9:53 a.m. - WEST FARGO, N.D. (AP) -- Bill Wiemann recently paid millions of dollars for a rare muscle car, but that doesn't prevent him -- or some of his friends -- from driving it.

The local real estate developer and construction company owner bought the 1971 Plymouth Barracuda convertible from an English car collector, reportedly for more than $2 million. Although the price raised some eyebrows, Wiemann isn't mothballing it in the garage.

"He'll drive it to work," said Roger Gibson, the Scott City, Mo., mechanic who restored the car. "I take my hat off to him, he's kind of a cowboy.

"He's having fun with his stuff," he said.

The car is known for its beefy "Hemi" engine that recently made a comeback in pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles. Of the nine "Hemi Cuda" convertibles manufactured in 1971, the last year of production, Wiemann has the last one made.

It's also the best one made, Gibson said.

"With the production numbers so low, you have guys who have them and don't want to sell them," Gibson said. "That's the key to cars being worth that kind of money."

Wiemann, 43, calls the car a "passion, not an investment" and said he has no plans to sell it, although he jokes about changing his cell phone number because of numerous calls from interested buyers.

"If I sell it," he said, shaking his head, "then I'm just a broker."

Some classic car owners fear that the market is being inflated by investors who are acting as brokers, said Lynn Mickelson, of Colfax.

"In talking with some investment bankers and financial people, the poor performance of the stock market over the last couple of years has had something to do with the prices," said Mickelson, who owns 15 classic cars. "People have pulled their money out of stock funds and started investing in muscle cars and motorcycles."

Wiemann's car is white with black billboards on the rear quarter panels that advertise Hemi. Gibson spent about 18 months restoring it, using parts that were never sold. "New old stock is what we call it," he said.

Gibson said the car was in outstanding shape when he received it, with no rust. It had been repainted once, but all the panels were original.

"It's almost a piece of Mopar history," Gibson said.

Muscle cars were driven out of production in the early 1970s by an energy crisis and skyrocketing insurance premiums. "The price of gas went up to a quarter a gallon," Wiemann said.

A native of Verona, Wiemann bought his first muscle car, a 1970 Dodge Charger, when he was 15. He owns several other classic cars, including the first Hemi Cuda convertible ever made, in 1970.

Wiemann said he wouldn't be surprised to put 4,000 miles on his newest purchase this year.

"I don't think you'll find many owners who have driven their cars even 100 miles," Gibson said. "He's a car guy. Everybody says he's crazy, but let's face it, this stuff is about making you feel good."

Said Mickelson, "I'm glad he's got it and not me. I would be worried sick about it."