John Paul's '75 Escort is headed for auction

CHICAGO -- The 1975 light blue, four-door German-made Ford Escort GL wasn't much to look at when it was new and now, although there are no dents, it shows the wear of a 30-year-old car -- even if it was driven by a pious man.

In other words, it doesn't exactly look like a million bucks. But how about $5 million?

For Jim Rich, an Illinois businessman trying to crawl out of a restaurant bankruptcy, the car -- believed to be the only automobile owned by Pope John Paul II -- is his financial salvation. Rich hopes to get millions for the vehicle with some 60,000 miles on it.

The Escort, which John Paul purchased when he was cardinal in Krakow, Poland, goes on auction June 3 in Las Vegas.

''It wasn't an easy decision. I had some real questions about getting rid of this car and gaining from it," said Rich, 40, who is Catholic. ''But maybe this is what I'm supposed to do."

The leader of the world's Catholics had the choice of many cars once he became pope in 1978, but the Escort came with him to Rome and was apparently stored there.

Rich met the late pontiff in 1998 when he took possession of the car, and ownership papers reflecting its history, after having bid $102,000 at auction in 1996. He said that during the visit he was told by Vatican officials that John Paul II liked to drive to the mountains to escape the pressures of leading the world's largest Christian denomination.

In addition to a private Mass with the pope, he also got the keys to the car from the pope himself. Rich said he was in a foyer of the pope's residence and John Paul appeared with a small group of people. ''Most people in that position, their eyes would just pass you by and their feet wouldn't stop," Rich said. ''His feet stopped. And his eyes, they were crystal clear. This man was strong. Solid."

The pope then handed Rich the keys, giving a quick laugh as he did so. ''That told me so much -- his humor -- but mostly, the car is telling of the man that he was."

Rich's reservations about selling the car were eased by Dean Kruse, head of Kruse International, an auction house based in Auburn, Ind., that specializes in antique and celebrity automobiles. Kruse developed a relationship with Rich over the years as Rich looked to create a restaurant west of Chicago that showcased famous automobiles. Rich used savings, a $500,000 trust, and loans from his mother to purchase the car used in the 1968 film ''Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," a Corvette once owned by Michael Jordan, and a bulletproof Rolls-Royce used by the British royals on visits to the United States, and the pope's car. The restaurant, which opened in 2002, closed two years later and is currently in bankruptcy.

''He was living in a beat-up Winnebago with no television and little money," Kruse said. ''And I told him, 'Maybe God wants you to sell this car to get yourself going.' "

The Escort, Kruse said, is telling of a meek man. ''Christ didn't have much, and this pope basically bought a car just for transportation, with as little as needed: a 5-gallon gas tank, no air conditioning, no radio."

The car also comes with a set of rosary beads that belonged to the pope, a picture of a saint glued to the dash, and a small candy container filled with fuses and matches. ''It gave me goose bumps to touch this car, to look inside, because you could tell that whoever owned this car was very different," Kruse said.

The car went on public display in Auburn yesterday until it is shipped to Las Vegas, where it will go on auction on June 3 at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. Kruse said he expects the car to fetch between $1.5 million and $5 million.

''With this, we're not selling the car -- the car itself isn't worth $2,000," said Kruse. ''What we're selling is a piece of a legacy."

The value could climb higher, he said, given the decision this month by Pope Benedict XVI to fast-track the sainthood process for John Paul II.

But it is impossible to predict a price until an item gets on the block, said Scott Voeller, a spokesman for Mandalay. ''It would be impossible to figure out what emotional value someone might put on it."

Earlier this month, a 1999 Volkswagen Golf once owned by Benedict sold for roughly $240,000 on eBay, which currently lists some 3,800 John Paul-related items for sale.

Whatever the price, Rich said he will donate some of the proceeds to charity in Chicago.