If Ivan Pavlov had employed men instead of dogs in his most famous experiment, he could have used some of the gems from the McMullen automobile collection as bait.

McMullen is a 79-year-old Michigan car dealer who turned his full-time job into a lifetime passion. Kicking off the collecting habit in 1986 with a two-tone, blue-and-cream 1932 Packard, McMullen has since put together one of the most impressive private collections in the U.S. His 275-acre farm just north of Detroit has been home to everything from an 1886 Benz (pre-"Mercedes-Benz," of course) to '60s muscle cars, while several of his choicest have competed and won at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, including a 1932 Packard 905 Twin Six Sport Phaeton (left) that captured the Most Elegant Car award.

On June 9, McMullen and RM Auctions will put up an array of cars restored to 100-point (a.k.a., mint) condition, including a 1913 Packard Model 1-38 Roadster, a 1930 Cord Cabriolet, and a 1901 U.S. Long Distance Model A. But the real drooling starts with the show's duo of stock market crash-era show-stoppers: A 1931 Duesenberg Model J Tourster (pictured below) with coachwork by Derham--originally owned by actor/comedian Joe E. Brown and formerly owned by Howard Hughes--and a 1930 Cadillac V16 All-Weather Phaeton (at right), the only Murphy-bodied V16 Caddy in existence, decorated with a "Best in Class" at Pebble Beach and "Most Significant General Motors Car" at the Meadow Brook Concours.

As the auction catalog puts it: "Already in the engineering and planning stages well before 'Black Friday' was a development that Cadillac Motor Car Company President Larry Fisher hoped would be the mechanical coup of the new decade--a V16 engine. In a letter sent to dealers on December 27, 1929, he revealed this secret new sales weapon, and one week later at the New York Auto Show the public got their first viewing of this ultra-luxurious machine. Power was the king in the sales race, so one can only imagine what the public, accustomed to fours, sixes and an occasional 8-cylinder engine, must have thought when this magical power plant was unveiled."

For sure, not too many people have 16-cylinder bragging rights. But the real attraction is the fact that this car, like many others The McMullen Collection, looks like it's accelerating even when it's standing still.

(The catalog also makes a point about the Duesenberg that taught us something we didn't know: "The [car's] outside exhaust pipes inspired generations of auto designers and remain, 60 years later, a symbol of power and performance. 'She's a real Deusy' still means a slick, quick, smooth and desirable possession of the highest quality.")

The Phaeton is expected to fetch between $850,000 and $1 million, with the Duesenberg at a slightly higher $1.2 to $1.5 million. Hard to choose between them, of course. But then, if you can afford to bid on and win one of these marvels, you can probably afford to go after both.

--ANDREW NUSCA

Is there a stage or a point or an agreed-upon age in life when one ceases to get excited by the sight of a really cool toy?

If there is, we haven't reached it--and gems like this Schuco Mercedes Silver Arrow Construction Set make us think that we might enter our dotage avoiding that sad, sad fate altogether.

Few hobbyists or toy collectors, meanwhile, are as obsessive (and excitable) as the scale-model auto fanatic--you know who you are--and in the spirit of that auto-fixation, Manufactum.com has kindly captured the appeal of this Silver Arrow with some endearingly stilted prose guaranteed to get motors running:

"[The car] is equipped with steering wheel control, a differential and an extremely powerful clockwork drive. This racing car is driven via a spring motion with a key, and additionally through an independent axle, which winds the clockwork drive up by a friction gear."

In other words, this is a model-car kit built by gearheads for gearheads. None of your plastic '57 Chevy replicas held together with glue and covered with wrinkly decals touting STP and Hurst shifters, thank you very much.

And lastly, having come across a toy like the Schuco Silver Arrow, most automobile nuts can be counted on to do one thing: namely, spend a few minutes bouncing around online to learn a little bit more about the original inspiration for the model. We quickly came across the lucky fellow below, roaring around a track south of London in the early racing days of the mid-1930s. We're not romantics, but even we think that maybe racing was a little bit more fun way back when.

--BEN COSGROVE

A Silver Arrow hugs a corner in England, 1937.

Consider the Bugatti Type 57. Built between 1934 and 1939, it's the perfect convergence of speed and performance. And, not incidentally, it's also hugely attractive--the car looks like it could have driven right off the set of Bertolucci's The Conformist. Now on view at the Allan Stone Gallery is a 1937 convertible in deep blue and cream. One of only 700 57s ever built, it's an absolute stunner.

Founded by the Milanese aesthete Ettore Bugatti in 1910, Bugatti created cars with extraordinary attention to form and function and little concern about cost. The Type 57 was designed by Ettore's son, Jean, whose training as an artist is evident in the car's remarkable sculptural contours. Seeing a model poised in a gallery better known for showing blue-chip work, like Wayne Thiebaud's exquisite cake paintings, only reinforces an appreciation of the car's beauty, of its standing as an art object.

Possessing a straight-8 engine, it was one of the most successful cars on the European racing circuit, notching repeated victories at Le Mans. But its success as a racing machine hardly means that the interior was neglected. With its gorgeous wooden dash and discreet Art Deco details, you are forgiven if you have an urge to climb in and tour the Amalfi Coast with, say, Stefania Sandrelli.

Also on display is the little one-seat Type 52, sometimes known as the Baby Bugatti. Conceived and built for Ettore's five-year old son, Roland, it ultimately spawned a fleet of 150 for lucky children on the Continent. It's the perfect car for the idealized Italian childhood that hardly any of us ever had. Sporting an electric motor that topped out at a cool 11 mph, it was (and remains) an elegant first step toward a lifelong obsession.

-- DAVID COGGINS

The Bugatti 57's luxe interior.

Hard on the wheels of another iconic TV muscle car going on the block, the baddest flying Charger to ever race across television screens is up for auction on eBay--and you can have it for, as of this writing, right around $2.8 million.

That's right, people: the General Lee--a car tagged by TV Land as the most famous in television history; the bright orange chariot for siblings Bo and Luke Duke in "The Dukes of Hazzard"; the four-wheeled nemesis of ol' Boss Hogg--is for sale, with none other than John ("Bo") Schneider himself selling the nasty thing.

"1969 Dodge: Charger," reads the ad. "Body type: Coupe. Transmission: Automatic. Engine: 8. Interior: Tan. Warranty: No. Condition: Used. Exterior: Orange. Fuel type: Gasoline."

No warranty? Well, when you're buying a little piece of history, who needs (or expects) guarantees?

The auction ends Friday, May 4, at 10:02 AM (PST). Crack open that penny jar.

-- BEN COSGROVE