Tucked away on the outskirts of Fresno, California, Turner’s Auto Wrecking isn’t your average junkyard. Founded in 1960 by Jerry Turner, the family-run business has become something closer to a living museum—a sprawling collection of rusting classics and vintage muscle cars that seem to be waiting for one last joyride.
While many junkyards crush cars into scrap, Turner’s preserves them. California’s dry climate helps keep decades-old steel intact, allowing visitors to wander through rows of relics representing the full arc of American automotive design. “This place isn’t just about parts,” Turner once said. “It’s about stories.” And those stories are everywhere—from the chrome badges to the cracked vinyl seats that once carried families and dreamers across open highways.
Among the treasures, visitors might spot a 1950s Kaiser Manhattan equipped with a rare factory supercharger, or a 1970s Chevrolet Cosworth Vega, one of the sportiest compacts of its era. There’s even a 1930s Ford modified for dirt-track racing, its hand-painted numbers fading but still proud. Elsewhere, a ’69 Mercury Cougar shows the scars of its long service, while a ’54 Willys Jeepster sits like a forgotten soldier from another time.
Rows of Chevelles, Novas, Impalas, and Mustangs stand quietly under the California sun, their paint dulled but their presence undiminished. And then there’s “The Masher,” a 1974 car crusher powered by a roaring 440 Mopar V8—Turner’s own symbol of mechanical creativity.
Turner’s Auto Wrecking isn’t about perfection—it’s about preservation. As the automotive world charges toward electric futures, this Fresno landmark stands still, honoring the smell of oil, rust, and history. For gearheads and nostalgia seekers alike, it’s not just a junkyard—it’s hallowed ground where American steel refuses to fade.