bay, Wis. was successful at selling BSA, NSU and Honda motorcycles, as well as Ski-Doo snowmobiles and Toyota cars. However, his first car was a Model A pickup truck and his passion for 1920s and 1930s vintage Fords is reflected in the beautifully-restored “blue oval” cars on display in his large, modern Le Mieux & Son Toyota dealership showroom.
New-car shoppers who stop to look at the old cars in the showroom will see and exquisite collection of Model A and 1932 Fords, as well as three vintage Volkswagen Beetles and several classic Toyotas. Hanging above the cars is a World War II era Stearman Navy trainer bi-plane. Behind the aircraft, to the right, is a balcony with vintage motorcycles lined up along a screened railing. There are also more cars—mostly Fords—upstairs. A car elevator takes them there.
Le Mieux knows his Fords, too. “My station wagon was used as a fishing rig and someone put a tin roof on it and tin on the back and paneled in the door window,” he pointed out. “Ford made all the original station wagon components in Iron Mountain, Mich., and shipped them to either Murray or Baker-Rawling. This is a Baker-Rawling. The outside suppliers assembled them and then gave them back to Ford to finish on the assembly line.”
The Fords in the showroom include a 1932 three-window coupe, the 1928 roadster pickup, a 1931 Deluxe roadster, a 1932 V-8 Deluxe roadster and a 1934 roadster. Another 1934 model-a five-window coupe-was in the dealership’s service department, next to a 1920s Fry gas pump.
Le Mieux enjoys showing people the Fords and other old cars displayed in the showroom, which are backdropped by a 1950s soda fountain he will be restoring to work like it did 60 years ago. Anyone visiting the Le Mieux & Sons dealership at 2550 Oneida St., in Green Bay can see those cars as long as they adhere to the “Please do not open door! Thank You!” advice printed on the magnetic signs above the belt moldings on some of the cars.
