he Internet has made finding many things easier, from used cars to romance, and no subject seems too esoteric. Thus, it is little wonder there is a Web site dedicated to the Junkyards of North Georgia. Doug Ahern, a 28-year-old Unix system administrator for Georgia's state university system, owns the site, and he confesses that visiting junkyards is "just about my favorite thing to do on a Saturday, to go out and see some automobile history."

Ahern's love of old cars differs from that of most enthusiasts in that he finds more beauty in a rusty derelict partly hidden by weeds than in a fully restored version in gleaming showroom condition. "I just love those old cars. They're beautiful cars," he says. "You can go to car shows and see them in perfect condition, but you can go to a junkyard and see them after they're been used. There's more personality to a car that's been on the road 20 or 30 years and been in a junkyard for a while."

One Man's Junk
Ahern himself owns three cars with considerable personality — a 1964 Dodge Dart, a '64 Oldsmobile F-85 Cutlass and a 1969 Dart — and chooses among them for his daily vehicle. "It just depends on which one I want to drive that day," he says. "It also depends on which one is running that day." Though none of his cars was acquired from a junkyard — he traded a 1983 Nissan Maxima station wagon and a 286 computer for the '64 Dart — Ahern has hunted for parts for all three in various junkyards near his home in Athens, Ga.

Eventually, Ahern started taking a point-and-shoot camera along on his parts expeditions. After learning how to create a Web page, he scanned in some of his photos and posted his findings on a site originally called The Virtual Junkyard, which launched in 1995.

Among the treasures nestled in the site are shots of a 1957 Nash Rambler, a 1956 Buick Century, a 1948 Hudson Commodore Six and a pink 1960 Cadillac — all in different stages of dilapidation. Each vehicle image is accompanied by a brief description and, for some, Ahern supplies some background information.

Another Man's Treasure
Ahern was surprised by the response his site received from those who share his passion for junkyard gems: "A lot of people have told me, 'I'd like to be out in a junkyard, too, but I'm stuck in my office.'" Traffic at his site picked up considerably a couple of years ago after it was mentioned in Car and Driver magazine. If someone wants to buy a car or parts off a vehicle on his Web site, he will pass on phone numbers and let the interested party deal directly with the salvage yard.

In addition to his virtual junkyard, Ahern also presents his own collection of automotive-related articles and statistics. For the serious do-it-yourselfer, the Auto Tech section provides how-to advice on subjects ranging from Chrysler's electronic ignition to the front suspension geometry on old General Motors A-body midsize cars. Handy reference material includes the Salute to American Muscle, a list of quarter-mile acceleration times for 1960s high-performance cars, and Battle of the Barges, performance stats for full-size American cars from the same era. Ahern also adds a dash of foreign intrigue to his site with Mopares del Mundo, a collection of vehicles he photographed in the high desert of central Mexico while visiting his fiance's family.

While Ahern's day job as a Unix troubleshooter is high tech and leading edge, his old-car hobby is just the opposite. "Old cars are so simple and easy to work on. It's a great hobby," he says. Just don't expect to see any of Ahern's cars fully restored to factory-fresh condition. "You don't want to be afraid to drive your car," he says. "Like one of my friends says, he's just trying to keep them out of the junkyard. Make them safe, make them fun to drive."

Reported by Rick Popely for cars.com

MORE DETAIL

MORE DETAIL

MORE DETAIL

MOPARES DEL MUNDO
Discover the subtle differences between Chrysler vehicles south of the border and stateside.

JUNKYARD MUSINGS
Read a poem about mucking around junkyards