In the spring of 2000, I had just sold my 1960 Buick Invicta Custom coupe, and was not particularly looking for another collector car. Even if I had been, I?m not sure a 1970 Electra would have been the first thing in my mind. But they say timing is everything, and if you believe in destiny, then you?ll agree this car was meant for me.
On the way home from work one day, I stopped at a local cruise night gathering. Sitting quietly among the ubiquitous Camaros and Chevelles was a pale yellow Electra convertible with Arizona plates and a For Sale sign in the window. It had that unmistakable look of an unrestored car, so I took a closer look.
The car was a perfect time capsule, and the closer I looked the more impressed I was. It had original paint, original interior, perfect chrome and nice supple weatherstripping. Nary a chip or ding in its full nineteen feet of length. Even the convertible top was the original and it looked like new.
As a kid, in the early seventies, I had worked at a small town Buick dealer in Virginia. My primary job was to assist with the reconditioning of the used cars. Most of our trade-ins were late model Buicks, and many of these were clean low mileage local cars. I saw many nice 1970 Buicks during this time, but I can honestly say none were as pristine at 3 years of age as this convertible was at 30!
The description on the sale sign was brief: 2-owner Arizona car, all original, 37K miles. It also contained a price that was as top-shelf as the car?s condition. I walked away, telling myself I wasn?t interested in the car, but found myself returning to the Electra for ?just one more look?.
I never found the owner that night, but took down his phone number. In spite of my reservations about the asking price, I called the next day to make an appointment to see the car at his nearby home. I was told the Buick had been originally sold in New York City and was later taken to Florida. The second owner lived in Arizona. The current seller was actually the third owner.
I spent several hours in and under the car, and quickly became convinced it was likely the finest original unrestored example in existence. It did not look as if it had ever been driven in the rain, and it most certainly had never seen a winter. There was even a paper build sheet still sandwiched between the gas tank and the trunk floor. But the best part was the instant nostalgia the car gave me about my days as a teen working at the Buick dealer. (If only we?d received a trade-in this nice?) I felt like I was sixteen again!
There was no question that I wanted this car, but there was that nagging issue of price. As if to put further pressure on me, the seller received several calls while I was there. His Hemmings ad had just hit the newsstands and the response was strong. With my wife?s support, and remembering Dean Kruse?s famous line (?you can?t pay too much?you can only buy too soon!?), I took the plunge and became a Buick owner again. It was just a few days after the thirtieth anniversary of the Electra?s original delivery date.
Subsequent to the purchase, I performed a title search. Together with the Protect-o-Plate information, and some additional sleuthing, I was able to identify and contact both prior owners, and piece together the car?s history more accurately.
The original owner was a convertible aficionado, and bought the car from City Buick in Long Island City. He had a company car for work travel, and no wife or children, so the Electra was driven sparingly. It was cherished as a collectible from Day One!
He kept it stored initially at his Queens home, but later at his second home in the ocean-side resort of Beach Haven NJ. In the late eighties he moved to Marco Island (Florida) and kept the car there. When he sold it in 1991, it had less than 25 thousand miles.
The second owner was a doctor that stored the car for several years before relocating to Scottsdale AZ. The physician?s family sold it in late 1999 to the man I bought it from. That gentleman is a well-known enthusiast/appraiser and was really just looking for a good home (and good profit) for the Buick. As a result, he had it just six months before selling it to me.
Due to work and family commitments, I?ve added less than a thousand miles to the car in our four years of ownership. It is infrequently shown, but was invited to the 2003 Meadowbrook Concours d?Elegance, where it received a ribbon in its class.
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