Helping a lady out...

Hi, Buick folks. This is something of a long story - please bear with me.

In 2000, my Mrs. and I were visiting her parents in Southern Alberta. In the parking garage of their condo, I saw an absolutely pristine 1976 Buick Skylark, white vinyl roof on green body, flawless interior. Because I watch for such things, and have no shortage of car lust, I composed a brief note expressing my admiration for the car and asking that, in the event the owner ever wished to sell it, that I please be kept in mind.

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Since then, my inlaws have died and we don’t get to southern Alberta much anymore. I’ve put that little green Buick out of my mind for the most part, but occasionally wondered where it was and how it was doing.

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This past Saturday, I received a phone call from the owner. This is her story.

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Nellie is 93 years old, and until recently, in quite good health. Three months ago she started to have trouble breathing. Doctors have diagnosed a buildup of fluid in her lungs. This situation is manageable in the short term, but not past a few months. Nellie is moving out of her condo at the end of September and into palliative care. She is approaching this situation with a noteworthy dignity and calm efficiency.

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While cleaning out a desk drawer, she found the note I left on her car 11 years ago. She cannot drive anymore, and will presently have no use at all for the car. You might think this a straightforward “sell the car” deal, but it’s more complicated than that.

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In 1976, Nellie’s husband bought this car for her, brand new, from the local Buick dealer, as a birthday present. He chose the colour because it was the prettiest of any of the new Skylarks on the lot. She immediately fell in love with the car and took great pride in driving it around town. Five years later her husband died. She has no children. Because of her loss, and the love her husband expressed through the gift of this humble little Buick, the car has taken on an importance in her life far beyond what an inanimate object ordinarily would.

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The car itself is pretty straightforward. A-body, two door hatchback, V6, automatic. The car has been dealer maintained, fluids changed regularly, fresh battery and tires last year (whitewalls, naturally). It has always been parked under cover in a well-ventilated parking garage, and never winter driven. A full service record, from delivery to today, is available. It is absolutely stock. It’s a 35 year old car with 17,000 miles on it.

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She has had offers for the car, but everyone she talks to says “first thing I’d do is pull that V6 and throw in a V8.” She sees such an idea as a defilement, profoundly offensive to the memory of her husband and the spirit of the car. She’s also immediately dismissive of lowballers, calling one fellow’s offer of $2500 “an insult”. It’s important to Nellie that this car goes to someone who will respect it for what it is and care for it in the same way she has. It can’t go to someone who eyes it as raw material for a build of some sort, or to someone who will drive it as a winter car, or who’ll flog it until the wheels come off. We’re dealing with something metaphysical here - the embodiment of a husband’s love for his wife, and a much-loved family member. It needs to go to someone who will respect the car and appreciate it for what it is.

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I’m looking for leads here. Nellie truly has no time at all for tire kickers, lowballers, greasy teens with hot rod aspirations or people who will take up hours of her very finite life trying to negotiate her down from what she considers a reasonable price. Her mechanic told her 10 years ago “if you sell that car for less than $25,000, I’ll spank you”. She understands that this is high for the current financial state of the world, and what research I've been able to do so far indicates it's far beyond what anyone in their right mind would pay for the car. I'm thinking somewhere in the neighbourhood of $5000 to $10,000 tops - does that sound about right to you?

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I'm not in a position to buy the car myself. I don't have the money, and I don't have the facilities to store it in the manner to which it has become accustomed. We’re looking for a Buick aficionado who understands what a rare and wonderful thing this is, who will drive it on nice days and think fondly of Nellie and her husband.

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What would you, the Buick Cogniscenti, recommend? Are we out to lunch on my ballpark estimation of value? Is there any real desire out there for this generation of Skylark? Are there any Buick museums that would be interested in a car this new?

Thanks for whatever information you can offer.

Dan

There is certainly a market for the car, but the V6 will also hurt the value. For a vehicle that someone will coddly like Nellie has for the last 35 years, this may not be important, but we have all seen the TV auctions and the big engine cars always attract $$$.

I did not see in your post the body style, a recent Old Cars value guide shows 1976 Skylark

V6 only in the base model, I looked in the most recent membership roster and it is not specific. The Old Car price in #1 condition is $4,900

If there are options or other facts that moves this car up the price scale, even a V8 in the same condition is only listed at $6,400

It is super to find these treasures, but some people quote numbers that have no bearing on what the car is actually worth. With what you said, Nellie is expecting some serious money and she needs to revisit her mechanic and see how close to $25,000 he would pay.

I suspect he will sing a different tune when ask to bid.

I have several relatives in Alberta and a few of them are into vehicles. I will pass your message on to them, thought I do agree the price seems a little high. Can you give a better idea of where in Southern Alberta? Lethbridge, Medicine Hat..closer to BC or Saskatchewan?

I guess I know of one mechanic who needs a spanking.

Bernie

I had a 1976 Skylark with a V-6 for many years. Although it was a 4 door sedan, it was a great car. I ran it into the ground driving it every day and had very little problems with it. I would love to have another one. But $5,000 is a lot for a 1976 Skylark. I understand the low miles and all, but for $5,000 the normal Buick enthusiast has a lot of options. Unfortunately, sentimental value has little impact on a new buyer who doesn't know the previous owner. I applaud you, though, for trying to find a decent home for it and respecting the wishes of the previous owner.

I was going to say that $5000 would be rather high for that car, but others have already said it. She might get $5000 if she had a year to advertise it in all the right places and wait until she finds the right person whose mother or grandmother had a similar car, and is willing to pay top dollar. Anytime you have to sell a car quickly, you have to accept less money for it. Too bad that she obviously doesn't have that time. They are decent cars, but they aren't very collectible. Would make great transportation for someone for the next 10 years--and where are you going to find that for $5000--not many places, with the side benefit that you could take it to any local car show and probably win a trophy for it. But most people just aren't going to go out of their way to look at a mid-1970s, compact 4-door sedan with a V-6. There's a similar car for sale around here, similar mileage, similar condition, but a 1982 4-dr. Skylark, similar price, and it has been for sale for a long time.

Pete Phillips, BCA #7338

Leonard, Texas

There are 2 conflicting issues here - sentimentality and money.

A solution is possible if the primary issue is identified, i.e. the ladies desire to see her car maintained as she would wish or her need/desire to make as much cash from the sale as she can.

If it's cash she needs then she has to advertise, take the highest offer and not concern herself with the future of her car.

If sentimentality is the over-riding factor then she needs to select the prospective owner who will treat the car as she wishes and price it accordingly. The price may need to be lower than book value and not necessarily the highest offer to insure " the right fit " for her treasured car.

A 2 dr hatchback may be of more interest to the consumers than a 4 door. I'd be interested to know what options the car has. Rally wheels, bucket seats? A/C? perhaps.

Also any pictures? While I could not afford even the insult offer, this would be a great car to own and treasure.

There are 2 conflicting issues here - sentimentality and money.

A solution is possible if the primary issue is identified, i.e. the ladies desire to see her car maintained as she would wish or her need/desire to make as much cash from the sale as she can.

If it's cash she needs then she has to advertise, take the highest offer and not concern herself with the future of her car.

If sentimentality is the over-riding factor then she needs to select the prospective owner who will treat the car as she wishes and price it accordingly. The price may need to be lower than book value and not necessarily the highest offer to insure " the right fit " for her treasured car.

Well spoken.

93 years old and just a few months left with no immediate heirs?

Pick someone out [who is "sponge worthy" - Seinfeld] and give the car away at little cost. You would give someone a story they would tell the rest of their days, about how they got a car for "cheap" and kept it up honoring the lady and her story of how her husband lovingly picked out a car for her as a gift.

I would rest a lot easier doing it that way then waiting for the myth of the "right" guy coming along with the "right" cash in less then 1 month. Time is not on her side.

Anyone see the movie "Grand Torino?" Clint Eastwood was in the exact same place. He had family, but none were equal to the gift, so he gave it to the Hmong teenager because he knew he "touched" the kid and that it would be a lifetime memory for the kid as well...

My first new car was a 1979 Olds Omega [same body style]. It was well optioned and if I remember right I paid $5600.00 for it. She got 35 years of enjoyment and sentiment out of it, time to let go.

I always liked that era of Gm's cars. I have had Chevy Nova's of the same vintage, and all with 250 CDI 6 cylinders and 3 speed automatics. They were very reliable automobiles. I would consider another GM 6 clinder car if I could find one rust free, close to home, and inexpensive enough to bring home to the collection. It sounds like this car is out of my reach by distance and Dollars also. All I could offer at this time is a good home with TLC. Dandy Dave!

Man, did I come to the right place. Thanks for your input, folks.

Kattosha, Nellie's in Lethbridge. Any help your relatives might extend to a lady would be appreciated.

Jetback, I reckon you've hit the exact core of the problem. Nellie's going to have to nail down what she'd like. If we'd been having this conversation fove years ago, we could have shopped this around at shows and specialty publications, but time is no longer a luxury we have.

She's going to have to give this some thought.

I've also been in touch with our provincial automobile museum (Reynolds Alberta Museum in Wetaskiwin) to inquire about donating it. It'd always be taken care of there, have its history documented, and never hotrodded. Downside is there'd be no money in it for Nellie. But I have to wonder how much of an issue that is for her in the long run.

Again, thanks to all. I'll keep you posted on what develops. If she decides to deal it to someone in the states, I'd be willing to drive it down just for the experience.

Cheers,

Dan

"Daves89", your suggestion about giving it away at little cost is right on the mark. I have a 1963 Chrysler New Yorker which I have owned now for 19 years. It was left to me by a wonderful, 85-year-old lady who had no children and whose other relatives had absolutely no interest in it. It was her only transportation until she died, and I helped take care of it and find parts for it for the last 10 years that she owned it. When she died, she left me the car in her will. It's just a 4-door sedan, but it is one of my most treasured possessions, and I will probably keep it for the rest of my life. And, it makes a great story to tell everyone about how I got the car.

Pete Phillips

OK DAD: My suggestion.....let it go and give it to the universe. If it finds it's way to your garage, great, if not, so be it. At market price you wouldn't give this car a second look if it were not for the fact that you ran into a situation where you took a shine to this woman.

If you want something like this that bad there are many many cars available, maybe not this exact 76 Skylark but even more that are 1000 times cooler than this one. Mitch

If she wants to donate it, how about the Buick Heritage Alliance? They will find a new owner in the Buick family and they could use the money for their cause.

If she donates it, she can only claim a fair dollar amount on her taxes (the system may be much different in Canada) She would be hard pressed to claim more than the published amount as found in things like Old Cars, unless she finds an appraiser that will put a higher value on it, plus she must pay the appraiser.

Again I don't know the Canadian system but lets say she gets a $10,000 appraisal and uses that on her long form, lets say there is a 25% bracket that she might be in, the $10,000 would amount to actually selling it for $2,500 (money in her pocket)

Just to set the record straight, DarkAlley Dan stated this car was an "A-body".

Being it is a hatchback, confirms that it is an X-body. I know Buick moved the Skylark designation from the A-body to the X-body sometime after 1974, and it could have remained an A-body badge in Canada, so this could cause confusion.

Alot of folks continued to refer to the Buick RWD X-body as Apollo even after 1975.

Also note: the 231 V-6 is par for the course in a 76-79 Skylark. Therefore, I don't think this would actually "bring the value down", as we are dealing with original survivor points. These were never considered a performance car, so the engine size should hold no relevency when it comes the the value of a showroom example.

Without looking it up, I am not sure this model was even available with a V-8. Even if it were, it would only be a 260ci Olds, rated at 110 horsepower.

There is a dealer in Quebec that has been trying to sell a 2500 mile '75 Ventura for at least five years. They had it priced @ $22,000 in 2006. Last I checked, it was considerably less than that, but my opinion is that car isn't worth a penny over $12,000. And my opinion is biased because I happen to love 75-77 Venturas. It's real world value is less than $10,000.

I'm sure that dealer would love to get their hands on the elderly lady's Skylark.

I don't want to sound harsh, but from the original post it kind of sounded like this lady didn't need to worry about taxes. Plus she didn't have relatives to leave the car (or proceeds) to.

"Daves89", your suggestion about giving it away at little cost is right on the mark. I have a 1963 Chrysler New Yorker which I have owned now for 19 years. It was left to me by a wonderful, 85-year-old lady who had no children and whose other relatives had absolutely no interest in it. It was her only transportation until she died, and I helped take care of it and find parts for it for the last 10 years that she owned it. When she died, she left me the car in her will. It's just a 4-door sedan, but it is one of my most treasured possessions, and I will probably keep it for the rest of my life. And, it makes a great story to tell everyone about how I got the car.

Pete Phillips

Pete, I feel the same way about my uncle's '71 Lesabre. I will never sell the car (much to my wife's dislike of it) and would love to have what's wrong with it fixed so I could enjoy it more.

As to the Skylark, like the rest of you, I think $5000 is probably tops, maybe more like $4200-$4500. A few years ago at Hershey, I was looking at some of the auction cars next to Giant Center when the auction was there. There was a guy waxing his '78 or '79 Cougar for the auction. It had something like 7K miles on it and he really thought it was worth $25-$30,000 because " it would cost at least that much to restore one." I'm thinking, yeah right, he'll be lucky to get $10K and realistically, I would have said less. As it happened, my son and I went in to watch the auction Friday night and this car crossed the block. It got bid to $10,500 and was a no sale.

There is a fresh posting of a guy trying to help a co worker wanting to sell a 1978 Buick Skylark owned by her dad with 35000 miles on it, which prompted me to ask how this situation resolved itself.

Anyone know?

Sorry for not updating you, folks.

I spoke with Nellie a couple of weeks ago and broke the bad news - most likely $5k, and if we find someone with an emotional attachment to the car, maybe $7K, but no more than that.

Nellie won't take less than $9k. So this is where we're stalled.

It pains me to say it, but I haven't put any additional effort into this one. There's too wide of a gap between reality and expectation, and I don't know that anything can be done to bridge that.

Any additional suggestions?

Dan

Sounds like a matter that will more likely be handled by the Canadian probate court than by the current owner.

Unfortunately, one of the problems with some VERY elderly people is that they have so little to hang on to, that if she gets less than her $9K for the car, she could fixate on how she gave it away or was cheated out of it, and therefore actually lower or lessen her remaining quality of life.

Sad, too, because the probate court will probably wholesale it to a junkyard for $500 after her passing.....

The good news is that she has family, including a horde of nieces, nephews, etc all of whom would love to have the car.

The downside of that of course is that one person will be very happy and a great many others may be bitter or angry. Plus none of them can drive (Nellie tells me they've each written off a car in the last two years) so her car in those hands would cause bitterness within the family plus the car would never survive.

She'd like to sell it and split up the money. But she has more money in mind than that car will bring.

Sounds familiar. Back in the '50s, before I had a license, my grandfather passed with a '40 Ford that my grandmother had to get rid of. I wnated that car in the worst way, but it went to a distant cousin. It last about 2 months of abuse, as I recall.

At 17, I bought my own '40 Ford.

But my Dad did give me my '32 Buick, so things worked out in the end.

Even before I was "getting old", I hated to hear these stories, and now it seems even a bit worse. As often happens, someone raised her expectations, and while it is a low use car, there are limits to its value (well below what someone she trusted told her it was worth). The facts suggest it will not be a happy ending. So Sad.

John

If she needs the money, that is one thing. But, at age 93, worrying about getting the most money for what is basically an ancient artifact is "majoring in the minors."

Borrow someone's hat, put pieces of paper in it with the names of her favorite charities, the names of car museums that have expressed an interest in it, and any names of relatives that want it and can appreciate it, and draw out a name. That is where it goes.... DONE!!!

If she doesn't like that, donate it to a local BCA chapter, with the understanding the money from the car will be used in the name of her late husband for some philanthropic or charitable cause. My Lions club was committed to Eyesight work. Some Rotary clubs and Kiwanas donate money for kidney and cancer research. BCA clubs have done similar good works with proceeds from car shows in the past.

Give it up....it is just an old car!

Then she can focus on the important things like family and her own health in the few years, months or days she has left.

You know, thinking about her story and obvious connection to the car, I'd almost be tempted to give Nellie the $9K she wants just to save the car. It'll be a long time before it's worth that, if ever, but it is a car that I would save, use sparingly and likely pass on to my son and grandson.

What a heart John...

The good news is that she has family, including a horde of nieces, nephews, etc all of whom would love to have the car.

Not for ten grand.

The way she is going about it no one will have to pay a dime for the car.

I am curious as to who got the car?