Comedian Gabriel Iglesias owns a $3 million collection of Volkswagen buses
- Comedian Gabriel Iglesias has a huge collection of VW buses
- Iglesias says it was Jay Leno who got him into car-collecting
- His haul of around 80 vehicles is said to be worth $3 million
Published on Dec 08, 2024 at 8:00 PM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Dec 09, 2024 at 8:39 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
Comedian Gabriel Iglesias has a huge collection of vintage Volkswagen buses stashed away in a private museum in his hometown of Long Beach, California.
Iglesias, who also goes by the moniker ‘Fluffy’, owns more than 80 VW buses, with early model Transporters being a particular favorite.
Iglesias stores his collection in the wonderfully named Fluffy Mansion which has been specially designed to resemble the Volkswagen factory in Wolfsburg, Germany.
The super-sized collection of vehicles is said to be worth around $3 million – that’s a lot of VWs.
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Gabriel Iglesias says it was Jay Leno who got him into car collecting
There are plenty of celebrities who are happy to splash their cash on expensive car collections, such as Sir Rod Stewart who has an envy-inducing haul of rare and exotic cars.
Meanwhile, Shaquille O’Neal recently admitted that he ‘doesn’t even know why’ he has so many vehicles.
But what makes Iglesias’s collection a little bit different from the rest is the fact that it’s largely made up of the same sort of vehicle.
While other stars might pack their garages with the latest supercars, Iglesias has opted for the classic and iconic VW bus, with a particular soft spot for the Type 1 and Type 2 VW Transporter.
Iglesias says it was actually big time car enthusiast Jay Leno who got him into collecting cars.
Speaking to Business Insider, Iglesias said Leno encouraged him to invest his fortune into cars telling him that ‘it’s an investment you can enjoy’ and that if you do eventually decide to sell them ‘they’ll be worth more’.
The VW collection is priceless to the comedian
All of the vehicles are in immaculate condition and primed and ready to drive.
Alongside numerous all-original VWs, several of Iglesias buses and campers have been fitted with Subaru engines, while others are running on electric powertrains.
Iglesias bought his very first 1968 Volkswagen Transporter Type 2 when he was still a teen and paid just $700 for it.
The comedian said his collection was ‘truly priceless’ to him.
He said each VW in his collection was valued between $100,000 and $200,000 – not that he had any intention of selling.
“As soon as I’m gone, and when I mean gone, this is going to be turned into a museum for the city of Long Beach,” he said.
Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Across her career she's covered a wide variety of topics, including celebrity, cryptocurrency, politics, true crime and just about everything in between.