1957buickjim

Pretty vital to engine cooling. 57's always run pretty warm and not much airflow underhood coming in through the grille. The shroud assists in keeping airflow channelled to come through the radiator for cooling If its not there, you don't have efficient controlled airflow and overheating becomes a real problem.

Just to chime in. They are the same way on my 57 Sedan, 57 Estate Riviera Wagon and on my 57 Caballero. Masticated stapled to top of the metal close outs with the filler neck close out captured inbetween. Factory for the Specials and Century for sure in 57, regardless of plant. Sedan is from Flint, Estate Wagon from KC and Caballero from Southgate.

Nice Car! Congratulations on your new addition. Feel free to PM me regarding anything you might need for the wagon. I probably can help in some form or fashion. As Joe said, I just finished a 57 Riviera Estate Wagon this past summer. What is the paint scheme on your wagon? Would love to see some interior pictures and engine compartment pics as well.

That's correct Lance!

Unfortunately, there is a difference between a 1957 and a 1958. The 1957 has holes drilled in it for the 4 dash support trims, where the 1958 piece does not. If the piece you show in the picture is in good condition, it is possible to strip the paint from the aluminum and have it polished to a brilliant level. That is what I did with my dash in the pictures.

I totally agree with you about Willie! Absolute encylopedia of practical hands-on Buick knowledge. His recommendations are usually spot on. Thank's Willie!

Thanks for all the details. Just to let everyone know, Jim Hughes did rebuild this transmission, so I'm pretty sure he did it correctly. I did speak to him when it did it after first installation, and he indicated that the transmission fluid expands quite dramatically when hot, and if slightly overfilled, could casue this condition. I drained some and corrected the level, checking it hot, in neutral on a level surface. I do have the correct transmission dipstick as well for the 1957 Buick. I think Willie is onto something, as maybe ATF from 1957 had a slightly different viscosity, and adding the STP might change that for a slower or no drain situation. It does seem that it could possibly be an air leak or faulty seal, but I would think unlikely with a Hughes rebuild. I am going to call Jim and ask him what his thoughts are. As for lining up the flex plate to the flywheel and torque converter, Jim marked it and provided pretty thorough instructions, which I followed with the transmission install. I will review the product service manuals and chassis manual as you all recommended, just to make sure that it isn't something overlooked.

Thanks Willie! I figured it had to be something like that happening, like an air bubble in the system. I let it warm up usually for 10-15 minutes before I drive it, but this happens mostly when I've driven it (first time in a while type of driving) and then its Moby Dick spouting off when I go in reverse. Is there a reason that it happens mostly in reverse? A pump flow type of thing where the air is moved back and out the tube somehow?

So I have a rebuilt dynaflow in my 1957 Buick, done by the a guy who knows his stuff on this. However, when the car has not been run in a few weeks to a couple months, the transmission is sluggish until warms up, and occasionally when put into reverse (more often then not) will blow about 4-6 oz of trans fluid back out the fill tube. I have had it happen in drive, but rarely. Mostly in reverse. If I drive the car consistently, I don't seem to have this problem. Any ideas as to what the issue might be and how to resolve it so it doesn't happen? My garage floor (and my wife) is not too happy with a red oil spill. I have checked my vent tube on the trans and it is clear, no spider nests or gunk plugging it. Any help would be appreciated.

For sale: 1957 Buick Carter 2bbl Carburetor rebuilt and restored to factory condition. Ready to install on any 1957 Buick Special with a Dynaflow Transmission. Comes with mounting and air cleaner gasket. $375 plus shipping. Starter switch works and is set to factory specifications, all new gaskets and pump, idle screws set to factory shop manual settings. They may need adjustment when installed per shop manual. I will ship internationally, PayPal friends and family only. Thanks!

The item on the top of the housing in the first picture is the heater motor resistor.

Richie, Go to Pages 5-33 to 5-35 on the 1957 Buick Chassis Service Manual to see how to adjust the linkage. Not too hard. Good Luck! JIm

Yep..everything needs to be straight. No bends in any of them from the factory.

Yes, by looks only. It looks like an oven roasting pan. Has nothing to do with actual operation of the oil bath in filtering the air.

Matt, Glad to have you get the roof rack! Man, your car looks great! What a great starting point for what's gonna be a Buick B-58 Beauty when it's done. The dustless media blasting looks like a really good way to get a celan start on metalwork and body work. I might look into that should I start another 57 Buick project in the near future. I'm gonna really like following your posts for sure. Keep up the good work and please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I can always ask Joe.

It shouldn't have any bend. Straight, like Joe said.

Yes, use graphite to lubricate it. Any oil based stuff will gum it up over time.

I'm cleaning out some spare parts from my restorations of the 1957 Special Sedan and my 1957 Estate Riviera Wagon. Everything trim wise is for the Junior Series. AC and some other items may fit All series. PM me with what you're looking for and I'll see if I have it for sale and pricing. I have a bunch of parts. Here are a few pictures of some of the parts. I'll be posting more pictures as I dig the stuff out. 1 Each - L/R 2 Door HT Door shell, one pretty good, one with a good size dent, but fixable. normal bottom door perforations, but they have been shaved for custom use - $200 / Pr - pick up preferred, but can ship if necessary 4 used doors, less hardware for a 1957 model 43/63/49D/69 - $100 each, again pick-up prefered - can ship if necessary 2 - NuView Door Mounted Spotlights - $200 ea - SOLD 1 - NuView Cowl Mounted Spotlight (picture below) - $250 2 - Slightly used Coker Classic P225R75-15 Wide Whitewalls - tires only, no wheels- $350 / pr - pick-up preferred, but can ship 4 - Used Firestone 7.60x15 - No wheels. Tires only - $200 - Pick up preferred, can ship 1 - Re-chromed Hood Bar (40/60) - $475 1 - Very Good Grille Bar and Ornament -$250 1 - R Side - Re-Chromed Rear Bumper End - $1000 1 - L Side - Excellent Used Rear Outer Tail Light Housing (40/60) - $200 1 - R Side - Excellent Used Rear Outer Tail Light Housing (40/60) -$200 2 - Used Windshields that fit everything but a Model 48 Sedan (40/60) - $200 Ea - Pick Up Only (each windshield has a stone chip, non-viewing area) Sets of Reproduction Tailgate Safety Decals for 1957/58 Buick Wagons (all models) and 57/58 Olds Wagons (all Models) - $30 -set of 4 1 - Set of New Tinted Flat Side Glass for a 1958 Model 43/63 - and 49D/69 (less quarter glass) - $200 1 - Used PS Pump / Reservior assembly w mounting bracket - $150 I have more stuff as well, just send me a PM and ask. I might have it. Thanks

Yep, clear as mud. I was just interested in seeing if there was any rhyme or reason, and it look's like nope! It is interesteing to note that the 1047 casting does not have any feature for mounting the air cleaner bracket on the air horn, as the other 2 do. So, I'm guessing that that is not a 1957 Buick carburetor for sure. Yes the 1204 carb had the 2536S brass tag - 1957 Buick Dynaflow 2bbl Carb. The 1458 has no brass tag on it, nor did the 1047. The 1458 carb base is the same as the 1204 regarding throttle and trans bracketry on both sides, so maybe it is a later (58 - 60 364 Dynaflow 2bbl Carb?)

Old Tank has a good point with the starter. Also try putting the transmission in neutral, if you haven't already. Could be transmission issue. You could also use an endoscope camera on your phone to look in each cylinder through the spark plug hole and see if there is anything that would impede piston travel in each cylinder that could cause the issue. You might want to drop the oil pan and check the crank as well. I know, a messy job for sure. If it is a broken crankshaft, it might be able to be turned by hand because there is not much torque provided by hand turning. The starter would put alot of torque on the shaft, and may jam it at the break point to lock it up. Then you may wiggle it back in a "neutral" position with the break aligned on both halves of the crank. Moves good again by hand, then high torque lock up. Dropping the pan will give you pretty good insight if that is the case, and you could check for parts and bits in the oil pan. I'm not sure that a broken ring would cause the engine to lock up, because they are contained in the cylinder bore and shouldn't go above the block, so it would not jam the piston, you most likely would not have good or any compression in the cylinder that would have a broken ring.

I'm rebuilding a number of Carter WGD 2bbls for back ups for my 1957 Buicks. In the process, I have run across a few different casting numbers and configurations and wondering if they are all for a 1957 Buick or some other models or years of vehicles. These are the upper / top casting. The casting numbers are 1047, 1204, and 1458. Just tring to figure out what they go to and if they are 1957 Buick Carburetors. The most prevalent casting number that I have seen is the 1204. I've attached pictures

Steve! Nice shop and really nice cars! You look like you kinda know what you're doing there with restorations! Good luck with the Century and please reach out if you have any questions, especially Buick Junior Series (40/60) questions. Hopefully, I can help.

Wow! Looks like its in really nice condition to start a restoration. Nice find! Is it yours, or someone elses? Feel free to reach out to me, as I have a bit of experience in these Junior Series (Special / Century) 57's, if you get stuck or want to ask a question. Congrats!

Don, Yes, buying a crimper was a smart idea for sure! And easy to do as well. I sourced all my AN connections from Cold Air Products, out of FL. They had all the connections and hose you need, reasonably priced. For the bracket, I used the universal bracket from Vintage Air. I happened to have the mounting brackets for a 1957 AC Fridgidaire Compressor, but they wouldn't work with the Sanden. I made a template of mouting holes from the original on the universal bracket and then made it. PM me if you would like me to make one for you. Jim

Thanks Guys! I did make those crimps myself. After I got a couple of quotes from a few AC shops locally, it was cheaper to buy a crimping tool set and do it myself. Wasn't too hard at all, which I was suprised at. And even more suprising was that all crimps and lines held 27" of vacuum for 4 hrs, before I charged the system. I had thought about it, regarding the stealth mode AC system, (satin black paint), but with the Wagon, I wanted a little bling, since it is a stealth 57 restomod somewhat. Just subtle changes and mods, not headline grabbing stuff, but stuff that makes you go, Hmmm... I put the chrome air cleaner on for better airflow to the carb, as well as heat management, as the 57 was the last year for an oil bath roasting pan on the carb. But, I have put it on at a few shows to make it look stock. You would be correct with a little black paint and the factory air cleaner on 99% of people would think is was stock.