BTW: The 1954 Buick did it to the 2007 Carrera Panamericana and won the 4th place overall! Congrats!


For those who wonder how the car looks like from the outside, this is a video during a test run:

THANK YOU for posting that Jan. Man that will sho get your testostorone going. What I wouldn't give for a ride in that thing, much less drive it. Jan is this the same one that was reported to have been wrecked. If so was it before or after the race. I hope to make it there some day, if only as a spectator. I'm afraid I'll be too old to drive when I finish 54Muscle.

It was wrecked some weeks before the race. But he was able to fix it just in time and raced the car with success. 4th place overall and after some stages he was on the podium.

Pretty dang good showing I would say.

here is the car. it's not coming up on the other menu for some reason.




click the MENU button for more videos

Doesn't sound like your every day 322 / Dynaflow combination, now, does it?

Now, Lamar, with those back roads you probably have around Athens, you could probably just take yourself back in time and pretend you are a bootlegger running 54 Muscle during Prohibition (OK, with a futuristic car), or like them Good Ol' Boys, the Duke cousins

EXACTLY what Rita had to say!!!

Did you see the one where he just went straight out. His yellow shift light came on at top end and there was nothing lert to shift. 0 to 100 in 13 seconds and still a top end of 147 mph. That is some fast travelin man!!!!!

I am not a fast traveling man! I am a VERY irresponsible one!
Thanks for the compliments on my Buick. Yes, it is a beautiful car. In the next weeks I will place some videos from the race that were taken by a good friend, so you will be able to see the Buick in action from the outside.
Everybody at the race told me that the car looked great, but funny enough, everybody LOVED the wheels (which are not the ones on the video above, after the crash I change them). The funny thing is that those wheels I got them via internet in Summit! And the other thing was the sound of the car. Yes, it sounds GREAT. However I have to admit that this is by accident. In previous years I had problems with the exaust pipes beacuse, given the McPherson suspention, they couldn't run all the way to the back. So they were placed right below at the door side. So it was terrible! The sound and the smell all day. So I took the car to a very small shop were this guy (in the middle of a lot of street dogs and a lot of junk) said he could send them all the way to the back with some creative solution. He basically made the pipes almost flat but keeping the same "volume" of flow in order to cross above the suspention arms and then back to the normal pipes again. Looks funny from below, works, did not harmed the power and now it sounds great. The guy that did this is called Fortino. So when people ask me what kind of Exausts I am using, I tell them "Fortino Racing". I bet there are now some competitors asking for "this brand" in several racing stores!

WELCOME to the forum and thanks so much for coming on. Looking forward to seeing and hearing more of the car.

another WELCOME!

I enjoy every video and photo of you and your car, its great to see the old iron back on the road, racing for a new glory.

What do you do with the car now? I mean, the race is over and the next Carrera will be next year (or am I wrong??).

Well, the car goes back to its mechanics so they can pretty much go over it and check every single detail. These guys are VERY professional so, for example, they will review all photos of the car and videos to see it they can “discover” something that is not at a 100% with the suspension and stuff. They will also open the engine to review all it components and change whatever they feel needs to be changed. For example, last year based on the videos they decided to “do” a special carburetor just for me in order to fit my driving style. This year I noticed the difference. Believe me! So now I wait for they to tell me what are they going to do for next year.
Interestingly, I do not know anything (nor do I care) about mechanics. So whatever they tell me that need to be done is just info that I do not understand. So the deal I have with them is that they have to assume that the car is theirs and they are free to do whatever they want without even asking me! Crazy? Well… maybe, but it works. At least that way they are fully responsible of the car and have certain “ownership” over it. Actually sometimes I think that I am just like “their” pilot and not their client! Since they pretty much tell me what to do. "Chief, now you have mega breaks and you are not using them to their full capacity! Break later and harder!", "Chief, although your engine does 7500 rpms without issues, we want you to change gears at 6,300. That will be faster", "Chief, you are using too many revs at the start! Don’t be a fool! Break the inertia and then push! This is not a ¼ mile race!" Or even worse! This year, for example, when they gave me back my car just 2 days prior to the race, they told me: "Remember the car you tested? Well… it is no more. At last minute we decided to change all the springs and shocks and some modifications to the back suspension geometry. So handling wise it is a new car. Use the 1st day of the race to get used to it. We think it is going to be better". And it was!!! It was amazing!!! After half a day, in the service stop I told them: “I don’t know what you did to the back of the car, but don’t touch it now! It is great!”. Basically my car was very stiff; like a go-kart. Now the back is very loose so you can throw the tail like a real rally car. This combined with the 500HP torque to push you out of the turn and you have a very fast car cornering. And the results this year speak for themselves. Everybody was very surprised on how fast the Buick was. And I was on top of those surprised!
Now, these guys are pros. For perspective, on Discovery channel there is a program called Rides. They came down to Mexico to do a special program featuring these guys: The Vega Family. They not only prepare my car. They prepare around 8 for the race. And out of 20 editions, 14 times La Carrera has been won by a car prepared by these guys.
So, going back to your question, I send the car to them and wait for them to tell me next steps.

Oh man, are you in heaven or what? I mean a 54 Buick with a crew that calls you "Chief" to go with it...you must be!!!!!

I'm curoius, how old are you and how long have you been driving. How long have you had the 54 and why did you decide on it as a race car. I know why I would but just wonder what someone elses reason would be.

Hope to see you and your car in their own thread here on the Me and My Buick Forum. There is also a forum called PerfMod Tech which is someones abbreviatin for High Performance and Modified Buicks and would be great to read of your car there too.

I am 41 and this last race was the 6th time I have done La Carrera Panamericana.
How I got in love with this Buick? Well it goes like this:
In 1994 I was working in Marketing at P&G. My boss at that time went to have dinner to an X restaurant and a waiter drop some wine in his lap. The owner of the restaurant came to apologize and they started talking about cars. The owner mentioned that since 1992 he raced La Carrera Panamericana and after a couple of glasses of wine my boss decided to sponsor this guy. A couple of weeks later my boss was moved to an international assignment and I took control of the brand. Then I discovered that we were sponsoring a car! So I called the driver (the restaurant guy) and told him that I was now in charge of the brand, etc. etc. He invited me to that year’s presentation of la Carrera since his car was going to be present there. Weeks later, at the presentation, I met the Buick for the 1st time. It was the first time I have seen a Buick Century 54 and I immediately got in love with it! I sponsor the Buick from 94 to 96.
In 97 I left P&G and the Buick also changed hands. It was bought by another Carrera racer and he invested quite a lot of money on it. He finished 2nd that year. But he wanted to win so he decided to make himself a 53 Studebaker (much lighter, more aerodynamic). He took all the racing parts from the Buick to make his new car…
In 98 the Buick (or what was left of it) was pretty much abandoned.
In 99 I called the owner and ask if I could race the Buick. “Well – he said -if you construct it again”. So I managed a sponsor and invested 35K in the car. That year, 99, I race for the first time the Buick (and race for the fist time anything for that matter!). It wasn’t a good race. Out of 7 days, I only raced 4. Mechanically the car was a mess. Very frustrating.
Early on 2000 the owner sold the Buick to a guy from Belgium. They raced it on 2000 and on 2001 they raced it again but crashed big time at la Bufa. This Belgian knew I loved the Buick so he called me and ask me if I wanted to buy the car as it was (very well crashed). Without seeing the car nor asking his price I said YES!!! (10K was the price by the way).
On 2002 and a part of 2003 I spent quite a bit of money to leave the Buick as I wanted (around 55K). I raced it again (but now as owner!) that year. The raced lasted 5 hrs…. a car in front of me blew the engine and I grabbed all his oil in a fast curve. Back to the shop! (and another bill…)
In 2004 I was about to race the car but one night prior to start “it was decided” that It was better for me to race another car (the Buick did not felt “safe” they told me) so I ended up racing a Studebaker instead. Loooong, looong, very long story.
In 2005 I invested again more money, change brakes, engine and a new roll cage. It was an ok year but the new engine (done in the US by a guy that does NASCAR engines) was no good. Basically was VERY powerful but at VERY high revs (just like for an oval…).
So in 2006 I decided to send the car to the Vega Family with the instructions I told you. They pretty much changed everything (again!!!!) but finally, finally, finally!!! I’ve got my racing car just like the one I dreamed for back in 1994.
This year the car was great and I can not wait to race it again next year (by the way, I DO NOT drive the car except for La Carrera. So every year I can get the rush of driving it again!).
My driving record/experience? Only la Carrera as described. Nothing else. Actually I get teased because I really drive slowly on my everyday car (never above 65). So when people ask me where did I learned to drive and how come I can place the Buick on top places, I tell them: “It is not me. It is the Buick! After all it has been running the race since 92, so he knows the roads already!”

As interesting as your Buick is I am even more intrigued by the house in the background, any other photos of it? any story? history?

Oh Boy, a chance to tell about my other love before the Buicks came along. Back in 1985, after totally restoring a Queen Anne Victorian and no sooner than we get finished it needs another coat of paint, my wife Rita and I decide to build our own Victorian Farmhouse (with not a drop of paint). I set about demolising old houses and buildings around Athens town and salvageing all the good old framing lumber, heart pine flooring, old swirled sand glass windows, pedestal sinks, clawfoot tubs, korbels etc. Rita and I designed and drew up plans for the house and pretty much built it ourselves as you can't hire people to build the way I wanted it built...the old fashioned way. A lot of the framing of the house and barn is of fir that I managed to salvage from an old lumber company that was being demolished in Athens. They had brought it in from out west when they built back in the late 20's. Being fir and as old as it is it is almost like lighter. It is the finest lumber in the world IMO. Aside from the fact nails won't hardly penetrate it, I love it. I've laid pieces of it out on the ground next to spruce and pine and the termites can't even penetrate it.It's also stronger than pine. Of course if fire ever got started it would burn so fast that it would create a Black Hole. The siding is western cedar I had a local lumber yard order amd saw for me. ... As soon as the house was finished, I started on the barn. Then the little well house which I built out of Belgium block cobblestone from the streets of Athens. Then came the Buicks and whiteline fever.

thanks for the interest in my old house Wayne. From reading your profile, I have a feeling we might have a lot in common.

So you have a fishing boat you don't use either?

We have a 2 1/2 story house with city tax records going back to 1903...you got it right when you talk about hard...all the framing is fir - nice and big and straight. Then there is the fir plank flooring on the 2nd floor that we are slowly bringing back to life room by room...if only I was any good with a floor sander.

Gosh.. my hubby is also into old houses. We plan to get a old farm house or similar in the UK next year or so. But sometimes I which not -- will barely see hubby since he will either do the car or the house...

Cheers Dyna

PS: Would love to hear more of your creations Lamar but maybe in a private mails since it's not a Buick

Now when you say "old" in the UK, you're really talking OLD. I was so glad to save as much of those old houses, school buildings etc as I could. Just like old Buicks, it breaks my heart to see them demolished.
Regarding your PS. The house, the barn, the wellhouse... they're the "Me" in "Me and My Buick" just as much as anything that has to do with Buicks. I think it's good to share more about your person here. Creates more interest in each other and ties us all together into one big happy Buick family. Just my opinion...

Na I'm (well hubby) actually more refereing to what you would call Victorian upto around mid sixties. Especially art deco..... I'm not to much of a thinker in that department more than that I like when it homely -- and the two houses you had in your pictures would really fit my bill . Hubby is more like you don't like to see them "crushed" or turned into nasty shops where everything original is gone..






I guess you are right.. I mean about the me in me . Liked your family pictures by the way. Looked like you all had a very nice Tday. It was nothing more than a normal Thursday overhere. If you come to the UK please make sure to give us a buzz ...

Cheers Dyna

Buck 115: Wondering what Engine you are running and would love to see pics if you have any. Sounds fabulous! Thanks! Gary

uhmmmm, maybe I can stow away in a certain Cadillac trunk just before they load it into the container. Pack plenty of Vienna saucages,crackers Moon Pies and RC Cola.

Moon Pies and RC Cola....... I heard that a lot in school at Elon, NC. I guess this is a down south delicacy!

Gary N: Today I will take some picks and place them on the net.
The engine is a Chevrolet 350. That is as far I know. Hope that from the pics you'll be able to see other details.

Looking forward to seeing those pictures. I hope you will start your own Me and My Buick thread as it would certainly be interesting. Let me know if I can help with pictures as they can get tricky sometime. In the meantime here is another video I just uncovered from the PanAm. LOVE this car and this race. How I would love to run "54 Muscle" there someday, not necessarily as modified but as vintage original.

More Buick 115 on utube

Thanks. Your car sounds like a small block Chevy. But I have to admit I was hoping you were going to say "It's a modified 322..." just for the oddity of it all.

Gary

Hmm I think it might be a bit cramped but then if you made it possible to open from inside you could possibly pop it and take a walk once in a while.

Ah, I'm sorry to say we don't have moon pies and RC Cola here. So you better buy a big stash before you head over otherwise you might be in trouble since you can't continue with your healthy diet ...

Cheers Dyna