RIVNIK

Greetings MLP, Love that'73! One of the best cars I ever owned. I had good luck finding parts for mine on Ebay a few years ago. There are also multiple vendors listed in the Review ad section. Not sure if the taillight assemblies are being reproduced, you might look for them in an OPGI catalog.(as usual, buyer beware) But if you can remove them they can be disassembled & the lenses can be restored w plastic polish. the reflectors can be painted silver, & the bulb sockets cleaned up or replaced. The chrome may benefit from a touch of liquid chrome paint. If the grille is not too bad you should be able to remove & restore it yourself. Could be just a matter of sanding the painted areas, masking the chrome, & hitting it with some satin aluminum or gray spraypaint & clearcoat. p.s. next time you're in Orlando drop by & I'll GIVE you a nice driver quality '73 rear bumper. (better than the $450 bumper "core" on Ebay) Anyhoo,good luck. Drew

thank you Tom! you'll be hearing from me soon

thank you gents for the quick responses. I will look into each of those & hopefully find a solution to the problem. will let you know how things turn out asap. Drew

Greetings! Hope you all had a nice Easter weekend. Q: Why does my '65's starter drag after the engine heats up, & what is a possible remedy? It works like new when cold. Thankfully the warm Riv starts after the 2nd or 3rd slow rrrrrrur, but it always gives me a scare. (also a little embarrassing). thanks. Drew

twern't cheap

Sorry Craig! I am still looking for his card, but I was corrected on the name by another member. It is Gary Tayman, & might be listed as Tayman Electronic. Also check out the current thread "Looking to improve my Radio/Sound". Member dr914 gives an alternate source for radio conversion that may be closer/less expensive, but sounds like the same treatment. They may both be Aurora dealers. good luck. Drew

Greetings atencioee! Regarding NTX's mention of Gary Tayman, check out my entry on the current "63 64 64 Stereo Thread" above. Sorry I can't find his card but he should be easy to find, possibly on Aurora Design's dealer list. While there is probably a dealer closer to you, I highly recommend Gary for his excellent customer service & extensive info over the phone. He knows exactly what your Riviera needs. Also he keeps sending me $25 discount texts which I never need, since I'm all fixed up already. You might ask him if you can use them towards your purchase in exchange for my glowing recommendation. Will be happy to give permission if needed. good luck. Drew

correction: was just reminded by NTX in another post, that is (Gary)Tayman Electronics.

I sent my original '65 dirty rusty radio to Tayback Electronic in Sarasota. Came back looking brand new, with modern blue-tooth electronics. They also provided me with dual-cone speakers that fit the '65 perfectly front & rear, wiring & installation instructions, &. Once you learn the commands necessary to operate the different functions its a breeze. The sound quality is excellent. Not that of a modern multi speaker system of course, but better than anything available in '65. Highly recommended, & best of all, no cutting!

Trust me, unless you are exceptionally talented & self confidant, NOT a good time to learn a new art, especially one that benefits from years of experience & tricks of the trade. I gave up & took mine to a local professional. $675 to clean up, repair & paint springs & install Clark's on two front seats. money well spent!

another thing the '73 did not have was a spare rear bumper. what luck! I just happen to have a nice one you can have. all you have to do is stop by & picket it up next time you're in Orlando. Drew

Best restoration documentation ever! Wish I could be there to help.

I guess it will remain a mystery for now, but one thing is certain. If that '73 needs a rear bumper, drop by on your next visit to Orlando & I'll give you one. Or anyone for that matter. Seems if you need one of these, you can't find one. If you've got one you don't need, you can't give it away! Drew

My '65 had what had to be, considering its condition in'93, the original black headliner w black custom interior. I replaced it w a black one from Clarks without researching enough. It looks great, of course, but now I wish I had the silver. WAAA!

Whaddup SLO, Many moons ago I acquired a set of Rally wheels without knowing about the codes. As it turned out there were actually three different types, one w a spacer ring welded to the back. It was only then that I noticed the subtle differences between the wheels. They worked, but I eventually purchased a nice matching set from good ol' Gene Guarnere of ABandG(can't recommend highly enough). As Ed mentioned, the masking is not difficult, just very time consuming. The templates make it a little easier, and can be found on eBay. I have repainted mine several times over the 35 yrs I've owned my '65. The 2nd time I used the templates, but chose not to bother w them the 3rd time, even though I still had some left, so there's that. I find certain jobs, such as meticulous masking, to have a Zen-like quality. (I'm retired & have plenty of time on my hands). I would add that, IMO, on certain colored cars the silver or light grey painted centers kind of wash out. Dark grey or black centers emphasize the wheel's great design much better. & since you're not sticking to stock it doesn't really matter. If you're looking for cheap & easy, Krylon SatinBlack w several clear coats looks great, but something more durable would be better. The local bodyshop that recently painted my steering wheel offered to paint my pre-masked wheels for $50ea. so I may go that route if I'm around long enough. Something to consider. Anyhoo good luck!

Greetings Jim, As you know, you're seeking advice not only from parts sellers but also potential buyers, so you might get a wide range of estimates. As an experienced parts buyer Im thinking I would pay at least $50-$60. However, that part is in like new condition, so Im anxious to see what an expert seller would say. hopefully one will chime in. ps: amongst those parts do you happen to have a '65 shift indicator lens(PRNDL)? Good luck. Drew

I would gladly trade them my extra power steering pump cap & antenna for that pristine trunk lock emblem, but it looks like somebody smoked it half-way through the shoot!

I am not familiar w the red engines. They are the color of '66s. Are they actually nailheads? The rest of those down the line have the distinctive vertical valve covers & the blue-green paint of a '65 nailhead.

Greetings RM, Sorry I can't help you with '73 production info, but while we're on the subject, I do have a '73 rear bumper you can have if you're ever in Orlando. it is a nice driver quality piece w good chrome, few scratches, & one almost imperceptible ding, but no hardware or rubber. It is free to anyone who can pick up, as the shipping cost to anywhere is probably more than it's worth. Drew

In this case I believe the winning bid has little to do with the condition of the car. Some folks just have money to burn. Despite that we do have one thing in common, & that is something money just can't buy.... a properly fitting Riviera glovebox lid.

thank you Rivnut for a brilliant solution. and thanks to Fred for asking.

Greetings Cornpanzer, If a '63 wheel is as rare as a '65, which I can attest to, you aughta' snag that one. I reckon its in decent condition or Tom probably wouldn't have saved it all these years. (having said that, don't look in my shed) No matter, the wheel can be reconditioned & there are quite a few horn bars on Ebay if you need one. I did run into a couple of unresolvable issues w both of my '65 wheels. With the GS"wood" wheel it was the stretched out metal band that runs around the perimeter, w the stock wheel I finally acquired it was the decorative strip that runs in the groove on the face. I'm not that familiar w the '63 wheel, but I mention these because my main concern w a '63 would be the metal rings separating the smooth from the grip sections. Another word of advice if the wheel need painting...the original finish is practically impossible to duplicate at home, at least by me anyway. After repairs, I took mine to a local restoration shop that recommended lacquer for durability. It looks great but is not indestructible. From then on you might want to take off any rings & wristwatches before driving to avoid ruining your beautifully restored wheel....heartbreaking

I enjoyed going back & reading this thread. A person did ask what some of you thought was a really stupid question, I must admit. Then(as at other times), someone feels like they have to say sorry, we don't have time to answer your silly question, why don't you perform a search and leave us alone. Others even chime in with the same nonsense. They could have spent less time just answering the question with 3 or4 numerals and possibly a letter, or just not say anything. Notice what followed. A two page, in depth, technical discussion on everything one would want to know about spark plugs. Thanks to everyone who took the time to turn a piece crap question into a meaningful dialog. Including the people who didn't want to answer, then chose to wow us with their vast arcane knowledge of spark plug facts. just sayin'

Had a similar problem. I assumed the horns were well grounded, went through a lot of rigamarole w no results. as a last resort I took the horns off, brightened the contacts, & everything worked fine. the RivNut was correct.

Thanks, he'll be here all week