Auction house Gooding & Company has announced that it will auction some of the best examples of the classic car collection of William A.C. Pettit, III, at the Pebble Beach Auctions on August 18 and 19, 2012. All up there will be 12 vehicles from the collection auctioned, all with no reserve price, and with proceeds of the sale going to the Shriners Hospital for Children.

William Pettit, and his father W.A. Claude Pettit, both ran the Pettit Brothers Chrysler-Plymouth-Dodge-Jeep dealership, along with the Museum of Motoring Memories, in Natural Bridge, Virginia, an institution that was open to the public from 1958 to 1967.

"Bill Pettit built one of the finest and most extensive automotive collections of his era and was generous enough to share it with enthusiasts around the world for decades," says David Gooding, President and founder of Gooding & Company. "Our Pebble Beach Auction will be an important opportunity for collectors to take home one of the great classics in Bill's extraordinary estate, many of which have been in the family since the 1940s. We sincerely hope that the next generation of collectors appreciate how special these cars are and continue Bill's legacy of quality stewardship."

The star of the show is 'Blue J', a 1929 Duesenberg Model J Dual-Cowl Phaeton, with LeBaron Dual-Cowl coachwork (pictured above). The car has its original engine, that was rebuilt in the 1970s. The estimated auction price for this blue beauty is $2 million to $2.75 million.

The other cars from the collection, and their price estimates, are:

- 1928 Rolls-Royce Phantom l Derby Speedster, with coachwork by Brewster & Co., a model of which only four are known to exist. Estimate: $500,000–$650,000.

- 1925 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Pall Mall Tourer, coachwork by Merrimac Body Company. Estimate: $225,000–$300,000.

- 1931 Stutz DV-32 Convertible Sedan, coachwork by LeBaron. Estimate: $225,000–$300,000.

- 1932 Chrysler Imperial CL Convertible Sedan, coachwork by LeBaron. Restored to concours standard in the 1980s. Estimate: $200,000–$275,000.

- 1940 Packard 180 Convertible Victoria, coachwork by Darrin. Estimate: $200,000–$275,000.

- 1962 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II Drop Head Coupe, coachwork by H.J. Mulliner. Estimate: $200,000–$275,000.

- 1937 Cord 812 Phaeton. Estimate: $150,000–$200,000

- 1948 Chrysler Town and Country Convertible Coupe. Estimate: $150,000–$200,000.

- 1948 Chrysler Town and Country Sedan. completely original and unrestored condition. Estimate: $100,000–$130,000.

- 1938 Packard Eight All-Weather Panel Brougham, coachwork by Rollston. Mostly original condition. Estimate: $50,000–$75,000.

- 1949 Plymouth P-18 Special Deluxe Convertible Coupe. William Pettit's high school graduation present, and the first car he owned. Estimate: $20,000–$25,000.