New garage find 65

Gentlemen,

Recently took possession of a garage find 1965 Riv. Hope the story doesn't bore you without pictures, but never been successful getting them on the web site. Went to look at a garage in Aug. that a friend contacted me about, said that there were three cars and it was part of an estate. I was sent to look at a 1954 Studebaker Conestoga station wagon. Oh and by the way there is a 1966 Riviera and a Ford Econoline there also, or so I was told. When I entered the sarcophagus, I wasn't sure but I thought I was on to something special. The only one of the cars that had been used in many years was the Ford and it was rust free and in Ok condition, the Stude looked to be rust free and complete but hadn't moved in years. Turned out that matching the last lube sticker with the odometer reading, the indication was that since it was last lubed in 1974 the car had been driven 300 miles and the odometer read 39000 miles. Was this really a 39000 original or rolled over still don't know but I backed away because I couldn't turn the engine over, V8 and OD.

Immediately realized the purported 1966 Riviera was a 1965, and this peaked my interest. The cars were covered in dust and the garage was hotter then Hell and the Riv's doors were locked and they had not found the keys. The Buick had not been licensed since 1994 and it like the other two cars, was covered with dust. A wet finger showed paint and chrome that shined, no body damage that I could see, and no rust around the windshield or the back glass. I asked myself if I had really just stumbled on to one of those elusive garage finds that we all dream about!

After talking to the step daughter, who lives in Las Vegas, the friend and neighbor who was also the executor I was guardedly optimistic that what I was looking at was indeed an original car. Next trip and armed with a slim Jim and a better light I saw and odometer reading that really got me excited, 23000 miles. I went back and forth a couple of times trying to decide whether it was really 23000 miles, everything pointed to a low mileage car. Long story short when I met with the stepdaughter who had traveled to Seattle she told me the story of a man who had bought the car new, used it only on the weekends until he began to loose his sight and stopped driving it in 1994. He lived in the same house his entire life, a house that his parents bought around WW1. He took care of them as well as another aged neighbor until they died. Lee had never married. At aged seventy five Lee finally had the courage to pursue and marry a lady that he had loved since they were kids.

Turns out that Lee was a receipt saver in addition to a record keeper. He kept all the car receipts including all his gas credit card receipts. The kicker was the log that he kept in the glove box showing all the gas that he bought, when he bought it, and where he bought it. The last entry was 1994 and the mileage about matched the odometer reading. Whoopee!

I had thought that I would make a bid on all three cars, but before I had a chance they sold the Econoline to a neighbor. Phyllis the stepdaughter turned down my first offer for the Stude and the Riv. I decided to concentrate on the Buick and to forget the Stude, just too much work and potential downside. Even though I knew nothing about the mechanical condition of the Riv I took a leap of faith and offered reasonable money considering the questions that I had.

Didn't even know if the car would roll. New tires bought in 1994 were very close to flat but they all held air. The car rolled and the brakes worked when we put it on the trailer. Engine oil and trans fluid were up and the cooling system still held pressure. Two days of cleaning and some servicing and the car now runs and drives and to me it looks like a million bucks. Paint, chrome and interior, including the wood look almost new! The exhaust requires replacing and there is still some lingering interior smell but all in all I couldn't be more pleased. The clam shells don't close but I have been gathering information from the forum. The driver's window dropped about two inches then stopped and getting it closed required the help of my off hand. Comments and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.-Bill

Interesting story! Sounds like you made a great purchase (the kind we would all like to find). Should be a fun process to bring such a nice car back to operational condition. Please post some pictures, it is not that difficult. Good luck with your car.

Great Story! Excited to see pics!

Bill,

If you want to email pictures to me at candjpollak@Hotmail.com I can post them here.

thanks, Chris

BTW, where are you located?

Mr. Earl has posted some easy to follow guidelines for posting pictures on the forum.

Ed

Pics please!