American Pickers star Mike Wolfe gets into a FURIOUS clash with cohost Frank Fritz after he threw away $5,500 on a ‘bust’ junkyard buy
American Pickers star Mike Wolfe gets into a FURIOUS clash with cohost Frank Fritz after he threw away $5,500 on a 'bust' junkyard buy
American Pickers star Mike Wolfe butted heads with Frank Fritz in the latest episode of the History Channel series after finding out his costar had overpaid on a ‘unique’ junkyard purchase.
In scenes that aired on Wednesday night, Frank, 58, found himself besotted by a vintage Plymouth Coupe, which had been sitting underground for almost four decades.
But after shelling out $5,500 for the vehicle, disaster soon struck when he learned he had significantly overspent on it – causing a frustrated Mike to call out his friend for not knowing how to walk away from a bad deal.
It all kicked off after Frank had come across the classic car in a dusty underground bunker in the middle of Maryland.
‘When I saw that Plymouth Coup, it looked like a nice original car, it had original paint, it had been sheltered for the last 35 years and it just liked a unique piece,’ he said.
‘I don’t generally just buy cars, I’m more of a motorcycle guy, but I love the lines on it.’
Stating his interest in the car, Frank then offered the owner $5,000 for the motor, leaving Mike, 59, shocked.
‘Whoa,’ Mike reacted. ‘All of a sudden he’s spending our money and I’m like, “What the hell is he talking about it? What car? Why is he interested in it?”‘
At first, the owner admitted that he had no interest in selling the Plymouth Coupe, but Frank persisted and ultimately shook hands on a $5,500 deal.
‘We were on the road a couple of extra days and that car for some reason kept haunting me. Man, I just can’t get that Plymouth Coup out of my mind,’ he said.
‘Frankie was all wound up on this car because he’s a dreamer, man,’ Mike added in his confessional.
‘He sees himself behind the seat of that thing, his arm around his girl, and he’s chilling out going down the road.’
Once the deal was done, Frank and Mike arranged for the car to be collected and towed all the way back to their home base in LeClaire, Iowa.
But Frank’s dreams for the car were quickly crushed when trusted friend Dave Ohrt shared his damning appraisal and valued it between $3,000 and $5,000.
‘I see it’s in very good condition, but if you did a ground up restoration on it, you’re going to put more into it than it’s worth, in my opinion,’ he said.
And this valuation did not sit well with Frank’s partner Mike, who admitted his ‘heart sank’ after hearing the loss.
Speaking in his confessional, he added: ‘That car was a bust. He [Frank] needs to learn he cannot have everything, and he needs to learn when to walk away.’
Voicing his annoyance with his costar, Mike vented: ‘If you want that car, you’re going to have to call some dealers.
‘I don’t care what you do, we’re not paying Danielle more hours to try and sell it, we’re not paying for ads. I don’t know what to do.’
Frank revealed at the end of the episode he still hadn’t managed to shift the motor a year and a half later
He told viewers: ‘I took a little hit on it, and I haven’t been able to sell it, so for now, I’m going to enjoy it myself’
Before walking away, he snapped: ‘You always get your own way on stuff.’
At the end of the episode, Frank revealed that a year and a half had passed, and he still hadn’t managed to shift the motor.
‘The Plymouth is my baby,’ he said.
‘I took a little hit on it, and I haven’t been able to sell it, so for now, I’m going to enjoy it myself.
‘[I’ve had to fix] the motor, the transmission, the brakes, the radiator, the alternator, the pumps, the fuel pumps. I mean, this thing has been top to bottom.’
