C-Rad

I prefer original manuals (eBay) even if the binding gives out, because the reprints I have seen have too much contrast. The black and white photos in the manual end up being more black “or” white, and lose a lot of detail when they lose the subtle shades of grey. I am curious about the digital/CD manuals. Is the text searchable? If so, that would be an advantage, and a scanned computer image might not suffer from the contrast problem that a photocopy does.

Yes, exactly. Why is that air cleaner hard to find? Was it not used on any other years and/or any other Buick models than Riviera? Is it true that a non-GS Riviera from ‘65 would have had a 401, not a 425, and that the 401’s used a Carter carb (not a Q-Jet)? Is it also true that the ‘65 air cleaner (designed for a Carter carb) wouldn’t fit on a Q-jet carb? Or would it fit, but simply point to the driver’s side instead of the passenger side? ideally, I’d like to reproduce a stock setup (‘66 425 (non-A.I.R, non-RS) w/ Q-jet, and air cleaner pointed to passenger side) and so pass on the ‘65 air cleaner, and wait for a correct ‘66 to come along, but not if I’m going to wait forever.

Thanks for the reply. I noticed from pictures that air cleaners have indentations on the bottom, presumably so that they will clear valve covers, and other stuff that is positioned around the carburetor. That suggests that if I rotate the air cleaner to point the snorkel to the other side, that some of that stuff might obstruct it. also, I don’t understand the last paragraph of your reply. Are you saying that for standard, non-GS cars, that there were two different carburetors offered, and so two different air cleaners? It sounds like the bottom line is that I need to avoid using a 65 air cleaner on a 66 Riviera and just wait to come across a 66 air cleaner.

For stock, non-RS, non A. I. R. Rivieras, are there any differences between the ‘65 and ‘66 air cleaners? I need an air cleaner for my ‘66, and there’s a ‘65 available. I also need an air cleaner for my 67 Riviera, but I assume it’s different, since it’s got a 430 instead of a nail-head.

I could use some patch panels for a 66 Riviera: Floor, lower rear qtr panels, lower front qtr panels, the lower rear part of the driver’s door jamb, lower rear windshield frame

I just saw this. Do you still have the fan shroud?

I doubt anyone makes an aftermarket kit for a 67 Riviera. The kit in your picture is for a ‘67 Skylark. Some of the pieces from that kit might fit, but it’s very likely you’ll need to make at least some of your own seals. That Skylark kit might help you build your own seals by showing you thickness and density (firmness) of each seal, so you can pick appropriate materials to fashion your new seals from.

beautiful car

Thanks for the info guys I have both cars, so I can transfer accessories and other parts, but I need to examine that list to see if there are any deal breakers (like '67 suspension parts interfering with the '66 (Nailhead) engine.

I'm in the same boat, need a replacement dash (for a '67). Just Dashes looks great, but it's way out of my price range for restoring a driver. I'd love to get more feedback about the quality of the OPGI replacement dash pad. People say they're not great, but that's vague, and not necessarily first-hand experience. Can anybody talk about direct experience with the OPGI pads? Thanks

I looked into 3D printing to recreate connectors. from what I've read, the type of plastic used in most (all?) 3d printing isn't rated to survive the hostile environment in an engine bay (could melt, or break down over time).

That's a great place candidate for restoration

I recently bought a '67 Riviera that has a black dash, but all of it looks worse than yours, so I'm interested. I'm in Southern California, so I'd need it shipped (92040). Let me know if you still have all of this. Thanks

I'm looking for parts for a 1967 Riviera, and a 1966 Riviera: For 1966: Top Radiator Support Fan Shroud Fan Battery Hold Down For 1967: Top Radiator Support Fan Shroud Fan Battery Hold Down Steering Wheel Thanks

My goal was to buy a '66 or '67 Riviera that could easily be made reliable enough for weekend drives with the family, but needed enough maintenance/restoration, to provide teaching opportunities to my mechanically inclined thirteen year old son. I've recently acquired both a '66, AND a '67 Riviera, both of which need work, but not the same work. (I'll put the story of why/how I ended up with both instead of just one of them at the end so you can read it if you are interested). I'm going to do most of the work myself (and kid) in our spare time (i.e., slow progress) My primary question is: Will a 425 Nailhead from a '66 Riv easily go into a '67 Riv (which was the first year of the Buick 430 engine)? In short, the '66 has a rebuilt engine and trans (not installed) but bad flaky rust in at least six spots, and the '67 has a solid body, but tired engine and potentially inappropriate trans. I want a car that I can regularly drive on weekends as I gradually improve/work on it, until it is ultimately a beautiful and reliable daily driver. Does the following plan make sense, or will I run into trouble: 1) Pull the tired 430 engine and 1976 trans out of the '67 with the intention of doing a slow rebuild on the engine, and maybe finding a correct '65-67 ST400 ("Switch-Pitch") trans. 2) Put the rebuilt 425 Nailhead engine and TS400 trans for the '66 into the '67 ("temporarily"), to make it a more reliable daily driver. 3) Gradually restore various parts of the '67, while also taking it on weekend joy rides with the family. 4) Gradually rebuild the 430 engine from the '67 (which is now driving around with the 425 engine) 5) When the 430 engine is finished, pull the Nailhead engine from the '67, paint the '67's engine bay, and install the factory-correct, newly rebuilt 430 engine back into the '67. 6) Continue to improve, and drive, the '67 (body work and paint, suspension, wiring harnesses, etc.) 7) After the '67 is a mostly-restored, reliable, good looking daily driver (Maybe I'll be retired by then) focus on fixing the rust on the '66, and then put it's low-miles factory-correct 425 Nailhead back in. 😎 Ultimately sell the restored '66 to recoup some of the costs of this adventure, and keep the restored '67 to pass down to my kid, who helped me restore and enjoy it - the end. Sorry for the long post, but here's more if you haven't had enough: The Story... I wanted a 1966 OR 1967 Riviera for a rolling restoration project to do with my thirteen year old son. I wanted to be able to drive it often during the restoration, so I could build memories with my kid, and so he'd have a sentimental connection to the car some day when he inherits it. I didn't want one that would spend the next few years in pieces in the garage, while I slowly made it drivable. Given that goal, I decided to not buy a '66 Riviera project I had found, despite the already rebuilt engine and trans, and the $5000 price, because it had a lot of rust, and so would require a teardown, and a lot of fabrication and welding, which I don't yet know how to do. It would not be available for driving and memory making with my kid, who will be 18 and out of the house in five years. A couple weeks later I found a '67 Riviera that had almost no rust, ran, drove, and stopped, but was old, tired, and cost $10,500. It served my purpose so I bought it. A week later I was starting to wonder how much rust I could have had repaired for $5500, and wondering if I'd bought the wrong Riviera, when the phone rang. The man who had the rusty '66 that I didn't buy said he needed $2000 to fix his primary family car that had just broken down, and asked if I would take his '66 (with a rebuilt engine and trans) for $2000. There's only one answer to a question like that, so hoped my wife would understand and said "yes". Now I literally have more Rivieras than I know what to do with.