My Beautiful 57 Buick...

I think most of those chromed tissue holders gathered dust on dealers' shelves. I don't recall ever seeing one installed in a "real" car from the '50s. They used to show up at swap meets all the time, always in their original pale blue-green box.

"Back in the day", boxes of tissue (always Kleenex brand) slid back and forth across the rear package shelf of every car my dad owned.

I like it! Definitely a novelty these days, and a conversation starter! I don't really want the tissue box floating around (especially on the rear parcel shelf;) - how do you blow your nose from the front seat!!!)

Welcome aboard! A beautiful car and I have enjoyed your dialogue about your car. Good stuff!!

hi sharron,here is my 57 got it in 2006 from indiana,its been at big als you may have seen it,this year will be going on the twlight sumersun run.

hope you can come along to the club meetings so time,we also display at the pinjarra festival.

scott.

I see the blue one has the rarely seen blue stripe in the sweepspear.

hi sharron,here is my 57 got it in 2006 from indiana,its been at big als you may have seen it,this year will be going on the twlight sumersun run.

hope you can come along to the club meetings so time,we also display at the pinjarra festival.

scott.

Hi Scott,

Your car is awesome! Love the blue/white colour scheme.

Must admit, I haven't seen it before. My husband Ian and I have a trade stand every year at Big Al's (Real Steel Rod & Custom - with the green Nash hotrod and teardrop camper trailer) and we are so busy that unfortunately the only way I get to see any of the cars is on the way out of the gate at the end of the day! I will definitely keep my eye out for you. If you come this year, please do come up and introduce yourself.

We are also hoping to be at the Pinjarra Max show on 3rd April (trading), and will make every effort to bring my new Buick. Haven't got her licensed yet, as she has been parked up waiting for Ian to finish his course in Perth (which is done now, but assignments due and busy with work).

We are from down south of Perth - near Harvey. We try to get to as many shows in Perth as we can, but usually with our tradestand. The goal is to get a tow hitch on the Buick so we will be able to choose which car we take - either the hotrod or the classic, depending on space requirements.

hi sharron

take a look at our website www.westernbuicks.org

under events you will find the sky show pictures,also the members car are listed in year groups.

we have about 75 members with about 150 cars in perth/western australia and quite a few on your door step too,1 member in our club has about 30 buicks and only 1 1/2 hour from you 5 min from me

if you look up my 57 in the years listing you see a film strip when i bought the car from the states.

good luck with yours.

Hi Scott,

Thanks for the link - I have had a quick look. Some very nice cars! Some I have seen around before, some not. My eyes have definitely been drawn to anything "Buick" for the past couple of years (since I have been looking for one).

Is yours the only 57 in the club? I know of several locally, but they are not in a club.

Was very interested in your pics when you bought the car. How did your buying/import experience go?

Have you had any issues with your car since you have owned it? Its always interesting to talk to other people in the same situation as yourself, and to hear of their experiences (both the good and the not-so-good!)

I notice you have had your car since 2006. You might be able to answer the question asked by Ozzy Tom from Adelaide who has just bought in a white 57 Special - where do you buy your consumables (ie filters etc) for servicing? Have you had trouble getting any parts?

We are still in the very early (but exciting) stage of getting to know our new car, and learning of her quirks and repairing the little things as they crop up and preparing for licensing. Was there any changes you had to make to your car to allow licensing in WA? I have heard conflicting stories regarding the need for RHS review mirrors.....

So far, so good - and really (really!) looking forward to getting her licensed so I can drive her around. Hopefully soon.

1 member in our club has about 30 buicks

Wow!!!!!

hi sharron

yes its the only 57 in the club,possibly the first 57 licenced in wa too,its on club licence and yes it needed rhs mirror buts thats all it got to be licenced.

it took 13 months to get the car from when i bought it, there is a story on the club web site in the magazine section,it came with a new paint job, it needed a few small tidy up jobs,its had new brakes alround,and cylinders and front wheel bearings.

the rear bumper ends where rusted away so i had to get good replacments from the states and have the rear end rechromed,also fitted modified window outer glass weather seals,new air shockies and fronts too.

there are 3 other cars i know off,1 in bunbury red/white but had been sold on,another red/white in perth original belong to murry renolds(cruzin show) later owned by armadale auto parts an 1 near ozy park getting hot rodded.

i do all my repairs and parts are avalible for bobs automobilia,cars inc and some good wrecking yards in the states,some parts are hard to get,ebay was a good source but lately its full of trash and accessories stuff.

i changed my oil filter to a spin on z24 and bought an adaptor from d500dave of ebay.

buying and importing was some times stressfull

if you in perth you welcome to have a look

scott

barkwood@iinet.net.au

hi sharron

yes its the only 57 in the club,possibly the first 57 licenced in wa too,its on club licence and yes it needed rhs mirror buts thats all it got to be licenced.

Thats great! I know there are not very many 57s in WA (and I think I might have the only Super?)

it took 13 months to get the car from when i bought it, there is a story on the club web site in the magazine section,it came with a new paint job, it needed a few small tidy up jobs,its had new brakes alround,and cylinders and front wheel bearings.

the rear bumper ends where rusted away so i had to get good replacments from the states and have the rear end rechromed,also fitted modified window outer glass weather seals,new air shockies and fronts too.

I had a read of your news story about purchasing the car - and all your shipping hassles!!! Glad I didn't read that before we shipped our car! What a saga - LA via China to Australia..... Shame all that waiting on the docks caused your chrome rust issues too.

there are 3 other cars i know off,1 in bunbury red/white but had been sold on,another red/white in perth original belong to murry renolds(cruzin show) later owned by armadale auto parts an 1 near ozy park getting hot rodded.

Yes, I know the previous owner of the red/white car from Bunbury, but don't know what happened to it. The red/white one from Perth was once green/white and we very nearly purchased that one from Alan Smart from Armadale Auto Parts prior to Christmas 2010. The deal fell through because he was getting the gearbox rebuilt and he kept saying "two weeks" and after four months it still wasn't done. It has since been sold to a young guy in Victoria (and the gearbox has since stuffed up again and had to be completely rebuilt AGAIN!) Lucky escape?

We also nearly bought a 57 2door Special with a yucky matt black and airbrushed graphic paint job and a 350 Chev engine conversion. It has since been sold to a young guy in Perth, so you might see it around sometime (kind of hard to miss....)

I know of a silver/black one in Australind, who just got it licensed in time for his wedding on New Years Eve. Apparently the floors and sills were bad so he had a lot of work to do prior to licensing. I am actually looking forward to seeing that one up close soon.

I had heard of the ozy park one getting rodded, but don't know details.

I also know of two more Buick's, but not 57s - one 55 in Australind, and a 56 in Albany.

i do all my repairs and parts are avalible for bobs automobilia,cars inc and some good wrecking yards in the states,some parts are hard to get,ebay was a good source but lately its full of trash and accessories stuff.

Thanks for that. Will keep them in mind for when/if I need anything.

i changed my oil filter to a spin on z24 and bought an adaptor from d500dave of ebay.

Interesting...

buying and importing was some times stressfull

In hindsight, I have been extremely lucky with my car. I all happened very fast and flowed from start to finish. I have heard some real horror stories since it arrived here, and thankfully our experience was trouble-free. Thank god! Its only after hearing these horror stories I realise how lucky we were... The purchase itself was the most stressful part, as buying a car long distance is a very big gamble without being able to eyeball it yourself - we just had to trust the people acting on our behalf..... and hope! Big relief when it arrived safe and sound, and even better than our expectations. Bonus.

if you in perth you welcome to have a look

Thanks! I am sure I will see you around (eyes peeled...)

scott

barkwood@iinet.net.au

Thanks Scott.

Nice car i have a 57 special and am trying to find out if other people have problems with the vacium wipers and would like to put power steering into it but but don't know what i need for parts. who would know about a car that old i have no idea.

GORDON24, "who would know about a car that old" - WE DO! And you will be amazed at the advice you'll get right here. Some of it's in Real Time, too. You'll ask a question about vacuum wipers, for instance, and somebody will post that he's working on that right now and this is what he's finding. I say "he" out of habit but women like Sharon often give great advice, too. From all the way around the world, to boot. Welcome to Buick heaven.

Here's an informative and ongoing thread on those troublesome wipers - http://forums.aaca.org/f162/whats-so-bad-about-57-58-a-304516.html?highlight=1957+buick+wipers

Gordon,

Just did that with my 57 Special. It is not a bad job and it really makes a difference in the steering on the car. Put power brakes on it as well. Another great addition! The power steering addition will need the power steering gearbox, power steering pump w/pulley; dual groove fan pulley; new idler arm for power steering, new pitman arm, new intermediate link, high pressure power steering hose; low pressure power steering hose, all the brackets to attach the pump to the engine (2 brackets); power steering drive belt.

That is the parts list for the transformation to PS. Really read the Chassis manual on power steering very well, because there are some things in there that you need to keep in mind when you are making this transition. Otherwise, it was a pretty simple changeover.

I was just suprised to find out that it took a lot more parts than the steering gear and the pump, but with all the correct parts installed to spec, the power steering works like a champ!

Good luck and feel free to ask questions. There is a lot of knowledge here on the forum. Just make sure you make your homework first. Most of the members on the forum are very willing to help, but you need to make the effort to work as well.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Sharon beautiful car!