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1958 Buick Century 4 Dr Hard top restoration in Sri Lanka


ceejay

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HI all,

This is the ongoing restoration of my 58 Buick Century Riviera in Sri Lanka. It is the only such car known to be in Sri Lanka.

If this car was in USA, it would be considered a scrap car. Not even a parts car.

However, we are not allowed to import any vehicle over 2 years old into Sri Lanka, so importing a classic is not possible.

All we can do, is restore the cars already existing in Sri Lanka, no matter how bad they are and what it costs.

Hope you folks find the restoration interesting. Looking forward to comments.

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Edited by ceejay (see edit history)
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Hello Ceejay.

I see by your join date you have been around for a bit but want to wish you a big welcome.

The only '58 Buick in Sri Lanka, wow!

Your Buick is anything but scrap my friend. From your pictures you have a fairly complete car. Those rear lower bumper rails alone would fetch a good dollar in the condition I see from the pics! (ask me how I know)

So what is the story on your car? Does it run?

With just another hood and putting the trim back on will change the overall look of her.

Will watch your thread with interest.

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Thanks Doug,

Ohh you will be surprised as to how bad the car is, with the oncoming photos !

The car originally belonged to a Burmese gentleman named H.E. Boon Watt in 1958. He was the Burmese ambassador in Sri Lanka. He shot his wife because she was having an affair !!

The car then went into government storage and was later sold to an individual. He hardly used the car at all. After he died, the car sat in one place for 15 years. Partially getting wet due to a family dispute.

Finally the car was auctioned off and I got it from the auction.

I have had to buy parts cars in USA and import a LOT of parts from them for this one.

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why go to the US to buy parts cars..that would be expensive ...when you can just buy parts online like ebay etc ??

I didn't "GO" to the US physically to buy the parts cars. I bought them while I was seated right at my home in Sri Lanka.

My car needed so many parts that it was not practical to scout around on E-bay to buy bits and pieces from different sellers. Then I have to pay shipping separately for each part to my shippers address and then again sea freight to Sri lanka.

It was much more financially viable to buy 1 or 2 good parts cars, have them stripped and a bulk lot of parts send by sea to Sri Lanka, one shot.

The upcoming photos will show just how much had to be imported.

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coupekid.. Any duplicate parts I have, are with me in Sri Lanka. I doubt that the postage from here to USA would be worth it.

Let me know if you are looking for any particular part.

I know that no one in the world makes new lenses for the stop/tail and backup lights of the 58 Buicks and I'm in the process of reprodicing them. I'm desperately looking for good samples.

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Thanks coupekid, those are for the large series cars and mine is a Century so my main interest is to get the century lenses made first.

Frank Lyle did promise to lend me some NOS lenses for the reproduction project but I have not heard from him in a while and have not had any replies to my messages.

I shall pursue him and see.

Shall get back to you on your parts requirement

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I know that no one in the world makes new lenses for the stop/tail and backup lights of the 58 Buicks and I'm in the process of reprodicing them. I'm desperately looking for good samples.

Ceejay,

I can't help with a tail light lens (red) but will check and see if my used reverse light lens might be of use to you.

I can see now what you mean about the water condition issues! Sadly the front sheet metal is prone to some rust out by design but the water (most likely sitting out on a lawn?) just moves things along greatly. (sigh)

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I didn't "GO" to the US physically to buy the parts cars. I bought them while I was seated right at my home in Sri Lanka.

My car needed so many parts that it was not practical to scout around on E-bay to buy bits and pieces from different sellers.

It was much more financially viable to buy 1 or 2 good parts cars, have them stripped and a bulk lot of parts send by sea to Sri Lanka, one shot.

It is not legal to import any car less than 2 years old, but it is legal to buy complete old cars in a foreign country, have them disassembled in the foreign country and shipped to Sri Lank as parts? Sounds like Sri Lankan legislators were trained by the U.S. Congress!

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Ceejay,

Looked at one of the two backup lenses I have and pretty sure this one is not for you. Both corners for the screws are broken and the center is too.

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It doesn't look bad in the housing but with the lengths you are going to bring the car back would think you want better ones.

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I'm soaking the other lens to get the screws out so not sure it's overall condition yet. Will let you know.

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It is not legal to import any car less than 2 years old, but it is legal to buy complete old cars in a foreign country, have them disassembled in the foreign country and shipped to Sri Lank as parts? Sounds like Sri Lankan legislators were trained by the U.S. Congress!

Dave Yaros, No where did I say that I imported a whole dismantled car as "parts". I dismantled the cars, and shipped the PARTS which I need, to Sri Lanka and sold or scrapped the rest in USA.

We are allowed to import any car "PARTS".. we can not import the chassis nor body shell. Any parts which can be un bolted from the body shell, cab be imported.

All sheet metal like the doors, hood, trunk lid, inner and outer fenders etc can be imported. So can any small parts or mechanical components.

Edited by ceejay (see edit history)
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CeeJay

Love what you & your crew are doing with this car!

Wouldn't it be cool to see this car at the next BCA event!? At the rate you are going….it'll be ready!

Keep the pictures coming! Merry Christmas!

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ceejay, just wondering, what hourly rate is normal for helpers restoring your Buick?

Dale in Indy

I pay them by the job. If I pay them an hourly rate, they will work real slow and drag the job. Our labor prices are very low though.

Hey ceejay. You are doing a fine job on your car, but for your American friends you have never met, please put on some welding goggles or at least eye protection of some sort.

I'm not in any of the photos (so far).. those are my workers. I have provided British safety standard, personal safety equipment to them. Every thing from overalls, to hard hats, to eye protection, foot wear, respirators etc but they refuse to use them. They say they are not used to working while wearing such equipment and they simply will not use them.

CeeJay

Love what you & your crew are doing with this car!

Wouldn't it be cool to see this car at the next BCA event!? At the rate you are going….it'll be ready!

Keep the pictures coming! Merry Christmas!

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I am uploading photos from the past for the moment. The progress isn't as fast I would like it to be but every thing is getting done right. The next BCA event would be in America right ? the cost of shipping this car from Sri Lanka to USA and back again will be very high sadly... a Very Merry Christmas to you too !!

Edited by ceejay (see edit history)
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Hey Willie, The dates that come up when you open the photos, are the dates the photos were uploaded to this page :)

Ok this is the story of how I got the car...

For a long while, a friend had been telling me that he knew of a few old American cars lying around and that he would take me some time and show me. I have a great fascination of American cars and we have very few here in Sri Lanka. We also can not import classic cars to Sri Lanka, so classic american cars are very very rare.

I kept on and on asking him to take and show me these cars... (he had not mentioned any makes or models at the time) till one day, he said "ok, come pick me up tomorrow and lets go check out some cars"

Now, I must say that I am really bad with remembering roads and directions. You can take me from point "A" to point "B" along the same road, several times but I would still not be able to find my way by my self. My friend knew this fact very well....

So I go the next day (14th October 2007) and pick him up and off we go to several places which were quite a distance away and they were all in really remote places where you have to drive along tiny roads and keep making several turns. He kept directing me and we went and saw some cars...nothing too interesting and most of them way way beyond any hope of restoration...

Then he was directing me to drive along this small road and a car which was parked at a house which we passed, stuck in my mind.. it was an old white Mazda hatch back.

shortly after we passed that car, he told me to stop and we got down. we walked through these big black gates which were sort of open enough for a person to get through... behind the gate was this drive way which was going down a very very steep incline into a property and house which was way below road level.

As we walked down, I saw it to my left... the 58 Buick !! there was no one there... the doors to the house were open.

My friend said to me, you have a look at the car, Ill check if the owner is in and he went in the house.

I was looking at the car and there was lingerie (ladies under garments) all around the car

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My friend came back out of the house and said to me "oh looks like the owners of the house and car, moved out and rented the house out... and guess what, its being used as a 'house of ill repute' now and its full of prostitutes" we quickly had a look at the car and rushed out because these places get raided by the police often and we didn't want to get mistaken for customers of the working ladies !!

Back in my car and headed home, I was in love with the Buick and kept asking him for details... who owned it ? are they looking to sell it ? how much will they want for it ? how can I contact the owner ? ....

He told me that he knew the lady who owned the car and that she wanted to sell it and that I could buy it for cheap.

He said that he would contact the lady and let me know what she says... he later told me that the lady had told him, she will sell it but she needs to talk to her brother who is abroad and is expected to return soon. She had said that once he returns, she would let him know, and he would let me know.

Many days went by with me asking him for contact details of the owner, so that I could speak to her direct but he kept brushing me off.

I was desperate at this point. I just could not remember how to go back to the house !!!

I suddenly remembered that white Mazda which I saw on the way there that day.... I remembered that a friend who I worked with, had one just like it so I called him up.... he had sold the car to a colleague who I also knew from that work place so I called her up.... I described the road and the house where I had seen the car (I even noticed a fish tank through the window) and YES !!! it was her house !!!

Turns out, she knew the lady who owned that house and the Buick very well. I was able to contact the lady and found out the truth about the car.

It was her fathers. He died and there were a whole lot of family members fighting for his belongings including the car.

She told me the testamentary case had been going on for 13 years at that time and the car was sitting there for that long or longer.

She said there was no way she could sell it unless she got permission from the judge.

I asked here when the next hearing was and I called her in the evening of that day to find out if any progress was made. Then asked her when the next hearing date was and this went on for 2 years !!! I would call her every month to find out what happened in court until one day, I got a call from the lady who owned the Mazda, she told me that the Buick lady was trying to contact me.. she didn't know why.

I quickly called her and she told me that the court had taken a decision to auction the car on the 29th December 2009 which was in a few days time from that day.

The auction for the car lasted 18 minutes and I won the car at the auction for the equivalent of US$ 13,000 (thirteen thousand)

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ceejay, I should have known better on the dates (for instance the pictures in your last post were taken in 2007 and 2009), but I am not sorry for the mistake since we would not have gotten the 'real story'. Was it the house or car or both used as a 'house of ill repute'? :D

Willie

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Love it, I'm in the midwest and it can be hard to find cars that don't need floor pans. Car I just brought home is in need of every bit your car is. Mine is a 52 Super. I'll be checking back for inspiration.

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A bit risky considering the extent of rust through on the body. Not that the body rust is of that much concern, since you have already undertaken so much replacement, but it would be a warning that the frame is likely to be thinned and weakened by companion rust. With the jack stands where you have them, the body should stay straight. But when the body is suspended by the tires, with the additional two feet of span, and the action of bouncing down the road, I suspect in short time the doors will be permanently shut from flexing.

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:-) The first thing we did when we dismantled the car for restoration, was to strip the body bare, then take the body off the chassis and check the chassis for rust and twisting or bending due to possibly collisions etc and we found the chassis to be very very good. Only surface rust and it was completely straight.

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You can see the parallel strings in the photos. The chassis was set up to be level, on a specially prepared completely level concrete floor. Then parallel strings on either side and a center line string strung up and the whole chassis checked from every mounting point (both body and suspension points)

Also by the time of chopping the roof, all of the corrosion on the body has been cut out and new panels welded in, so the body is completely rust free and is quite rigid and strong (as strong as a new one would be)

The only concern is, have I ruined a good Century Hard Top by chopping it to make it a convertible ?? :confused:

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