EUSTIS, Fla. – As law enforcement widens its fraud investigation into an auto dealer who specializes in hot rods and classic cars, the business owner has filed for bankruptcy protection.
At the same time, the car dealer’s sprawling Lake County property is being converted into an events venue for weddings and other special occasions.
FSD Hot Rod Ranch bought and sold vintage vehicles until it abruptly closed last fall. FSD stands for “Father, Son, Daughter,” according to an archived copy of the company’s now-defunct website.
Federal authorities and the Eustis Police Department are investigating FSD Hot Rod Ranch for potential fraud and financial crimes, News 6 first reported last year.
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Owners of classic cars who arranged for the dealer to sell their vehicles on consignment were never paid, according to multiple lawsuits, while customers who bought antique cars from the dealer claim they never received the vehicles’ titles.
Stephen Phelps, the owner of FSD Hot Rod Ranch, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection last month.
Phelps listed nearly 100 creditors and more than $4 million in liabilities on his bankruptcy filings.
At least 60 of those creditors appear to be former customers of FSD Hot Rod Ranch, records indicate.
The car dealer claims to have very few assets other than his 4,800-square-foot house and 10-acre property near Eustis, which Phelps valued at approximately $1 million in his bankruptcy filings.
That property is now home to Pegasus Manor, a special events venue for weddings and corporate retreats.
Pegasus Manor celebrated its grand opening Sunday with “champagne tours” of Phelps’ ranch on County Road 439, according to the company’s website.
Garages that once housed classic cars are being converted into furnished banquet facilities with tables, curtains and chandeliers, images on the Pegasus Manor website show.
“I had nothing to do with FSD Hot Rod Ranch,” Pegasus Manor owner Beth Sobol told News 6.
Sobol, who also uses the name Betty Ferrero, is the sole officer of Pegasus Manor, according to business records filed with Florida’s Division of Corporations.
Sobol did not respond to questions from News 6 inquiring whether Phelps is involved in her new events venue business. Sobol has indicated on social media that she is in a personal relationship with Phelps.
Phelps participated in Pegasus Manor’s grand opening festivities Sunday afternoon, videos posted on the wedding venue’s Facebook page show.
“This is our first event and we’re so excited,” Phelps told a group of brides and grooms-to-be who were touring a garage previously used by FSD Hot Rod Ranch.
Phelps and his attorneys did not respond to multiple emails from News 6 seeking comment.
In written responses to lawsuits, the car dealer has denied defrauding any vehicle owners or engaging in deceptive and unfair trade practices.
Phelps has not been charged with any crimes.
Under federal bankruptcy law, debts incurred through fraud are not dischargeable.
“I hope the FBI finds out where his money is,” said Kevin Lynch, a retired Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office lieutenant who now restores antique emergency vehicles.
Lynch said he arranged for FSD Hot Rod Ranch to sell his 1953 Chevrolet ambulance on consignment last spring.
Under a “delayed payment agreement,” Lynch said FSD Hot Rod Ranch agreed to pay him $22,000 within 90 days of receiving the vehicle unless the dealer sold it sooner.
Lynch, who shipped his ambulance from his home in South Carolina to Florida, contacted the Eustis Police Department after he claimed Phelps repeatedly missed deadlines to send the payment.
“I’m just so grateful that the authorities have jumped on this,” said Lynch, who learned his vehicle had been sold to someone in Florida. “I have told the police department several times that if there’s a grand jury, I want to be the first one in.”
Susan DiNardi, another former customer, filed a lawsuit against FSD Hot Rod Ranch in October.
DiNardi, who lives in Virginia, claims the dealer failed to pay $50,000 after transporting her 1956 Chevrolet to Eustis.
DiNardi’s daughter, Amy Varela, believes FSD Hot Rod Ranch sold her mom’s vintage car less than four months later.
“I know that because there was a complaint on [Phelps’s] Google page from a guy who talks about buying a ‘56 Chevy Bel Air 210 and describes our vehicle,” said Varela. “That’s our car.”
That Google review, which DiNardi included as an exhibit in her lawsuit, indicates the buyer never received the vehicle’s title.
“I have the title,” said Varela. “Phelps asked us to send the title. But we didn’t send the title because we never received our money.”
DiNardi and Lynch are among 96 creditors Phelps listed in his bankruptcy filings.
More than a dozen of those creditors met with Phelps and a bankruptcy court trustee during a Zoom video conference last week as they began the process of identifying any funds that might be available.
Phelps did not speak during the brief meeting.
Two representatives of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Trustee Program also logged into the video conference. Besides ensuring compliance of bankruptcy laws and procedures, the federal program also helps investigate bankruptcy fraud and abuse.
Phelps is now unemployed with no money in savings and no other sources of income, according to his bankruptcy filings.
“Where’s the money?” asked Varela. “Where did he spend this money?”
Besides his Eustis ranch, one of Phelps’s only other major assets is a 2011 Jaguar XJL valued at $7,500 that is co-owned by Sobol.
In a brief phone call with News 6, Sobol denied involvement with the classic car dealership.
“I had nothing to do with FSD Hot Rod Ranch,” said Sobol. “I have no knowledge about that business.”
In an August 2022 photograph posted on Sobol’s publicly viewable Facebook page, Sobol can be seen wearing a shirt with the logo for FSD Hot Rod Ranch.
“I am now the director of National Promotions & Merchandising and get to set up all of these shows we’re planning around the USA for 2023 and build a line of branded merchandise,” the photo caption states.
Sobol and her attorney did not respond to email messages from News 6 inquiring about that Facebook post.
In a promotional video on the Pegasus Manor website, Sobol describes her prior work as an international fashion model and founder of Miami Fashion Week before she opened the wedding venue.
“And with my partner and the love of my life, I’m entering into my next entrepreneurial endeavor as the venue owner and director for what is the most magnificent and new venue that Central Florida has ever seen,” Sobol said as images of Phelps’ home and an unidentified couple riding in a vintage Ford Mercury appear on the video.
In a brief phone conversation with News 6, Sobol addressed her company’s use of Phelps’ ranch.
“I am renting the property,” Sobol said.
When a News 6 reporter asked Sobol if she was paying rent to Phelps, the phone call abruptly disconnected. Sobol and her attorney did not respond to follow-up email messages from News 6.
Phelps indicated in bankruptcy filings that he has received no income from rental property.
“If [Sobol] is renting out the space, that’s great,” said Varela. “Because then that’s income he can pay his creditors.”
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