The Old Guy

I did not realize that I actually helped people! Many in the BCA look on me as a thorn in their side. Thank you for letting me know that even though I can be a pain, I still make a difference. The BCA has been my extended family for many years ( I joined in 1969) and has been a source of enjoyment for me and my family all that time. I look at the BCA National meet every year more as a reunion than a car show. Now with the BDE ,Modified Division ,and the Prewar Division, it makes it even more enjoyable. Thanks

Talk to Dave or Mike at TA Performance. They wont steer you wrong.

Welcome to the BCA and the "modified " division. I looked over your 40 in Rochester, and hope I didn't drool on it. It is beautiful ! I especially like the way you set up the hood.

The octane you have available today is considerably higher than was available in 1937, experiment with the timing and use the setting that works best for you. I have driven my 1940 Super over 104,000 miles,and have not used any additives. I just completed a 1900 mile trip in 97 degree heat , and the car ran flawlessly

You might also consider the 1970 GSX and the 1987 GNX, as they raised the bar for " Muscle cars"

Where are the engines located?

Gearing is very important in the older Buicks. The ratios varied from 4.4 to 3.6, and they make a tremendous difference. The later (40 up) straight eights had the option of gears down to 3.4. I have a 3.4 in my 40 and drive it 70-75 on the interstates regularly.

3 Jakes, when you get a few years into the judging , you will find that it is EXTREMELY difficult to get judges! Every year there are new judges, and they try hard, but it is difficult . The program we use is modeled after the AACA judging system, and they have a cadre of judges that do 10-15 shows a year. using this system once a year ,and training new judges every year is a thankless task! Mac Blair, Rick Shick, and now Alan Oldfield have a tremendous task. They work hard, but it is almost impossible to have any continuity in the judging system. What you don't seem to realize is that there is much more to judging than going out on the field. I have seen 17-18 year old girls judging, and I find it very hard to believe that they are competent. I know this will open a can of worms,but it is one of the problems we face.

Sid, I'm sorry I missed you at the meet, but there was a lot of ground to cover, and we must have been following each other. I went with the pre-war division for dinner in Friday night, and they are going to be a GREAT addition to the BCA. It is really wonderful to see the "old" cars being driven. The pre-war division left with our BDE "after tour" and ran with us to our lunch stop. What a great bunch of people! The after tour went down the Mississippi for a ways, and then ended up in Charleston ILL for out traditional banquet. We put almost 1900 miles on the 40, and Bernice has decreed that we will drive an AC car from now on.

3 Jakes, it is evident that you have never been involved in the preparation for a national meet. It takes more than one person. You can coordinate things to your hearts content, but it still requires people to do all the work! Every year the job gets bigger. The BCA now has more divisions that must be recognized, and the banquets take more and more time because of this. We started planning for the 2003 meet ten years before it became a reality, and the reason that the board is having a problem getting people to host the national is that it is becoming too much for a single chapter to handle. The 2006 meet had two chapters , and it still taxed them for enough people to do the job. They were not able to keep the hospititality suite or registration table open as much as they wanted to because of a lack of manpower. You mention about the aging of the club and must realize that many of us are getting old. I am 73,and many in the Buicktown chapter are equally as old, and you are right, we are just tired ,and want to enjoy the cars and people without any hassle. I do not look at the offer as blackmail! It was presented to the board, and if they did not want to accept, all they had to do is say "NO" I personnaly would have preferred that it be a regional ,as I like to go different places for our national meet. I have driven a Buick to every national, and hope that I can continue for many more.

I take the statement : "The Buicktown chapter is holding the board hostage ",to be ridiculous. I was at the meeting ,and the board was told that if they did not want the national to be a "non judged" meet ,it would not be a problem! the Buicktown chapter would simply convert it to the "Great Lakes regional" Many of you were not around, but if you check the records, there was no meet in 1974, because the Buicktown chapter was "burned out" We did the first three with a small chapter and could not do another. Everyone is crying about the fact that there will be no judging, but why doesn't YOUR chapter step to the front?? The buicktown chapter has done twice as many nationals as the next closest chapter, and there are many chapters that have done NOTHING!! I was told a long time ago " if you can't be a part of the solution to a problem, then you you are part of the problem." Why don't all you whiners step up and volunteer to do the next National? I know they have no bids for 2009!!

The Buicks in question were at Sloan for the 100 anniversary, but were privately owned. I believe one belonged to Vern Bethel, and the other to the museum in Ottawa

You are sharp lamar! I wondered if any one would spot that.

They may have been runaways from the sinclair pump by my front garage. It has the "Dino" dynosaur on the globe, and I'm only 4 miles from Roberta.

The meeting is not mandatory, but it is a good chance to meet the other modified owners, and also a chance to have a say in how you would like the division to be run.

The numbers vary! I believe that the average would be around 500 so they are in the ball Park. The 2003 meet had 1700, but some of the other meets struggled to get 400.

If you run a 50/50 mixture of water and antifreeze, you can run it to 230-240 degrees and never hurt it. My 455 occasionaly sees 240-250 and it still runs just fine. The only time you have a heating problem is when you start loosing liquids. if the rad is in good shape ,and the cap is doing its job , you should not worry about a temperature spike. If the engine runs continuoslly hot, then start to worry

Brian, I willl gave a big "AMEN" to your statement

I didn't do it!! ( but I wish I had thought of it)

There will be a meeting of the "modified' division before the judging, so I am sure your question will be answered then. Ask at the registration table where and when the meeting will be.

I have a 40 56C which is identical except the top goes down. If that will work, look me up . I will be in the driven class. The 40 is yellow ,and has twin spotlights and fender skirts. You will be in the modified area, and I will be in that area quite a bit, as I also have a modified which I am not bringing. There is a new dicision in the BCA for Pre WW2 cars, and I am bringing the 40 to support them. I hade my 37 at the last national to support the Modified division, and thought it would be good to help this new division get started.

I am not sure of all the differences , but the series III has had a deck height change, everything is on center, and they will literally run forever. The series II had a problem with the plenum,and there were some coolant leakage problems, but it was resolved in the series III' The 3800 will be phased out probably in 08-09 because the powers that be like the I6 that has lots of power, but is a gas hog! The I6 and the 3.6 VVT are both "state of the art" but have more parts and no track record. The "suits' are all bean counters , and don't know a fine engine when they have it This just the opinion af an "old guy" that has been around engines all his life, so don't listen to me.

I'm glad you had an easy fix! Now go drive the wheels off it,and enjoy it

Back the adjustment on the shaft up and you will probably resolve your problem. As stated in an earlier post, you need to uncover the bleed hole

The 59 still has a torque tube ,so if you change to a different tranny, you will need to also convert the car to an open drive shaft. This means changing the rear end. If you decide to do this, there are adaptors available to install a later transmission.