If you get goosebumps when the opening bars to Enter Sandman come on, wait till you get a load of Metallica lead singer, James Hetfield’s car collection. Unlike other car collectors who see a car, like it and buy it, Hetfield envisions a classic car, and then just builds it! Yup, almost his entire car collection is made up of completely bespoke, hand-built custom cars.

And he’s donated all of them to the Petersen Museum for anyone to check out up close and personal. Organized by ‘the best car museum in the world’, the showing is called Reclaimed Rust: The James Hetfield Collection. If you want to see them in person, the collection is on display for only the second time ever, at LeMay – America’s Car Museum till January 2023. But the Petersen has gone a step further and documented his collection on its YouTube channel, in a half-hour long video that’s absolutely worth a watch.

In the collection you’ll find customs in different themes ranging from art deco cars to film noir. These cars bring together the imagination of James Hetfield himself, and the design and engineering prowess of some of America’s top car builders like Rick Dore Kustoms, Blue Collar Customs and Marcel’s Custom Metal to name a few. If you’re into Metallica, or custom cars, or both, this one’s for you.

Most Of Hetfield’s Cars Were Hand-Built, Some Even By Him

James Hetfield’s two passions – cars and music – have ultimately come together for the heavy-metal frontman in a spectacular way. Growing up, Hetfield was heavily influenced by the hot rod and custom car culture in America, and he's brought that ethos to his car collection.

1948 Jaguar Mark IV Black Pearl James Hetfield Petersen Museum
via Petersen Museum/YouTube

One of the standouts is a 1948 Jaguar Mark IV that started out as a rare left-hand drive model from the British marque. Called the Jaguar Black Pearl, it’s a mashup of art-deco trim styles, European pontoon fenders and more, built by Rick Dore Customs with coachbuilding by the father-son duo of Marcel and Luc De Ley of Marcels Custom Metal in California. But the result is a jaw-droppingly gorgeous drophead coupe that has won several auto show awards.

Related: 15 Incredible Photos Of James Hetfield's Collection Of Hot Rods

1934 Packard Aquarius James Hetfield Petersen Museum
via Petersen Museum/YouTube

Another highlight is a 1934 Packard named Aquarius, again done in the art-deco style with the same builder/coachbuilder. It’s been hailed as one of the most beautiful cars in the world, and we can see why. It’s even got a 6.2-liter LS3 V8 under the hood, so it’s not all show and no go.

James Hetfield 1937 ford iron fist
via Hypebeast

A 1936 Ford Coupe named Iron Fist gets special mention, being one of Hetfield’s oldest cars that underwent a full transformation in 2006. With bare metal under clear coat, it also stands out since Hetfield himself went to work on the welds that hold this car together.

Others in the collection include a 1932 Ford Roadster named Blackjack, a 1936 Auburn named Slow Burn, a 1937 Lincoln Zephyr named VooDoo Priest, a 1937 Ford Coupe named Crimson Ghost, and a 1956 Ford F100 named Str8 Edge, among many more

Metallica Frontman James Hetfield Net Worth In 2022

James Hetfield with Black Pearl
Via Gold Eagle Co

So, just how successful is Metallica as a band? From the 1980s till the present day, Metallica has sold over 66 million records in the US alone, and 150 million globally, making them the most successful heavy metal band ever. Forbes put them on the list of 10 highest earning artists as recently as 2019 with a net worth of over $1 billion, so they certainly aren’t slowing down.

James Hetfield, as co-founder, rhythm guitarist, lead vocalist, songwriter and frontman, understandably rakes in the most moolah. Hetfield’s net worth in 2022 has been estimated between $300-350 million, considering the royalties as one of the main songwriters for the band.

Hetfield Donated All His Cars To The Petersen In 2019

Screenshot 2022-11-30 at 1.08.10 PM
via Petersen Museum/YouTube

There’s no doubt that James Hetfield is something of a philanthropist, having donated almost all the land he bought back to the community he resides within, in Marin County. That extends to his car collection, which he donated to the world-famous Petersen Museum in LA, California in 2019.

Related: Check Out This Massive $50 Million Hypercar Collection At The Petersen Museum

Hetfield says he loved looking at them in his garage, but they weren’t doing him any good just sitting there, and while he could have auctioned them off, he didn’t want them going to various corners of the globe.

Hetfield wanted to keep his labor of love, his car collection intact, but share it with the world. Putting them up for public display in the Petersen, which has been called the world’s best car museum, certainly seems like the best way to do that.