rodneybeauchamp

Yes our laws are strange. Vehicles up to 1967 red indicators are legal, anything after a no no! Frank, I think you might be onto something. I did find a schematic on another forum and figured that’s how it needs to be done. Looks easy on paper 😀😀😀😀

Super neat, way to go! Low mileage originals are better in my opinion that one that has been restored. Every scratch and dent tells a story. Nice colour. Look forward to your posts! Rodney 😀😀🙁😀😀😀

Hi Jon, thank you for your input. Am mounting the lights on metal brackets that mount using the bumper bolt underneath. Yes they will look Goddam awful but I can live with that until I figure something else. It is temporary so I can get it passed by our authorities. Lamps in the window would not be lawful here. Im thinking that by accessing the high level brake lamp wiring and tapping into there will take care of the stop lamps without flashing. But thinking I might have to access the switch wiring if tapping into the existing flasher wiring won’t work. Problem with the unit Digger 914 described is that the existing red lamps will still flash, which is not allowable. Am waiting on the shop manual with wiring diagram to arrive but trying to get something achievable done without it. Wont let it beat me but not fun! ☹️☹️☹️☹️

Hi Keith, thought that might be an issue but these are old school 18W festoon globes. So I tried both lamps on the one side, still no joy. And yes we have to disconnect the reds otherwise adding the ambers as extra would be easy. And that was my thought to pick up from the front only. It might be worth a try but again the reds will have to be disconnected. Thought about the clear reverse lamp locations but they sit just either side of the license plate, too far inboard to be legal. Will look at this tail light converter and see whether it might work. (But it won’t as it still retains the flashing and tail lamp in the one globe.) cheers Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀

Yes, the stop light wiring is the most simple and the plan is to do that, tap into the centre high level brake lamp. But these indicators have got me stumped. Plan is to mount them up physically and sort out the wiring with more information. May have to dig into the steering column wires! and my plan is to make it 100% reversible 😀😀😀😀

Funny, I thought down the same path. UNFORTUNATELY the red lamps must be disabled as TURN SIGNALS hence my dilemma to get them to function as STOP LAMPS seperate to TURN SIGNALS. Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀

EmTee, Am certainly NOT going to cut up such a beautiful rear lens. That is one of the most distinguishing features of this Riviera! Have bought two small Amber lamps with festoon globes that I will fit to brackets attached under the bumper at the support bracket. Am currently trying to work out how to wire them in given the STOP/TURN SIGNAL/HAZARD WARNING scenario on these. Have a post up in Technical hoping for some ideas as I am still waiting on the shop manual to turn up and can’t find a wiring diagram on line. Hoping I can wire the STOP lamps to the centre eye level BRAKE lamp as that does not flash with turn signals. But the flashers are doing my head in a bit. I am usually OK with auto electrical but this one is interesting 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔 Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀

Jim, You are right. Common sense would suggest that but ….. I won’t go there. My ‘64 Skylark (complied in 1990) had to have Amber rear indicators, clear front indicators and park lamps and high/low headlamps that dipped to the left. Put on some ugly orange trailer lamps on brackets (that got removed after inspection 😀) , removed the inner yellow lens on the front park lamps, and RHD sealed beams on the outer headlamps. Oh and because the US fitted front lap belts were not Australian compliant, I had to REMOVE THEM to comply! With the Riviera, (complied in 2015) the red indicator lamps were allowed, again all the seat belts were removed, RHD sealed beams fitted ….. all good to go! In our state (South Australia) we do not have annual inspections at all, but all LHD imports must be inspected for engine and chassis’s number identification and then a once only safety and compliance inspection. I and many others would agree that the standards should be made to suit that year’s requirement only. Given that we no longer manufacture vehicles here in Australia, there is no competition and these LHD import vehicles make up a tiny fraction of the Carpark. cheers Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀

After a couple of weeks of mis-information, I now have a clear understanding of what I need to do. Item 1. Vehicles manufactured on or after January 1973 must be fitted with yellow front and REAR INDICATOR LAMPS So gingerly I started removing the one piece tail lamp from this pristine Buick, careful not to mark the trim or break any clips. After removing the to plastic cover (screws) and rear panel (push in clips) it exposes a number of plastic retainers that thread onto studs attached to the lamp. Removing the globe sockets and wiring harness frees the lamp and it can be moved out of the way, the globes and sockets resting on protective cloth on the bumper. The Twilight Sentinel works very well as the lights are on. Photos or it never happened! Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀

Now the fun begins. First thing I did was add a fixed charging wire loom for my battery tender as this is critical for keeping a healthy battery in a vehicle that sees occasional use. This battery is located under the rear seat but Buick supply a POSITIVE battery post on the RHS of the fender. Using this and a nearby ground was perfect. The quick connect plug makes it easy to hook up or disconnect as needed. The bonnet (Err hood) can be partially closed by using a cloth over the catch, reminding me to disconnect! After several hours all the lights indicated a fully charged battery. Pictures below. 😀😀😀😀 Our Australian authorities are an interesting bunch when it come to LHD vehicles. I have dealt with them twice, once in 1990 for my ‘64 Skylark sport coupe and again in 2015 with my ‘63 Riviera. However my ‘new to me ‘97 is a much tougher ask. What I will explain in this blog are the things I need to do and items that I need to change so it complies for conditional historic registration. ( You can find a full list at MR629 South Australia Left Hand Drive Vehicles fact sheet.) Luckily this Buick already complies in several areas without change such as having two external mirrors, yellow front indicator lamps that remain on when headlamps are on, head restraints for all front outboard seating positions and an effective catalytic converter in the exhaust system. All good so far. Now here is where it gets interesting. 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔 Vehicles manufactured after January 1973 must be fitted with YELLOW front and REAR INDICATOR LAMPS Seat belts for all seating positions complying with our Australian Standards ADR 4D. Child restraint anchorages for at least three seating positions. An ENGINEERING REPORT supplied that verifies that the vehicle complies with the requirements of ADR 29 - Side Door Strength. No point arguing, it has to meet these standards! Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀

Hi all, am trying to wire in two seperate Amber turn signal lamps to the REAR of my 1997 Buick Riviera. These lamps have 18W festoon bulbs fitted. Our Australian authorities require ALL cars manufactured after 1967 to have Amber rear turn signal lamps to comply for LHD conditional historic registration. Am struggling at the moment to figure out how I can achieve this. (But I will as I don’t give in easily 😀) The original set up seen in the photo is ONE RED lamp stretching the full width of the rear end containing bulbs and sockets for TURN SIGNALS AND STOP LAMPS, TAIL LAMPS, REVERSE LAMPS and LICENSE PLATE. The BULBS in the photo are labeled T3057 and work correctly when plugged in either way. Each of the FOUR TURN SIGNAL/BRAKE GLOBE SOCKETS (two per side) has THREE WIRE INPUTS - turn signal/stop - tail lamp - ground as seen in the photo. Have located the YELLOW left hand and DARK GREEN right hand feeds for the turn signal bulbs. (Two per side) Connecting these to each new amber lamp with a separate ground turns the lamp ON BUT DOES NOT FLASH. It is only when I hook it back to original does the new AMBER LAMP FLASH. The original one piece tail lamp is ALL PLASTIC and each bulb socket is connected with A COMMON BLACK GROUND WIRE plus the TURN SIGNAL FEED plus the TAIL LAMP FEED. My original plan was to wire these AMBER LAMPS in separately and pick up the STOP LAMP WIRING from the centre EYE LEVEL BRAKE LAMP. This is to prevent the EXISTING STOP LAMP BULBS from flashing with the TURN SIGNALS. Have a shop manual coming but currently don’t have a wiring diagram so using a test lamp to figure it out. Am usually OK with auto electrics but this one is INTERESTING to say the least. Am I able to wire it correctly from here or do I need to dig further into the switch wiring in the column? Any help to get these working correctly will be much appreciated. Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀

EmTee, happening as we speak. Had been searching a while and even put out a post here and finally pulled the trigger on a set last week. It was well tested in a shop with some genuine Buick Riviera grease and stains to boot. The shipping to Australia cost more than the books! Rodney 😀😀😀😀

Some great diagnosis happening here, with perseverance too! Interested in what code reader you are using (gather it is OBD11) as I am considering getting one for the ‘97 Riviera. Must admit you are accumulating lots of Brownie points here, or is it EmTee who really likes the Allante? Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀

Wheels look sweet especially with the red centre caps, but I also am a fan of the wire wheel hub caps! So next thing you will be wanting to swap out that RH fixed door mirror for the cable operated remote to match the drivers side. Rotating the head allows it to be used either side. BTW any full size Buick including Riviera from 63-65 had these mirrors but the knob escutcheon should be square not oval as in ‘63. They can be swapped over. Not sayings you have to but …… Just creating mischief 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔 Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀

Wheels look sweet especially with the red centre caps, but I also am a fan of the wire wheel hub caps! So next thing you will be wanting to swap out that RH fixed door mirror for the cable operated remote to match the drivers side. Rotating the head allows it to be used either side. BTW any full size Buick including Riviera from 63-65 had these mirrors but the knob escutcheon should be square not oval as in ‘63. They can be swapped over. Not sayings you have to but …… Just creating mischief 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔 Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀

Thanks for looking, found a good used set on evil bay that have been pre-approved by qualified mechanics. Pity the shipping to Australia was more than the cost of the set of books. Such is life! Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀

Hi all, Wanting to buy a set of genuine shop manuals for my 1997 Buick Riviera Supercharged coupe. Understand it is a two book set and used for both Riviera and Oldsmobile. Have seen some very overpriced sets on evil bay with outrageous prices and exorbitant postage/shipping to Australia. If you have a set in good condition that you would like to see go to a good home because this ‘97 Buick is going to be a long term keeper in my book, please let me know? Please let me know if you are able to help? Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀

My understanding is even a worn engine with low compression will still run if properly timed. Three things required for an engine to run are fuel, spark and compression. Timing is critical and as mentioned is easy to be out by 180 degrees or the firing order (spark plug wiring) is incorrect. If you have a service manual then timing is explained step by step but you MUST be on the compression stroke for it to fire. Just my two bobs worth of experience with engines that eventually run Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀

Hi Mike, you may get a quicker answer posting this in the Buick forum. Also there is a dedicated ‘61-63 Facebook group that are helpful. Sorry I can’t help but sold my ‘63 recently along with the shop manuals. Am familiar with the bushings you are talking about. good luck Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀

Spot the difference! Fuel fillers are on opposite sides, and one has exposed boot hinges, the other concealed. One appears to have wider running boards but it may be the camera angles. Boot (sorry TRUNK) lid on one appears flatter, the other more curvaceous. Am sure there are other subtle differences that I missed. In Australia the Silver Arrow was built on the smaller body whereas the Chieftain used the larger body. Am sure the real Pontiac owners will chime in here! Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀

Absolutely LOVE the OK Used Car tag hanging from the mirror. I gotta get me one of those! Love the unrestored look of this and the others WAY MORE than the 100% nut bolt frame offs with way too shiny two pack paint. Just my take on things! Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀

Hi all, At the front of the engine found a raised machined boss above the starter motor. Removing the surface rust revealed a series of stamped numbers which is good enough for me. Hard to spot it but taking a photo with the phone really helped. A bit of white chalk and easy peasy to read. What is exciting is the engine number matches the last nine digits of the VIN on the body! Many thanks Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀

Thanks John, yes I’m hoping by 1997 the ironed out all the issues. I see lots on the Facebook site with over 200K and still running fine. And Yes, I can understand that love/hate relationship with a car. Will keep you all posted. Pretty excited to get it past our authorities, a few hoops to jump through but I was expecting that. cheers Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀

Tom, all the really good ‘65’s are down under and we ain’t selling them! Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀😀😀

We were on a club outing on Sunday and got Jo to take these. We had our VW Eos with top down and no Buick yet but both Kevin (sitting in the Skylark) and Roger (speaking to him owns the Riviera) bought theirs. Was a great event with a big number of very nice cars, these the only Buicks! Nice to see both Buicks out and about and Kevin is on the path to keep sorting the convertible! Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀