68 RivieraGS identifying markings

[rivman68]

Recently purchased a 1968 Riv with GS on lower front fenders. Not sure what other identifying markings should be on the car. Starting to restore.

Thanks

[Guest RivyRob]

Welcome Rivman68

The GS is an option for the Riviera and contains only the following:

GS emblems on front fenders (after RIVIERA )

A chrome air cleaner lid with heavy duty air cleaner (larger opening where air enters)

A quicker ratio power steering gearbox

A limited-slip (Posi) rear end with a 3.42:1 gear ratio

And Heavy duty suspension (basically just higher spring rate and heavy-duty shocks)

Anything else your Riv has is an option too, such as air conditioning(auto or manual), bucket seats with console and floor shift, power windows, etc.

Would love to see some pictures and also, if you have any other questions email me at rivyrob@shaw.ca <img src="http://forums.aaca.org/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

[68RIVGS]

Hi and congratulations on your first post !

The GS came with the A9 option (almost as Rob has outlined), If you have the original Buick dealer window sticker (see attachment), or dealer order sheet it would be identified there. The P-O-P warranty booklet may also identify it as a GS. However, just to make it difficult, any one of those A9 GS options, with the exception of the GS fender badging, could be ordered on a '68 Riviera. Most options were factory installed, but the chrome air cleaner lid could be ordered from a Buick dealer.

Total production for the '68 Riviera was 42,284 units which includes 5,337 with GS A9 option.

Check out the Riviera Owners Association at www.rivowners.org, and show us some pics of that GS !

[Guest Riviera66]

Um. Some of what's posted in the above two posts is correct, but all of it is not (specifically the fast ratio steering part). There's an article I wrote on the ROA website that you should read through (in the public area, actually),

http://www.rivowners.org/features/66-69/index.html

The article explains what makes a GS a GS. I suggest you consult that source for clarification.

Darwin Falk

1966-70 ROA Technical Advisor

[rivman68]

Thanks for the quick feedback. I was concerned that the only markings were the fender and nothing on trunk lid or interior.

Will post some pics and see you in Asheville.

[68RIVGS]

Excellent article Darwin, I should have referenced it !

Very nice car rivman68, but the location of the 'GS' emblem on the right front fender is not correct, it should come after the RIVIERA letters, not before them.

They forgot about the GS cars when the jig or die for the holes in the fenders were punched.

The Riviera letter holes were mirror image, while provision for the GS emblem was correct on the left side, it was not correct on the right side fender. As a result the GS emblem on the right side fender was squeezed in the opening after the letters and the wheel well moulding.

[Guest Riviera66]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Very nice car rivman68, but the location of the 'GS' emblem on the right front fender is not correct, it should come after the RIVIERA letters, not before them.</div></div>

Yes. As mentioned in the web article, this is a major warning sign of a 'clone' and not a real GS.

Darwin Falk

1966-70 ROA Technical Advisor

[rivman68]

Thanks for the education. Guess I need to chase down the seller.

[1965rivgs]

Hi Randy,

Very interesting subject....did Buick manuufacture a "GS" fender by creating a unique die or were the holes for the GS emblem drilled by the assembly line workers? Is there a seperate listing in the Buick parts book for a "GS" fender? One would think it logical that if a unique die was created Buick would have produced spares in the parts system.

I was told by a Buick employee, whose dept. handled coordinating emblem production by subcontractors, that engineering would create a unique sheetmetal die if the option/marking in question would exceed 15% of production, but nothing was written in stone.

I would think even if the holes for the GS emblem were drilled and not punched, the GS emblem placement would still have been squeezed between the Riviera script and the fenderwell. Nice thread, love the details....

Tom Mooney ROA#56

[Guest Riviera66]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">...did Buick manuufacture a "GS" fender by creating a unique die or were the holes for the GS emblem drilled by the assembly line workers? Is there a seperate listing in the Buick parts book for a "GS" fender?</div></div>

Tom:

No, there was never a "GS" fender produced. If you think about it, there were actually 4 unique fenders needed for the '68 and '69. With and without the GS emblem holes and with sidemarker or with cornering lights. The parts books only listed one fender...even when the car was brand new. Now whether they had someone offline who did the mods or if they stocked different ones for assembly line but then didn't stock them for parts, I don't know. It would've been pretty awkward to cut out the cornering light hole on the line, I would think.

Darwin Falk

1966-70 ROA Technical Advisor

[68RIVGS]

One fender fits all !

If you look at the rear inner front fender brace on a '68/'69 Riv, there were three punched access holes that correspond exactly to the three mounting lugs on a proper thin style '67'68'69 'GS' emblem ! So somebody in engineering musta been planning, or thinking ahead, and got it 1/2 right - it just didn't work out OK for the right hand front fender.

[1965rivgs]

So what`s the conclusion from the experts??? Were the holes punched in the factory die or drilled using a template on the assembly line?????

Tom Mooney ROA #56

[68RIVGS]

Don't know 4 sure Tom,

but my guess would be that they were done (as needed) in a seperate operation. <img src="http://forums.aaca.org/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

[Guest Riviera66]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">So what`s the conclusion from the experts??? Were the holes punched in the factory die or drilled using a template on the assembly line?????

Tom Mooney ROA #56 </div></div>

My answer is 'probably neither'. The best resource I've found for questions like this is to see how other assembly lines handled it. (GM tended to do things similarly even in different divisions). The Camaro assembly process has been superbly documented on the www.camaros.org website. If you haven't read through the 21 pages there ... I urge printing it out and studying it. The author, John Hinkley, describes in extreme detail how 1st generation Camaros were assembled. Since this is a 1967 to 1970 timeframe, it's perfect for comparison to 2nd generation Rivieras (and even '63-'65 and '71-76 Rivieras). You can infer a lot about how Rivieras were assembled from it (particularly on sequencing and what got done where). On this issue, that source says "All the color-painted exterior front sheet metal panels, plus the black-primed radiator support, inner fenders, and center grille support and the low-bake painted grille were conveyed to the sheet metal assembly area. All were in 'broadcast' sequence, matching the sequence of bodies on the main assembly line. <span style="font-style: italic">Option holes for engine emblems, antennas, vigilite housings, nameplates and moldings were pierced in large hydraulic fender piercing fixtures before the fenders were placed in the assembly fixtures.</span>" (Italics added by me.) The story then goes on to explain how the pieces were placed in holding 'fixtures' to get everything aligned and bolted together as a front clip subassembly. The front clip then travelled as a unit to meet up with the frame. I'd forgotten about the complication of an antenna hole (or not)... so this really is the most logical way to think of how they did all that adjusting for options on the fenders without different part numbers. (But wow... that means all these holes were cut/punched after it was painted... amazing.)

Darwin Falk

1966-70 ROA Technical Advisor

[1965rivgs]

I am very familiar with Mr. Hinkley`s article. Darwin, I am the individual who referred you to it. <img src="http://forums.aaca.org/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I have always questioned the prospect of indexing already finished sheet metal parts into a puch press. I have not seen evidence of such here in the rusty midwest nor does it make sense from a manufacturing process with much human involvement. Perhaps Mr. Hinkley`s 35 year old recollection of the process, or his communication of it, is out of sequence. If the parts were already brought together in "broadcast order" why not stamp the sheetmetal before paint?

Also, concerning a very low production option like the GS package, would construction of a special stamping die been cost effective? In `65 Buick changed both the the GS emblems and their locations. Would they have created a new die for such a change? For two holes in sheet metal?

On my `66 Wildcat GS, and for that matter all three cars, the holes for the GS emblems are definitely drilled..another low production option package.

The best way to tell conclusively, instead of comparing Camaro production to Riviera production, is to examine the cars themselves. It is easy to tell a drilled from a stamped hole. But do most really care about such nonsense? Hard to justify the time....

Tom Mooney ROA #56

[1965rivgs]

For anyone who cares....

I inspected two front fenders from an original `66 GS Riv I am parting and the holes for the GS emblems definitely appear to have been punched..... <img src="http://forums.aaca.org/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" />

Tom Mooney ROA #56