NEW JERSEY (Bloomberg) — KB Toys Inc. co-founder Donald Kaufman, with his 100-year-old, $40,000 clown car, may be the Yves Saint Laurent of the antique toy world.

Laurent's possessions were auctioned last month in Paris for 374.4 million euros ($477 million), defying the sagging art market. Kaufman, 78, has amassed 7,000 toys over the past half century. Starting today, 1,500 lots, with an estimated value of as much as $4 million, will be sold in a three-day auction at Bertoia Auctions in Vineland, New Jersey.

Among aficionados, the collection of mostly cast-iron vehicles dating back to the 19th century has drawn comparisons to Laurent's Chinese bronzes.

"In the toy field, this is in the same class," Dale Kelley, publisher of Antique Toy World magazine, said in a telephone interview from Chicago. "People are never going to get another chance at this stuff."

Many pieces are valued at more than $10,000. Others have lower price tags, such as a 1961 Cadillac with an estimate between $800 and $1,000. A 1928 Packard four-door sedan is estimated to fetch between $3,500 and $4,000.

"Breathtaking, it's the darndest thing I've ever seen," Bill Carlton, a dealer in cast-iron toys from Hot Springs Village, Arizona, said in a telephone interview. "Frankly, I don't know how he can part with them."

Kaufman sold his stake in KB Toys in 1981. Now he is divesting assets and plans to invest the proceeds. He decided to auction the toys two years ago, before the recession started, and hasn't changed his mind.

"We're still going to sell it," Kaufman said in a telephone interview. "You have to move on, regardless of the price."

Bertoia Auctions owner Jeanne Bertoia said the interest generated since the auction was announced last summer has allayed concerns that the recession will hurt sales. The rest of the toys will be auctioned later this year. Bertoia and Kaufman declined to say how much the entire collection is worth.

For the past two months, collectors have come from as far away as Belgium to view the lots. While most patrons of Bertoia's auctions bid by phone or Internet, the Kaufman collection is attracting so many people that she will open an overflow area adjacent to the auction room to fit 400. She also installed a big-screen TV so bidders can watch in the back of the hall.

"He has toys that no one has ever seen, only in pictures," said Carlton, who said he is unable to attend the auction because of a pinched nerve but will bid over the Internet. "It's a hard thing for grown men to drool over toys, but you have to."

The auction is to begin six weeks after KB Toys, controlled by Prentice Capital Management Inc., liquidated its own stock. Kaufman's father, Harry, and uncle, Joseph, started a candy business in 1922 that the younger Kaufman later helped expand into a 1,300-store chain. The retailer filed for bankruptcy in December after sales plunged.

"It's kind of a sad story when you see a company founded by your father and uncle and the people who bought the company mishandled it and failed," Kaufman said. "I'm glad I got out when I did."

Prentice Capital declined to comment on Kaufman's remarks.

Kaufman often travelled to toy auctions with a trailer to accommodate his purchases. Armed with his notes, he would spend hours at an auction adding to his collection.

"He wouldn't get up," said his wife, Sally. "I had to bring him his food."

Kaufman started collecting bottle caps and matchboxes as a three-year-old. Now that he's done with toys, he doubts he'll take on a new hobby.

"I'm going to spend time with my family," Kaufman said. "I'm not going to collect anything anymore."