imported_paldo38

If you haven't already joined the 1937-1938 Buick Club, email me your mailing address (to pauldelucchi@earthlink.net) and I'll mail you a sample copy of the Torque Tube magazine. More information, advice, parts and photos of your car than you'll find from any other source, believe me.

Yes, there are quite a few 37s out there; of course it depends what you mean by "project". I'm looking at an ad here for a '37 91 Limited, completely disassembled but "all there...boxed and numbered..." and the seller will take "best offer". Is that the kind of project you had in mind? In any case, I highly recommend you join the 1937-1938 Buick Club. Their Torque Tube magazine has a world of cars, parts, advice, pictures and more. Email me your mailing address and I'll send you a sample copy: pauldelucchi@earthlink.net

The R&P from a 1938 Century will fit just fine into the '38 Special, and there's also limited compatibility between '37 and '38. Torque Tube magazine has had several articles about this. Trouble is, '38 Century R&P sets are harder to find than Corvair water pumps, and no one makes repro sets. You could haunt the back pages of Preporter magazine (Buick Street Rod Assoc. publication), try to find someone desecrating a '38 Century, and rescue the axle (that's axLE) from them.

This is a great period picture; looks like a '37 but I'm sure to be put straight if that's wrong. Image courtesy the good people at Ohio Dept. of Transportation Archive. Now -- what's the car behind? I thought '37 Buick but there aren't any fender lights. Your opinion?

Waste not a moment but go straight to http://www.wiperman.com/. Bob Ficken not only knows his subject cold but has better prices than some of the parts resellers I could name. By the way, a motor is only half the battle. Your wiper transmissions are probably worn. You need to work some axle grease down inside them, and if they're still balky then they'll need rebuilding or replacing.

What to do with a 1937 Buick? You could streeeeeeeetch it! See attached picture.

It's a great question, and I don't have an answer. But here's a treat; a printer's lead for Buick from 1929 or so (someone's bound to correct me on that!). See attachment.

Here's an unusual picture (see attachment) titled "automobiles parked on roof of Buick Sales and Service building" from December 1925. It's from the Library of Congress collection, accessible from http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/browse/. Enter "Buick" in the search field. You shouldn't use the images without permission, but how is anyone to know about this marvelous collection unless we get the word out? You can also download higher-res images. Can anyone tell what city this is in?

I'd love to tell you more about that second picture but owner JM says it's a "surprise" so I'm keeping mum for a little while yet. Meanwhile you can click http://www.prewarbuick.com/id576.htm for another image of the same car.

For more mascots than you thought possible, go first to http://ken-thornton.com/mascots.html. Then check out http://www.mascot-mania.com. Attached is an image of a winged-Mercury figure that was used on 1931 Buicks. Not quite correct on a '30 though.

So often I see posts from people trying to sort out the numbers scattered around on their Buicks. Look, people, Terry Dunham literally wrote the book about Buicks. On his website, at http://www.OldBuickArchive.com, you can see a table showing the location of those various numbers for all vintages of classic Buicks, along with other good information. And then if you want to know more about your particular heap, Terry will interpret those numbers for you -- it's part of his business at the Old Buick Archive. Check into it.

OK, let's try for the other picture...

Here's one or two good pix (depending on how much filesize this'll let me get away with.

I heartily recommend the Diamondback radials. Not too sure about the other post that says they're from Korea. I heard they were Dayton truck tires with a WWW vulcanized onto them. Regardless, they're excellent quality, and your car will ride like a dream. It'll handle better, track straighter, and be far more secure in the rain. It's just night-and-day compared to bias ply tires. Best money I ever spent, and they look good too. Only trouble is they won't fit into a sidemount cover, but do you really care? http://www.widewhitewalltires.com will get you to their website.

Lose not a minute but join the 1937-1938 Buick Club. Their "Torque Tube" magazine is the best -- full of information, pictures, parts and advice. You'll find out everything you want to know about your car, from people who have cars just like it. Go to http://clubs.hemmings.com/1937-1938buick.

There's a third option that I didn't see discussed. I do agree that a full show restoration is unreasonably costly for most of us. And I believe hotrodding demeans both the car and its owner, though there are exceptions. Instead, why not just repair what's broken and enjoy the car for what it is, a carefully repaired original? It's an affordable route both in time and money. You'll get plenty of enjoyment out of it -- plus you'll likely get quite a good price when you're ready to move on. There's a fourth option: part it out. This is probably how you'd make the most money out of it. Then take your winnings and hotrod something else that'd be scrap otherwise. Don't destroy an honest car just to be cruel.

Mr. Earl - am delighted to find this thread on Buick Trucks! It's an underappreciated aspect of Buick. There's a feature story about Buick Trucks at http://www.prewarbuick.com/id173.htm. The pictures you show are terrific! What a shame Buick dropped out of the truck market. (You have no doubt seen the 1938 Buick "El Camino" for lack of a better term; it's handsome, elegant as any good Buick, and pratical too.)

If you haven't already done so, lose not a minute: join the 1937-1938 Buick Club. The magazine "Torque Tube" has reams of information about your car that you won't find elsewhere. Go to http://clubs.hemmings.com/frameset.cfm?club=1937-1938buick. Good luck.

Buick also used Carter carbs in 1938 and later. In any case, John Hardgrove is a reputable carb rebuilder; email techpwb@thecarburetorshop.com with your carb details, and see what he advises.

If you haven't done so already, lose not a minute: join the 1937-1938 Buick Club. Their magazine "Torque Tube" has reams of solid information about your car that you won't find anywhere else. The link to their website is: http://clubs.hemmings.com/frameset.cfm?club=1937-1938buick. Good luck.

Got to weigh in on this one. I go to shows, sometimes with my car and sometimes not, and though hardly "young" at 53, I'm always surprised at how the club-member "geezers" scarcely a decade older will sit around in their separate little enclaves and disdain any civil conversation with me and my peers. There are exceptions, for which I'm grateful indeed -- but it seems unless you're retired, grey and a military vet, you're not "in the club", and they'll sure let you know it.

Next car show you go to, look closely at a 1940 Chevy 4-door. Bring your measuring tape. I doubt you'll find replacement panels specifically for Buick, but other "GM" sheetmetal is out there and you could be in luck. Also, contact Pro Antique Auto Parts at 1-860-623-8274; they stock an awful lot of GM replacement parts.

Vintage Auto Parts (http://www.vapinc.com) sells a variety of ring & pinion gears if you want a taller (3.9/1) ratio. I've dealt with them for other parts and it was straight business and square dealing. To give your beast a break on the highway, you might want to look into it.

I second that advice! And invite all to visit www.PreWarBuick.com. There are a few hundred images, lots of useful links, and a dozen feature stories. If you own a Buick model not shown, send me a picture of you and your car and I'll add it. Note: YOU and your car; machinery matters but so do the patient, devoted people who preserve it.

What issue of Automotive Industries did you see that Sunshine Top in? Was there some text too?