neil morse

Yes, been there, done that.

Maybe, possibly, but I would say not for sure on either count. But kudos for your efforts!

Yes, as I said, the 56 is a three passenger "Business Coupe." The 56S is a six passenger "Sport Coupe" with "full rear seat." They both are on the 121" wheelbase chassis.

You have stumped me, Elpad. I can't find it. That little Crosley behind the Olds looks crazy!

Yes, but that is not my trick. That was the fix that was installed by a previous owner -- very simple, a length of heater hose and two zip ties. I read somewhere the torque tube was sometimes referred to as the "Buick bell" because of the clanging sound produced by the cable equalizer hitting the tube. As far as orientation, the shop manual shows the spring clip on the bottom. The rubber grommet that Ben mentions does not prevent the "clanging" from occurring. As you can see in this photo, my car has the rubber grommet. But even with the grommet in place, the cable equalizer can hit the torque tube when you go over a big bump. I think the little piece of hose is a good fix. I have no clanging.

I believe the model 56 was a Super business coupe with jump seats in the back. The 56S was a Super coupe with a full back seat. They both shared the C body with the Roadmaster, but were built on the smaller 121" wheelbase chassis. No Super was "built on the same chassis as the Roadmaster." They shared the body, but not the chassis.

Also, here's where the paint was on my car -- on the torque tube just where it meets the axle housing.

A little more automotive archeology today. I actually had not noticed until yesterday the statement in the shop manual that the optional gear ratios could be identified either by figures stamped on the underside of the axle housing, or by daubs of paint. So I decided to take a look at the underside of the axle housing on my car. Here's the first photo I took. Obviously there's the number "40" that's very clear. I don't know what that signifies, but it doesn't seem to relate to the axle ratio. But I then I looked closely, and it seemed like there might be additional figures stamped to the left of the "40" in this photo. I went back down to the garage and took a wire wheel to the area in question. Sure enough, what looks like it might be a "3" and a "9" emerged. But the stamping is so light, particularly compared to the "40," that is difficult to say for sure. So anyone who is curious or has doubts about what axle ratio that have in their car might want to take a look at the underside of the axle housing and see what they find.

Not a problem, Thom!

What is this? Something to do with the convertible top?

Ken, congratulations on reaching this milestone! What a great sound.

Here's a table from the '41 Shop Manual showing the color coding for rear ends. Assuming it was the same in '40, this would indicate that your car had the optional 3.6 and your parts car had the standard 3.9. As Don says, I'm sure the location of the paint daubs differed a lot since there was just a pot of paint on the assembly line and some guy just slapped it on wherever. I see it also refers to figures stamped on the underside of the axle housing -- I haven't checked on mine. With regard to the PM I sent you, I have to stress that I did not do that research personally. The information was provided to me by my friend and neighbor Thom ( @Shootey ). I was planning on putting the info on this thread, so I might as well do it now since you have mentioned it. In Ken's thread on his '40 Roadmaster, the question of the proper orientation of the drain hole in the differential cover came up. Most pictures show the drain hole at the 6:00 position, but some show it at the 4:00 position. Thom, who is turns out is quite a scholar of Buick shop manuals, provided the answer. The section in italics below is a quote from an email that Thom sent me. I have 1941, 1942, 1948-1949, 1950, 1952, and 1953 Buick Shop Manuals. The following manuals instruct rotating the cover with the filler at 4 o’clock: 1948-1949, 1950, and 1952. They all say 4 pints of lube would then be needed. A 1952 product service bulletin at page 142 states: “AXLE HOUSING COVER 1952 ALL SERIES. In the near future, the rear axle housing cover will be replaced in production by the cover used during 1951. This cover has a higher filler plug hole location which increases the axle oil capacity approximately 1 pint. The increased quantity of oil appreciably reduces axle operating temperatures at high speeds and also assists in reducing early gear and bearing wear. The additional oil capacity insures a constant supply of oil in the bottom of the housing when taking high speed turns. Whenever axle trouble is experienced with 1952 cars and the job is torn down for service, we recommend installation of the 1951 type axle housing cover and plug assembly, Group 5.398, Part No. 1390887. “ The 1960 Buick chassis parts book specifies the same cover for 1940 thru 1942 40-50-60-70 series and 1946 thru 1955. This would have been a retrofit of the redesigned 1951-type cover to the earlier years. So in 1960 and before, the 4 pint idea seemed to have relevance to years dating back to 1940. I infer from the 1952 service bulletin statement that Buick’s fix for prior years was rotating the cover to enable adding a pint of oil to the housing. Hence the instruction in the earlier shop manuals. This is consistent with the lube chart for '41 which indicates that the rear end has a capacity of 3 pints. My car seems to have managed for the last 83 years on 3 pints, but I will go ahead and rotate the cover by one hole when I put it back on to achieve the 4 pint level.

I've had good results with conventional carpet and upholstery cleaners like this one from Woolite https://www.bissell.com/woolite-carpetupholstery-foam-cleaner-4-pack-83524.html?languageok=1&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=[adv:BISSELL][cou:US][ini:Portfolio][plt:Google][fun:Engage][str:PLA][tgt:PLA][crt:PM+Consumables][lng:ENG][net:SPART]&utm_term=&PID=google_[adv:BISSELL][cou:US][ini:Portfolio][plt:Google][fun:Engage][str:PLA][tgt:PLA][crt:PM+Consumables][lng:ENG][net:SPART]&gad_source=4&gclid=Cj0KCQjwwYSwBhDcARIsAOyL0fiI2m-rQmK1MI5dVvMVAq9GJFvxOFBNqSbaP7zm1Tt1mowZ7izUyNsaAiLtEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

No, no, no! Don't wash off the "barn find" fairy dust or you will significantly diminish the value! (Looks like a sharp car, despite its needing a bath.)

Rear End Exploration I was kind of looking for a project, and I read in the shop manual that the rear end should be "completely drained, flushed out, and refilled" twice a year (!). I assumed this recommendation had something to do with the inferior quality of gear oil back in 1941 compared to what we have now, since I hadn't heard anybody talking on the forum about this, but I decided to go ahead just because I had never done anything but top up the oil level in the rear end since I got the car seven years ago. The rear end was also dripping oil pretty badly, so I figured I would try to clean things up a bit. I also wanted to confirm, once and for all, what rear axle ratio I had on my Super. The standard on the Super was 4.1-1, with an optional 3.9-1. When I first brought my car down to Don Micheletti's, he noticed that there was a red paint mark on the torque tube where it joined the pumpkin. We looked in the shop manual, and it said that red paint identified the axle as the optional 3.9-1 ratio. But what troubled me was that the manual talks about "daubs" of paint "on the outer ends of both axle shaft flanges," not where the torque tube joins the pumpkin. The performance of my car on the freeway seemed to confirm the 3.9 ratio. It seemed very content to cruise at 60 to 65 mph, whereas I have read that in cars with the standard 4.1, the engine is getting quite a work out at those speeds. So I assumed that my car had the 3.9 gears. But I had also heard that the difference between the 4.1 and the 3.9 was very slight -- so I remained curious. Well, today I got the cover off the differential and confirmed that I, indeed, have the optional 3.9-1 rear end. Here are a few photos: In the second photo, you can see that the pinion gear is stamped with a "13" and a "51." 51/13 = 3.92. So that's confirmed, and anyone who sees daubs of red where the torque tube joins the differential should assume that also means the optional 3.9. I'm just going to clean things up a bit, and button it up again with a new gasket. Very satisfying day!

True!

Looks like a very comfortable driver in excellent shape. I'm not sure I like the seats with the "Packard Deluxe" lettering on them, but the interior looks very tasteful and comfortable even though not correct. Red lights are a mystery -- Fire Chief's car?

Here we go again. Another great MoPar at a very reasonable price. This automobile will provide many miles of comfortable, trouble-free driving. Interior looks very nice. The only thing I would change is the tires. Those radials do not look right at all.

Haha -- is that a Packard or a Henry J.? I can't believe someone would post an ad with those photos!

Dave Tacheny can best be reached between 4 and 7 pm Central at 763-427-3460.

Doug Seybold or Dave Tacheny are probably your best bets. I don't have their contact info handy, but I will post it later.

Thank you for the responses. I did a little poking around on Google, and I think that Leif is correct. If you look at this photo of a car off the Bonham's website, you can see a very distinctive molding in the vertical area just below the body and adjacent to the running board. You can also see a slightly different version of this molding in the photo of the '23 posted by Oregon Desert. And if you look carefully at the subject photo, you can see the same molding. Can we assume that this molding was unique to Buick? I would imagine so. So I think that clinches the identification. Any other comments?

A few more: '39 Ford Phaeton One-off homebuilt boat tail speedster Stutz Bearcat '64 Ferrari 250 GT Lusso

Plaid Tour 2024 Another year has passed quickly and it was again time for the Plaid Tour, an ALS research fundraiser in honor of Marshall Mathews, this year the 21st iteration of this annual event. We start at the Mathews home in Woodside where we drink coffee and mill around admiring each other's cars and perusing the wonderful collection that Marshall assembled over many years. Then we head up over the hills and down the other side to the little town of San Gregorio where we enjoy Bloody Marys, kick tires and spend more time socializing. Then the event ends in a schoolyard in Pescadero where we have a picnic. The weather was great, all the roads were open again after the rain damage that caused problems last year, and attendance was way up. Here are some of the cars in attendance this year, as well as some of the cars from the Mathews collection. Very early Buick -- I don't know the year 1926 Bugatti racer '33 Packard V-12 Club Sedan '52 Jag XK-120 My '41 Super The Bugatti departing:

Nice work!