Lingenfelter Collection annual Spring Open House is May 3

BRIGHTON — The Lingenfelter Collection, in Brighton, is a private car collection that pays tribute to America’s love for the automobile.

Owned by Ken and Kristen Lingenfelter, the collection is closed to the public, except for a few times a year in which it opens for charity events.

Car fans, start your engines because it’s time for the Lingenfelters’ annual Spring Open House. The Lingenfelter Collection will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. May 3. While there is no set cost to attend the family-friendly event, visitors are asked to make at-will donations at the door. Money raised from the event will benefit the American Cancer Society. Neither tickets nor reservations are required.

“Cancer has touched everybody at some point,” Ken said. “I lost my father, Charles, and my sister, Karen, to it. This is a way to help the American Cancer Society.”

Attendees can view the whole collection, which includes 150 Corvettes, muscle cars, exotic European models and race cars. The collection is spaced out in three rooms that measure about 30,000 square feet. The Spring Open House not only raises money for a worthy cause, but it kicks off cruising season for car buffs.

“This is kind of a celebration of being able to get their favorite cars out. It’s actually very fun. People can come in and we’ll lead them to the collection,” Ken said. “Car enthusiasts love this museum. There’s something for everybody. We get a lot of young kids.”

The Ferrari and Corvette models seem to be the crowd favorite. Spectators can also view late ’60s and early ’70s muscle cars, among other unique styles. Ninety percent of the collection is the Lingenfelters’ with 10% owned by friends displaying their vehicles.

Ken’s wife, Kristen Lingenfelter, will be at the open house. She is such a sports car enthusiast that she races in regional and national events with the Sports Car Club of America and the National Council of Corvette Clubs. In 2022, the racing competitor was named NCCC Rookie of the Year in the Michigan Region.

“She tried it out once and fell in love with it,” Ken said.

Ken is the owner of Lingenfelter Performance Engineering, which offers engine building, engine and chassis tuning components, and installation for most GM vehicles, “with a large presence of Corvettes,” Ken said.

In 2008, Ken acquired Lingenfelter Performance Engineering, founded by his distant cousin John Lingenfelter. The company’s headquarters is located in Brighton where the annual Spring Open House will be. Lingenfelter Performance Engineering has two more locations: a build center in Wixom, and a build center in Decatur, Indiana.

“We build race cars as well, and we also build performance engines,” Ken said. “Many times (customers) want the engine rebuilt to get the performance.”

Recently, Ken joined the National Corvette Museum Board of Directors as an at-large member. Ken’s dad was a General Motors executive, so he’s always had an interest in  high-performance cars. His favorite car is the 1963 split-window Chevrolet Corvette Stingray. He first spotted the sports car when he was 10 years old, and years later bought one of his own.

“It was so exotic and profound. It’s such a great design. It’s a sports car that is very fun to drive,” Ken said. “I love Corvettes more than any other car. It’s an amazing product built by GM.”

The Lingenfelter Spring Open House has raised more than $392,000 for the American Cancer Society since 2016. The American Cancer Society funds cancer research, provides support and access to care for all cancer patients, and continues its work to prevent, find and treat cancer.

“Each year we are blown away by the generosity of the car enthusiast community,” Jenni Beamer, senior executive director of the American Cancer Society in Michigan, said in a prepared statement. “The American Cancer Society is grateful to the Lingenfelters for this amazing opportunity that raises critical funds for our work right here in Michigan to end cancer as we know it, for everyone.”

Attendees at the spring open house will have the opportunity to pick up a free colorectal cancer screening kit on-site. Trinity Health Michigan will distribute the kits and provide educational materials and information about colorectal cancer screening at the event.

The Lingenfelter Collection is located at 7819 Lochlin Drive in Brighton. There is also a retail store on-site. For more information, visit the Lingenfelter Collection Spring Open House on Facebook.