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Gotta tell SOMEONE!


Bluesky62

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I am excited! There's no one around here (my wife, my son, et al) that can fathom my glee, so I'm going to post it here - maybe there's someone here that will understand. I just drove my little sweetheart home from the mechanic's shop! A two-door, aluminum-blocked V-8 with the 4 bbl. carb, hard-topped, 1962 Skylark, this was the first time in seven years that I've been able to drive her. I bought her eighteen years ago to be my daughter's first car and, at the time, I reserved first right-of-refusal if she ever decided to get rid of her. When my daughter decided to join the Navy about three years later, she was returned to her "rightful owner" - me! She lost her reverse gear in 1998 and I haven't been able to afford to have the transmission gone through. But I can now! The tranny has been completely overhauled, new soft plugs were installed, all new belts/hoses/filters are in place, all fluids have been drained and replaced, new heater core and fan motor put in - and she tootled home today just like the quiet (but peppy), little top that I remembered her to be!. The body is super straight, there is no rust anywhere that I can see and now all that I have left are the fun things: paint, new tires, lubricating this and that, weather stripping here and there, that kind of thing. This is the first car that I've ever attempted to "restore" (and I'm not much of a mechanic) and I know that there'll now be things (maybe lots of them!) that are going to pop up as a result of her sitting for seven years, but I say, "Bring 'em on!" I'm really looking forward to it! I don't know what the "connection" is between me and this little car, but it almost like it is something spiritual. Some of you MUST know what I'm trying to say here, right? Anyway, I'm going to try taking a picture of her (thank you to Brian Laurance, BCA #5168 for tips on how to do it) and post the picture on this forum. I'm probably going to have lots of questions for you more seasoned hands and (BTW) if any of you have any suggestions for me at this stage of the restoration, I'll welcome them. I've got a lot to learn, but I'm sure looking forward to doing it! Thanks for hearing me out.

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Glad to here you have it drivable. I am assuming it is an automatic transmission. 3 and 4-speeds were available then too. Upload a picture if you can, would like to see your '62.

Karl

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It sounds so great to hear your excitement in this Buick. I've had similar experience with my 56 this past year. I've owned the car for 30 years and had it on the road most of that time, but for several years I couldn't find the time to drive it much. One year I actually drove it only two miles. A mile to get inspected and a mile back to the house. Then I didn't drive it again till the next year to get it inspected again.

But I wanted to take it to the Centenial meet in 2003, so I got started fixing things, but it wasn't till September of 2004 that I really felt it was back to being the car it should have been, and that's when I felt that smugness of driving something very Super...

Good luck. Drive often. Drive slow, so everyone can see it , and wish they were you!

JD

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Yes, Brian, I'm going to follow those steps you outlined and send in a picture. It'll be fun for me to see her "in print"! As far as meeting each other at a meet, I hope we can. The only quandary I'm in right now is that I live right in the middle of California and I can't figure out whether it would be better to go north or to go south. There's a chapter in Sacramento (about five hours away) and there's the chapter(s) down in the LA area (I don't know, I think maybe three hours away in that direction). I wish the Central Valley Chapter was still up and going - it would make things a LOT easier!

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Something tells me, JD (which is my best friend's name, too BTW), that this time I'm going to be driving her a lot! For some reason, up until now, I've never really considered her to be ALL mine. Maybe I was thinking that my daughter was going to want her back, maybe I had my doubts about my ability to bring her back to life - I don't know. But she's coming back now - for good! - I guarantee it!

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Guest Shaffer

Great to hear that you have it back on the roads. I would be very interested in seeing the photo as well. My father is very partial to the 1962 Buick Skylarks. With the exception of the 1969 Camaro- the 1962 Skylark is his favorite car. Back in the early 70s, one of his first cars was a 62' Skylark, with the aluminum V8 and a 4-speed manual shift. I guess that is why he likes them so. Sadly, this is the only Buick car that he likes. Unlike me, he has never been a fan of Buicks in general- shame on him! At least a Buick is one of his most favorite cars.

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Well, I guess I'm guilty there, too, Shaffer, but it is only because this '62 is the only Buick I've ever had and I don't know anything about any of the other models. I've looked at pictures of the other ones and they sure are beautiful, but I've got a lot to learn about them. I'll get a pic up ASAP. Thanks, Dave

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Well, JD, I'm not sure. I guess somewhere out here on the West Coast. My car isn't (and probably won't be) nice enough (compared to you guys' cars) to have to trailer it, so that leaves driving it. Mechanically, she is in really good shape, but I also have to remember that she is also 43 years old. There is no "Buick action" here in the center of California where I live (this is where all of the agriculture is going on and is kind of considered the "Third World" part of California - there are no surfers or Valley girls anywhere around here!) and I'm kind of in a quandary about how I'm going to get my "Sky" to any shows (except for maybe the ones down in LA or up in Sacramento).

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Hey BlueSky, check in the up-coming BCA Roster issue ( presumably you have joined the Buick Club of America). You are sure to find other Buick Owners near-by to your home.

Plus the San Diego Chapter has made a bid for the 2007 BCA National meet, so there may be a show near you soon, with national attention.

If they get it, I am hoping to attend, and we are making special efforts to "drive" one of our classics out there ( although my wife said she would fly out an I can pick her up at the airport) . I just hope it stops raining out there between now and then.

JD

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Congratulations on getting her back on the road. When I was a kid, my dad had a 1961 Special wagon, and it was such a sweet little car. He told me recently, that no matter how cold it was, that little Buick would always start right up. I personally just have a thing for Buicks, and the 1959-1962 period is just fantastic. I must admit, I also have a thing for the 63-65 Rivieras, and when I moved back to St. Louis, I really wanted one of those as a driver, but it turns out I've gone off in other directions, ending up with some Buicks that I like even better... Keep going with your car. Take her to a show, and you'll be surprised how many people come to talk to you about how their parents had one just like it way back when. As for the mechanical stuff, there's always a learning curve. If it's something you can't do yourself, find someone who can do it for you, even if it costs you some $$$. That car will reward you with LOTS of pleasure.

Good Luck,

Kevin

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Wow, JD! You'd drive all the way from New York to California? I guess I'd better expand my "driving horizons" a bit! I'll be making San Diego for SURE!My '62 really is in pretty good shape. I'm getting more and more confidence in her with each passing day (just getting her back on the road and all, I think I've been overly trepidatious about her mechanical dependability). And, yes, I will look over the roster and see who's around here. Sometimes I get to thinking that I'm the only Buick owner in Central California! Dave

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You bet, Kevin, I'm already having lots of fun with this little car! I find that I spend a lot of time thinking up reasons to go to town to do some errand or other so that I can drive her! The learning curve looks a bit steep right now, but I'm looking forward to it. Yesterday I got very excited over just getting the windshield wipers going again! One step at a time, right?

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi Blue Sky, Im carbuff from Fresno, CA about 1 hr north of you. I belonged to the Buick Club that was located here in Fresno for many years and it eventually died due to the fact that there was not a continuous recruiting for new members, the older members liked things as they were, the newer ones did not and little by little it died.

I tried renewing the club in Fresno, had a meeting at my house with about 25 prospective members attending ...... I could not get commitments for anyone to help with the management of the club ..... everyone wanted to join and particiapate without putting any effort on their part. I did not pursue, but am still a loyal Buick fan with a 1965 Riviera Gran Sport, a 1965 Skylark Gran sport Convertible (4-speed), a 1961 LeSabre Convertible w/ 49k miles, 2 1965 Riviera in restoration see the download of a beautiful 1964 Skylark that I just sold as I ran out of room, plus several GTO's. I joined the Pontiacs of Central California with the GTOs and found out that they welcome Buick, Olds, and Cadillacs to all of their functions including their annual car show plus many tours, parties, and just enjoying our pride of ownership.

email me or post if you are interested. Good luck with your car and do not feel alone. Paul cool.gifcool.gifcool.gifcool.gif

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Hey Paul! Just noticed your post (I hadn't seen a new one in a while and I guess I had sorta given up). Yeah, well, that's exactly how I feel - kind of alone! I knew there used to be a chapter here in the SJV, but hadn't found anyone that had been associated with it. Jeez, you've got a LOT of Buicks! I would've run out of room long before the '64! You must've been into them for a bunch of years, huh? And, yes, my '62 (my one and only!) is in being painted right now, but I'd love to bring her to one of the Pontiac get-togethers when I get her back. Do you know of any upcoming events that they have planned? Maybe you and I could show our cars off in a corner somewhere. We could squint our eyes a little bit and pretend that it's a Buick meet! Good to hear from you, Paul! Thanks for getting back to me!

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Hi BlueSky62, I'd be delighted to have you attend a Pontiac function, here is our web site: http://www.pontiacsofcentralcalifornia.org key on this and you will go directly to it, read up coming events and you will have a listing, email me what function you would like to go to pduran1860@sbcglobal.net and if we can make it, I'll let you know. This is a very active club and you will get plenty of events to attend with the Buick, you are invited to the club meetings as well .... it is not necessary to own a Pontiac and you will not be made to feel like you or your car are out of place. Look forward to meeting with you and as to how long I have been with BCA 1976 and I built a shop/storage shop thats 1400 sq ft plus a three car garage and a two car port so I can park 11 cars indoors and my pickup and wifes Lexus sits outside. Good luck Paul

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Thanks, Paul, for the very friendly invite! I'll have my "Sky" back in 3-4 weeks (at least, that's what the painter told me) and I'll be looking at the POCC website for something I can drive her to. I'll email you just as soon as I see the shine on the new paint, OK? Dave

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