JohnD1956

Hey there everybody. The members of this potential Chapter will be meeting on Sunday, Feb 13th, 2 - 4 PM at Bennigans, on Rt 7 in Latham NY. Feel free to e mail me at jld1972@empireone.net if you care to join us. Note, spouses are included and the menu can be viewed at www.bennigans.com. Thanks JD

Thaks Mr earl and Centurion. I had to stop there. Picking up the car was another adventure. It involves a broken down U haul truck and trailer. Don't know if anyone wants to hear that one... JD

Being a confirmed Buick nut since my Dads 55, I always loved the 68,69 and 70 Buicks, all of them. These being my final years of high school, I was always jealous of the cool cars all the rich kids drove. While I was proud of the 65 Electra we had, it was lacking the sport of the Mustangs and 442's, and endless Chrysler products. While in College, one friend buys a 68 GS 400. Nice car alright, but not a sweet as another friend driving a 69 Stage one with a 4 speed. At this point I purchased a 57 Special Convertible, but never got it on the road. Then I drove the old mans?s 69 Cutlass convertible, and followed with my first 56, a Roadmaster. But then college was done and family ways prevented me from following up on any other vehicles. Oh I had a few, but most were high milage cars that were rusted or damaged and never restored. Then, in 1992 while attending a family function at my sisters home, her neighbor pulled in to their own driveway with his red 69GS 400 Convertible. Milage in the low 20's but wait, what?s that on the hood? Joe, part owner says ? Oh, the original owner was a bit eccentric?. He had a Jaguar hood ornament mounted smack dab between the ram air scoops. He also had a Police spot light mounted through the drivers side A pillar. But still, a low milage GS conv, it was odd looking but still nice. Fast forward to June 2003. Somewhat flush, I began to wonder what ever happened to the GS? A call to my sister reveals she hadn?t seen the car in years but she?d ask anyway as she was still good friends with ?Joe?. Three weeks later she e mails me and says, guess what, Joe still owns the car and he is somewhat interested in selling. So here?s his e mail address. I wrote right away and my wife rolled her eyes. ?You really don?t need another car?. But I said common, a Skylark convertible? Lets just look. See, after all this time I had forgotten it was a GS. I knew it was red, and I thought I remembered a white bucket seat interior. My sister knew it was a Buick, but that?s it. My wife was not happy. So we wait a month, with nothing from Joe. I called my sister again and she agreed to ask Joe what was up. Then Joe writes that he is in partnership with George who has the car at his house for several years now. Joe hasn?t seen the car in a while and if George was willing to sell, he?d go along. So here?s Georges e mail address. Firing one off to George, my wife gets nuts. Where are you going to put another car??? Finish what you already have , etc... Anyway I hear nothing. One week drags into 4 weeks later, and then George e mails. By this point I figured I best not even open the e mail, but he titled it ?GS 400". I held off for about 10 hours and then caved like a tin hut in a hurricane. Yes, George was willing to sell and here?s where you can see the car. Around this time I had a job to do at my parents house so I loaded my son up and off we went. I knew the location of the GS but didn?t tell my wife where I was going. Upon completion of the job we took off to see the car. All the way I kept saying Mom?s gonna be mad. Doug keeps saying, GS 400 convertible... come on, She?ll get over it. And further we go. When we arrived the car was sitting in the drive way. Top down. Red, Black bench seat interior, Rallye Wheels and in need of a lot of cleaning. http://www.aaca.org/photopost/data/500/11481GSfront-med.jpg?7156 George told the story. His wife?s Uncle bought it new in the Bronx. He was his own man, so the Jag hood ornament and spot light, both of which George removed ages ago. The dent in the front bumper came from Uncle hitting the concrete in the front of the garage. That way he knew he was in far enough to close the garage door. When Uncle # 1 was gone, Uncle # 2 inherited it. He couldn?t explain where the rest of the dents came from but there were dents everywhere. But the car still had all the original parts except tires, exhaust, and the starter. Even though George kept it garaged, there was a humidity condition caused by the dryer vent in front of the car blowing all the dryer exhaust directly into the grill. Several years ago a brake line broke so it sat unused since. Anyway, Joe and he would let it go for $7,500. I wasn?t sure about explaining this to my wife. So I put him off and left. On the way home I called her so she could blow off the steam by the time I got home. Of course that didn?t work and we had a few tough days. I pretty much figured it wasn?t worth a divorce, so I let the matter drop. A week later she says did you ever get back to George. I told her , ?No. It took him a month to get a hold of me in the first place, so if it?s sold I?m not gonna worry about it.? But Doug said, Come-on, it?s a GS 400, 325 HP, CONVERTIBLE, you know you want it. I said it has a bench seat. I don?t want it. My wife says you know you want it, call him up and make an offer.. I told her I don?t want to hear about this the rest of my life. I?m not calling! As luck would have it the following weekend we were scheduled to go to this sisters house again and Joe is invited. Naturally the subject of the car comes up. And my wife says make him an offer. You know you want the car... So my emotions got the best of me and I blurted out, Joe, if you guys want, I?ll give you 5K for it. Joe says I?ll talk to George. I?d be satisfied with that, but it?s up to George. 3 agonizing weeks later, George calls.. Okay, it?s yours. Come and get it. http://www.aaca.org/photopost/data/500/11481GS_drivers_rear-thumb.jpg And that?s how I wound up with the car I always wanted in college...

I got my 69 GS 400 convert with 27K on the clock in what I think was a great deal. Not necessarilly cheap, but I'm happy with it anyway. I'm posting the story on me and my Buick in a little while. JD

Glad to keep you posted. I currently have 12 members, although some are pretty far away from Albany which will make winter meetings a bit of a problem. But we'll see what comes of it. JohnD

Mr. Earl, those pictures are depressing. I can't believe this guy won't sell parts. Some of the chrome still looks salvageable. Johnd

Thanks Norb. this is perfect. I really appreciate it. JohnD

No 49 dashboard Pics? It doesn't have to be restored, just correct.

Ha Ha Ha!!! that thing is a stitch... and only 256K ... Whew! Sure glad my garage is full or I'd be tempted to bib on that baby!!! JD

John, you ought to get both, that way they will keep each other company in the barn, and not cause trouble with the others. . JohnD

Hi Keith, I have 11 possible members at this point. I am going to move forward and establish that first meeting. I was thinking I would use the Chapter/Division Inquiry Letter as the outline for the first agenda. Would you happen to have that in MS word or Wordperfect format so it could be e mailed to the potential members? JohnD

Hi Keith, yes, I did get the kit. I hope I read it right , that I need a minimum of ten BCA members to sign the petition just to get started, Right? Right now I have 9 members and I just sent the letter this past Wednesday. This ought to be fun and interesting. I'll keep you advised on how we are proceeding. John D

Great idea on the dual posts. I'll drop one over there as well. And thanks for the encouragement. I really apprciate it. JohnD

Okay, I went out on a limb, and searched the 2003 Roster for people who may live in the Albany NY area, and sent them an inquiry to see if there was enough interest in a local chapter. Since this was a manual search I just included areas I recogonized in and around Albany. That may mean some eligible people did not get these inquiry's. Also it definitely means people in Mass, and Vermont who may have found a chapter in Albany a viable option did not get an inquiry. I apologize if I missed anyone and assure you it was not done on purpose. Meanwhile, in the event there are any such people here, I would welcome you to respond to the inquiry. I have posted the text of the inquiry below for your convenience. Again, I apologize if I missed anyone who I should have sent an inquiry to, and I look forward to working on a local chapter this year with you. The text follows: Hello, from a fellow Buick Club of America member. I am writing to you today, along with 39 other members of the BCA in and around the Capital Region, to inquire if you are interested in forming a local chapter to the club. As you may know, there are several chapters in New York, none of which are very convenient to us. There's the Long Island chapter, and Syracuse, along with several between Connecticut and Massachusetts. However, there are 40 of us within one hours drive to the Albany area, and 40 members would make a nice sized chapter. Of course, there are many more potential members as well. I tried to get to more shows and cruise nights this year than I have in the past, and I was surprised to see the number of Buicks at each show. I can't remember where I heard it, but someone told me that Buicks are the fastest appreciating collector vehicles in the USA right now. I hope it's true and speculate that it may be so because our cars have been so under appreciated and under valued for so long, yet they appear to be among the most reliable cars ever produced. However, I am getting ahead of myself here. Right now, if there are a minimum of 10 of us with interest in a local chapter of the BCA, we can petition for a Charter. The only obligation for this is that each individual must be a currently active member of the BCA. Of course if we do start a chapter, we as a group would have a few more responsibilities, to ourselves. Things like selecting a name and a board of directors, as well as a policy statement, and various other organizing aspects of such a venture. This of course is part of the fun of a Local. There are other things that would be fun as well, like caravanning to other local shows, meeting potential new members, gathering for a picnic, or a cruise excursion to some local attractions, and maybe traveling together to a Regional or National meet. This list could be endless, depending on the exuberance of the members of the Local. So here is my proposal: I would be glad to set up an initial meeting before the end of the third week in February for those interested in such a group. This meeting, depending on size, could be a Meet and Greet dinner, or lunch, or even less formal as a get together in my home in Glenville. Since this would initially be a working meeting to formulate a petition for a chapter, it does not have to be a long one. Thereafter, if there is sufficient interest, I know where there is a stunning car collection in Schenectady for our second meeting. While not as formal as say the Saratoga Auto Museum, this collection is simply fabulous in it?s historical aspect. Many cars are from the teens, and this meeting would take quite a bit longer to conduct as there are roughly 30 cars to be inspected, along with hundreds pieces of memorabilia. I would be glad to arrange this visit as well and would try to set this up for a Saturday. However, keep in mind that it is not free. The last time I went the curator charged $90.00 for access for the day regardless of the number of people attending. I imagine it is more now. So we?d have to find an equitable method to fund this activity. The best part of this place is you can bring your family, including kids that are old enough to respect the man?s property. You can see and touch the cars, but just like us, no one wants to see anything damaged. I would endeavor to set this up for no later than the third week in March. After these two meetings the desires of the members would rule. I have listed below three ways to contact me. Please feel free to do so if you want to join up, or if you want me to remove you from this list. No obligations or pressure from me. I just think it could be a lot of fun. At this point you may be wondering how I got your name. For the record I found your address information in the 2003 Membership Roster issue. Besides your address, I took your BCA number and the e-mail address you had listed. I realize that some may no longer be interested in the Club, so I apologize for this intrusion and I would be glad to strike all your information from the address book I created for this letter. Naturally, in today?s society, you may be concerned about what I planned to do with the list I created. Let me assure you there are no plans to share the list or any information unless you want it to be shared. In this regard, I would like to know what information you want me to delete, and I would be happy to add anything I don?t currently list. I look forward to your response, and to a Capital Region Local. Very truly yours; John De Fiore 3757 53 Harmon Road Glenville, NY 12302 E mail: jld1972@empireone.net Phone: 518 384 7807

Lamar, Thanks for taking this venture on and keeping me in mind. But $1,800 I think I'll take that $1,800 and invest in painting the home 56 first... Maybe in a few years the owner will change his mind... It is an interesting story however. Borrows $$$ to build a hotel, but makes a junkyard where he sells nothing... Sounds like a scene from COPS. Thanks again. JohnD

Roberta, I imagine a "Buick Racer" would not understand the the serenety of a golf course. Not that there's anything wrong with that. There's plenty of room for both in this country ( at least for now). It's just that the two activities are complete opposites of each other. The golf course is a chance to drop everything else in the world. The open space is usually quiet and telephone free. It's 4 hours of relaxation as long as you don't take it too seriously. And you can still enjoy the Buick on the way to the golf course. It may not be racing, but it is beautiful...

Is there someone who can post some pictures of a factory correct 49 Buick Dash and door panels? I'm trying to detail one of those 1/18th scale models just for fun. Thanks in advance. JohnD

Maybe, But I don't think the likes of Tiger could even find Batavia... Don't get me wrong. Batavia is pretty nice little town, "little" being the operative word however. Although it would be nice. Then I could just watch him play. As for me Adam, I'm a zig-zagger. First to one side then over compensating to the other. I spend more time in the woods than on the fairways. Come to think of it, maybe I'll just leave the clubs home. JD

Isn't this scheduled for 2007? I wonder how much that will go for. I'll probably never have one as I plan to retire then, and new cars will not be in my financial picture.

Sadly, I can believe that. At least they fixed it. I saw another 02 Ranger today, and the rear wheels were not centered on his bed either...Good thing I'd rather have a Buick!

Wait a minute. I just found several more phone numbers: International Registration Bureau: 518 473 5834 Public service bureau: 518 474 0710 I don't know if either of these will help you.. Hopefully so.

Whoa! you're gonna have some problems with this. NYS is not too easy to deal with. Here is a toll free number but it may not work from out of the country 1-800-225-5368. Other than that, you might try 1 518 474 0774, which is for Drivers license problems. As far as that registration is concerned, it is a small card, probably 2 inches by 4 inches. It usually has some symetrical wavy lines in a standard color which is chyanged from year to year. You may be in some luck if there is a registration sticker on the front windshield of the car. This usually has the car's id number, year of manufacture and contains a date in bold numerals which is the expiration of that particular registration. With this information you may get some results from NYS. Without it, if you get through be sure to ask for a "transferable Registration". If you don't and they give you anything, they will give you a non-transferable registration which generally means the title to the car is not clean and I don't think you'll be able to use this in your country. One more thing, if they give you a registration, they will want to know the weight of the car as the charge goes by that. Plus they will most likely give you a two year registration only, forcing you to seek a refund of the 2nd year when you turn in the plates. Here's my suggestion. If you can get a copy of any Hemmings magazine there are usually several people in there who advertise title services. I'd suggest a call to them as well. Good luck. JohnD

YEA!!! A 4 speed in a 54 Century!!! Convertible, with a set of bucket seats too, And a 364 with 3 deuces.. JD

Well, if you're looking for some partners, as long as you don't mind hackers, we'd like to hook up with you. JohnD

This sounds incorrect. Your 72 should be just like my 69. And I had owned a 69 Cutlass convertible in 1972 so I know my boot set up is correct. The boot has a long plastic tube connected to the interior side of the boot. This tube slides into a metal channel attached to the rear of the back seat. Then where the boot comes around the sides to cover the wells for the top hydraulics, there are two snaps on each side, inside the interior compartment. The rest of the boot has a wide flat plastic lip that slides under the chrome revel molding around the opening for the top. To me it sounds like you have an aftermarket boot, or someone just didn't like sliding in that wide plastic lip. It can be a PIA to remove, but it goes on fairly easy. JohnD