The Journey: Luxury, on Wheels

In October 2024, classic car collector Jack Boyd Smith Jr., owner of The JBS Collection, launched the inaugural episode of his video series The Journey with one goal in mind: to share the extraordinary vehicles in his rising classic car collection with fans, followers, and enthusiasts around the world.

Now into its second season, The Journey—produced by The JBS Collection in association with LaVine Restorations, Inc., and Goshen, Indiana’s Eyedart Creative Studio—is a popular automotive series in which Smith Jr. and his restoration partner, Travis LaVine, discuss the histories, restorations, and remarkable background stories of some of The JBS Collection’s most exceptional vehicles.

Highlights along The Journey

Season 1, Episode 1 (October 2024): In the series premiere, Smith Jr. and LaVine featured The JBS Collection’s 1934 Packard Twelve 1108 Custom Convertible Sedan by Dietrich. Restored to its exact original condition by LaVine Restorations, this award-winning Packard was originally owned by California heiress-turned-explorer, Louise Arner Boyd. Considered the first female Arctic explorer, Boyd gained notoriety in the 1930s for her expeditions, for which the American Geographical Society awarded her the Cullum Medal. In 1934, after being elected as a delegate to the International Geographical Congress in Poland, Boyd commissioned this vehicle for her three-month sojourn across the Polish countryside.

Season 1, Episode 6 (August 2025): The Season 1 finale of The Journey recounted the unlikely restoration of the 1937 Cord 812 Phaeton Convertible originally owned by American aviator Amelia Earhart. Famously pictured in 1936 with Earhart and her Lockheed 10E Electra airplane, this Cord was sold by Earhart’s husband, George Putnam, after the aviator’s 1937 disappearance. The vehicle then passed through several owners and was ultimately disassembled and sold for parts throughout the country. After decades of research, a Texas collector named Ray Foster was able to reunite the Cord’s original components and reassemble the car’s original frame with its original engine. Smith Jr., who’d become close friends with Foster over the years, purchased the vehicle in 2018 and commissioned LaVine Restorations to restore it back to the exact condition it was in, including original specifications, when Earhart owned it.

Season 2, Episode 2 (December 2025): In Season 2, Episode 2, Smith Jr. and LaVine turned their attention to The JBS Collection’s rare 1932 Auburn 8-100A Boattail Speedster, one of only about 75 Speedsters built in 1932. This exceptional Auburn, certified as Category One by the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Club and considered to be one of the most authentically finished of its kind, earned a Second in Class award at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in 1997. To this day, the 1932 Auburn 8-100A Boattail Speedster, which set the standard for early boattail styling, remains one of the most coveted prewar American classics.

Sharing his endless enthusiasm for collecting 

Unlike other collectors, most of whom assemble their automotive collections over the course of several decades, Smith Jr.—despite his growing list of Concours honors and awards—is still a relative newcomer. It was a little more than 13 years ago that he purchased his first historic vehicle and dove headlong into his passion for collecting classic automobiles. 

“In the short amount of time I have been collecting, I’ve discovered there is something even better than following my passion, and that is being able to share my inspiration with other enthusiasts,” said Smith Jr., whose collection is ranked among the top 100 in the world by The Classic Car Trust’s The Key publication. “That’s why Travis and I, and our partners at Eyedart Creative Studio, set out to bring The Journey to life in 2024, and I am so happy to be able to share the vehicles from The JBS Collection with the world.”

The JBS Collection invites classic car lovers around the world to watch every episode of The Journey in its entirety at https://thejbscollection.com/the-journey/.