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With the S@$&@* weather this past few days, went out to the storage garage today and organized a few things. Decided to deal with a trunk Dad had given me that was in one of his storage barns for many years and I have been moving around off the floor for some time now. While this trunk is anything but complete or useable, it was a complete surprise to see that it is somewhat close to the green that Dad had painted the car back in 1996. I used a combination of extra fine steel wool, (believe it or not) diet coke and metal polish to try and preserve the original finish. Clearly this trunk is meant for a closed car due to the fact it has a curved body side slope. However, I'd like to find a trunk that is more to fitting the Whippet and clean up the rumble seat floor when showing the car.

OK, curious here, I've heard and seen letter/initial cars like EMF but..... What does RCH stand for?

If you are asking if anyone can restore license plates I do know someone who does this and does a great job. Send me a PM if you like.

My first car was given to me by Dad after he drove it two years 60 miles each way to work. Then the U-joint broke and after replacing it with a 59 Oldsmobile (this was 1970) asked me if I wanted a car? You think! Changed it with his help and drove it to High School. Still have it but........ sadly.... She has seen her last days on the road. BUT there is hope! Her twin sister is awaiting an engine build and a few minor things and we are good to go! Then my life will be complete!

I can not help with any advice on friction drive cars but thought I'd share this. I own what is supposed to be about a 1918 Plymouth narrow gauge friction drive RR Engine. It is powered by a Model A gas engine (was changed out from the original Continental engine) but sadly is not running at this time. It had been running pulling a home built passenger car on a private property with hobby use before it was donated to an organization before myself and three others had big dreams. It is the original design and might have been used in a brick yard so the drive system must have had some life expectancy. Good luck with your car.

Meant to attach this and say, "Ask me how I know". Picked this up in early September (quite a few years ago - boat that is) because the owner just didn't want the winter cost thing, so..... same with cars for sure. Guess I had the best of both worlds, water yacht and LAND yacht. ha ha

Ya, kinda like boats. We all enjoyed them during those beautiful summer days and when people decide to sell them in September (end of the boating season here) most could not give them away because of the winterizing/storage costs sitting for the next 7 months and paying on that bank loan with no immediate fun time return..... Think marketing! Selling, probably not the right time but buying, with careful negotiating and some luck????

I have not spent much more time on the gas pedal issue as it has been too cold here the last few weeks plus I have no heat in the garage. Dad still wants me to go ahead and get the springs redone so will be making that arrangement for sometime next week (weather permitting). In the mean time, I started going through the several boxes of literature, pictures and things that I tried to bury in the basement so as not to upset my wife with more car stuff...... I found an article published in our local paper about Dad and the Whippet that some of you might find interesting. It is dated: April 12, 1975 and captures him to a T. (Guess you will have to click on it to get a larger version to read.) Here is the picture taken of him for the article. And here is how that dash looks today. A post script to this: Dad is still here at 89, has a pacemaker, has macular degeneration (slowly loosing his eyesight, a bit of arthritis and yet..... has talked my son into helping him completely strip the paint off his 1966 Corvair convert he is giving to my sister and then repaint it! Talk about the Energizer Bunny!!

Thought I'd throw my 2cents out there and show you what a taped pinstripe looks like. Dad did this car mostly because he didn't find anyone locally that was 'good/professional' at painting them on. The car was completed in 1995 and the tape has held up well but I guess it comes down to what you want in the end. I do think pin striping does set the car(s) off nicely. Could be I'm biased? Notice he even did the wheels with tape.

SORRY, somehow hit the submit button before I was finished..... I messed with things while still hot, adding to my already scared hands as it is tight in there and finally had to park her for another day. I found that a couter (sp?) pin was suggesting a bit of contact due to it's length, the block for the steering/gas control was very sloppy (worn) and the float is still sticking sometimes. Did I say that the new gas shut off is working perfectly????? The other good thing about adjusting the carb (a real learning curve here for me) is that I found that she has way more power than it used to have! I have an overpass (secondary road) near home and when I used it she would literally bog down to about 20 miles an hour with my foot to the boards! Now, it not only maintains 30 mph, it will actually feel like it would climb faster if pushed! And.. I have not checked the timing yet! Sadly.... The motor is going to need a complete overhaul as not only are the gaskets leaking almost everywhere but the oil is blowing out the fill tube to the point with the coil right next to it, I have to wipe it off before each outing and yet she fires right away and while smoking, troupes on down the road! I'd sure hate to walk back from as far as she would take me before totally breaking down! REALLY don't want to go there!

My tweaking the existing carb proved both good & bad. I was able to get her to idle down respectably and with a short ride really happy how she was running. Then I went for a tour through the City and naturally had the odd idiot that just had to pass and then stop short because he found himself racing in front of me and closing in on the car ahead of me! This resulted with me trying to hit the brakes hard (twice) and as anyone with mechanical brakes knows, you had better have your hand on the emergency brake to get that hard brake action if things are not adjusted right up to snuff! After those two incidents, it seemed that the car would not idle down and before I got home I found I had to reach down, grab to gas pedal and pull it up in order to keep the rpm's down. After more adjusting the carb (idle screw) and linkage I finally took out the carpet and floor boards to see what might be hanging up. At first I thought that the gas rod was hanging up in the hole through the wood floor board. Remember, this car was a 28 year restoration basket case project and Dad put things together back before the internet was something one could look up. He had somehow came up with an aluminum rod for the gas bending it to the various bends required to get to the carb. While it works under gentle conditions, I think with my #12's, the position it comes through the floor next to the brake pedal and the fact I had to jam on the brakes hard has bent the rod to the point things bind and the engine will race when shifting and adding a new adventure to driving an antique car!

So...I couldn't rest till I figured out what was going on. After taking off the shut off and the carb I decided to tighten (lightly) the few screws and bottom needle valve nut. I then put things back together, filled the vacuum tank with gas and opened the shutoff. Gas was flowing like a fountain up from the vent hole on the float plate! OK, after shutting off the gas, removed the plate and pushed the float (gently) down a few times and things seemed to be moving without any restriction and the float wasn't heavy (full of gas). Question: Should there be a gasket on that cover? I replaced the cover, turn the gas back on and nothing was leaking. I left it open before trying to start her, decided to pull the plugs, which I found out later had not been looked at since about 1996. Here is what I found: The gap was about 40 thousands each (give or take) but as I suspected, lots of oil up inside. I carefully wire wheeled each one (4) and rechecked the gap before putting them back in. With no leaking gas showing I hit the starter and off she went! Much to my disappointment it still had a bit of popping going on from the carb... especially when reving it up a bit but at least it was firing. I'm not afraid to turn a few wrenches but I'm no carb guy but thought, it sounds like it's not getting enough gas so, started turning out the screw on the throat body. That made some difference but not enough. Then I turned out the T valve on the bottom and it acted like it wanted to stall so started to turn it in. After a bit things started to smooth out and after setting the idle I tweaked the mixture screws some more. I then took it out for a ride and to my surprise it seemed to have a bit more power (with no popping sounds). With daylight growing short these days I drove her back for now but plan on spending time on Saturday to see if I can fine tune things a bit more and sort through the carbs I got from Dad. Extra Tillotson's Spare Zienoth's

With work keeping me busy, the Whippet has been sitting since about the middle of August. Decided to take it to a Spring Shop to get a quote on rebuilding the fronts and rears. She started up fine but not long down the road it is popping through the carb a bit and when I got there (not too far a trip), it seemed there was more gas leaking somewhere than usual. I knew I needed to replace the gas shutoff for sure and the shop guys said that it would need to be fixed before they took it inside so... Managed to get home taking many back roads and decided to take out that shut off after things cooled down. Found another gas shutoff at a hardware store (identical) and decided to take off the carb to investigate. It is a Tillotson unit and looks like Dad has some kind of sealant all over one end. I'm off to his house to look through some more boxes he still has and look at some extra carbs he says he has collected over the years. More later, Doug.

While I believe I know where you are coming from, I can't say I have ever been teary-eyed because I just haven't sold anything I'm attached to yet. I still have my 1st, 2nd & 3rd cars. 2nd car However I did almost go into cardiac arrest one time when after 10 years of marriage or so, my wife casually (in her mind) suggested that I should sell a few cars in order to have one really good one! Been married going on 34 years and still have those cars but... believe I can feel your pain.

Robert (& family), Now that's what I'm talking about when it comes to my cars, being with the things you love. Family (foremost), friends and your favorite Buick all at the same time and on a road trip! So glad your trip was trouble free. Your hard work (with family support) indeed paid off. I love the story of your grandfather willing to almost 'sell the farm' to buy the Buick! He sounds like quite a guy and knows what he likes in car's. Think of Michigan as yet another adventure and one hopefully you can share with all your family when they come up to visit. Great job with your post. Thanks for sharing, Doug

Hey Dave, Might have to head back and check if what I stated is accurate about the octane and as stated take a shot of the tank(s) for you all. I have been wrong before but as I have been told, I was mistaken... We used have a high octane Sunoco station here years ago but.....

Hey Robert, It has indeed been a while. Glad to to hear you are still working on your Buick! I used a spray product on my heater box that was advertised as an undercoating quite a few years ago and it seams to match the texture of what was on there (maybe a bit thinner) but looks OK. Mine came in a rattle can and not that expensive for what I wanted to do. Yours is looking good.

Hi, I get what you eluding to but between the outer holes, there is a solid formed bar under the plate to support (and raise) the space for making the plate flat. My guess now is that what was put on this car before, came from another make which had a wider (bigger) step plate. Guess I will have to consider drilling new holes to completely bolt the plate on and have the fender repainted (holes repaired) to make it right. Thanks for the reply. Doug

Any '58 Buick?

That's not true in Southern Ontario necessarily about the corn farmers part but.... Haven't paid attention to the pump stickers much. Will take a moment and post a shot of a pump here soon. I know that I recently bought gas here with an octane rating of 95 which surprised me! Have to drive 10 miles to get there but.... the old Buick loves it!

As this is about Robert's Winter Storage question up in Michigan (close to home)....and mice came up.... Bought this riding lawnmower last year from the original owner who washed and waxed it after every use since 1992, then put it in his wood floor shed... I used it on a 3/4 acre yard soon after as it seemed to run great, finished and drove it on the trailer and when got back home smelled smoke! It seems the MICE had built a mobile home! Being a twin cylinder both sides has to be completely cleaned out! (notice the pile/home on the lower right after cleaning) Soooooo glad this has never happened to one of my cars!

Hey Scott, Happy to offer help (or not) for fellow '58 Buick owners. Here is a picture of my dash which is original to my car (excluding the red kick panels - although from my '58 Roadmaster): As you can see my padded dash has collapsed from the foam they used back then withering away (think 50 plus years). This leads me to believe that there is a flat metal panel to which the formed foam was glued to and then covered by the vinyl and bolted to the dash panel as a unit. If yours has a metal pointed/rounded piece then it would be painted which I have seen before. Again, if that is your case, it would be more desirable from a cost perspective as I have seen (awhile ago now) the price for a Roadmaster/Limited dash pad in the 1500.00 area! To add to that, the Special/Century series is narrower than the upper series and not sure they are even available? What I have seen is some have re-foamed to the pointed shape, covered with similar grained material and stitched/sewn where the heat seams are but.... better than nothing if you need it padded right? As to patching holes in the body let me guess; under the headlights, rocker panels, doglegs before the rear wheels, small panel between the rear taillights and trunk, spare tire well, rear floor pan, front body floor mounts... All typical '58 Buick issues. Don't be afraid to start a thread on Me & My Buick. We all like pictures of everyone's car in progress or just out enjoying them.... Good luck with the progress, Doug

Robert, I know you are asking because of your impending move and.. all the things that come with that but.. I agree with what Barney has said. I put my Special in a drive shed at a farm with a dirt floor (after placing barn plank and plastic down first) about 1976. Back then no one thought of putting gas stablizer in the tank. I just made sure the rad antifreeze was about 50/50 and finally in 1983 went out with a new battery, topped off the tank, splashed some gas down the carb and after several times cranking, off she went! Drove it the 20 miles to home after checking to make sure she had brakes 1st and started looking after the necessary mechanical things so my wife and I could cruise with the gang dependably. Surely not everyone's experience but it did happen. At the very worst, even if you had to park it in the driveway for your first winter, brush off the snow occasionally, keep the battery charged with a battery tender, fire it up occasionally as stated from others, using the brakes, keep it off the salted roads and with all you have accomplished mechanically, you should be good to go come spring time. Oh and... all my cars have never been lucky enough to be housed in an insulated / heated garage. Wishing you the best,

Scott, From what you are describing, I would guess that you have the paint only interior/dash. I have seen Specials optioned that way rather than the padding on the top (speaker area) and the padded front. Believe me, that would be much more reasonable to restore than the padded route if given the choice but it sounds like you are looking to be accurate with your car in the restoration process. Just to put this out there, my Special has both the padded top and front padded cover, whereas my Limited's; one has the painted top with padded front and the other has the padded top with padded front yet both are identical down to options and body colour. Have not dug into what would be the difference in the trim code, just know they were original to the cars when I got them. Not sure any of this helps and will defer to anyone that has access to those trim codes. Hopefully someone will chime in. By the way, sounds like you have a great car! Any pictures of your progress?

Cstang50, CONGRATS on your purchase! Should be a motivating resto for you. Get her running, drive it, enjoy the memories and make some more. As stated, keep us posted.