KongaMan

FWIW, when I was redoing the front end on the 64, I bought idler arms from Kanter and Cars. Completely different designs:

Buick had two steering setups: Saginaw and Thompson. Maybe you got the center link for the other one. The Electra should have Saginaw. What does your idler arm look like? Another clue: if you have the original tie rod ends, there may be a big stylized S stamped into the cover if you have the Saginaw linkage. You might also have the one for a 65 Le Sabre with manual steering. If the parts guy thought all 65 full size were the same (they're not), no telling what you got.

I typed it, and I'm confused. I didn't even go into the Thompson linkage. Which, AFAIK, was never used on the Riviera. Perhaps this will make it clearer: As long as the idler arm from a 63 Riviera will fit both a 64 Riviera and a 63 Electra, I'm good all around.

Reroute your AC lines through the manifold. That should keep your carb base nice and cool, and eliminate any consequence of boil over or vaporization.

According to the 64 and 58-66 parts books, both the Le Sabre and Wildcat were available with manual steering from 64-66 (doesn't say anything about 63). The 64 Le Sabre is spec'd as using the same Saginaw idler arm for power and manual steering (5678938), while the Wildcat used a different arm for each (PS: 5676376; manual: 5678938). 65 Le Sabre and Wildcat used a different PS arm (5695756). The 63-65 Riviera and Electra used 5676376. 66 used different PS arms (Le Sabre: 5676376; Wildcat, Electra, Riviera: 5697246). Got all that?

Yep.

IMHO, if you want a first gen with an ST-400, it's easier to start with a 64 than to retrofit a 63. Similarly, if you have an 64 carb available, it's easier to use it than to build some Frankenstein hybrid.

What you need to block off is the "frown" cutout at the top. The point is to keep the exhaust gasses away from the aluminum carb base. One way or another, you need to do that. As a practical matter (as Tom mentions), you probably don't need to worry about heating the carb, anyway, because you're likely not driving in cold weather.

The more one thinks about it, the more it seems that the plate is strictly for protective purposes. If it helped to transfer heat, it would be used on every carb. Along those lines, heat is transferred more efficiently without the plate; the carb base will heat more quickly from direct contact with the hot gasses than from the indirect heat transfer of gas to plate to air to base. Moreover, it's not thick enough to retain any effective amount of heat itself.

Not necessarily; the 4GC doesn't use the plate. Perhaps the plate is there not to conduct heat, but to prevent damage to the AL body of the AFB from the exhaust gasses? BTW, here's a NOS plate: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1957-1966-Buick-Skylark-Lesabre-Electra-NOS-GM-V8-4V-Carb-Base-Plate-1353377-/153513526705. Anyone know how thick these are? OTOH, there are binders full of service bulletins which testify to the engineers' fallibility.

Not saying who's right or wrong; just saying that different people have different opinions. As a practical matter; it probably doesn't make a damn bit of difference. The problems come when you don't use the plate -- not from how you install it.

A mechanical gauge is a PITA and requires spending money. The factory unit is a simple electrical check. Test it first.

If those are the trumpet horns, earlier years had them mounted to the underside of the hood on the drivers side. They require brackets and a short harness to connect to the horn relay. Are there part numbers stamped into the base of each horn? See this.

It still says "Kaplan" over the door on the left.

More likely a bad sensor than an oil pressure problem. Test the sensor.

While (almost) everyone agrees that there's only one gasket used, I've heard folks advocate for putting the plate next to the manifold with the gasket between the plate and the carb. The theory is that the plate will heat more quickly that way, as there is more of it in contact with the manifold. They say it also keeps the slot in the gasket from getting plugged with carbon, which inhibits heat transfer to the carb (which is the point of the thing). YMMV.

Sold by a dealer that's been in business 30 years? Sorry for the rant, but you'd think that anyone (let alone a dealer) would take 15 minutes with a ShopVac and a quick once-over with a soapy sponge and a hose before taking pictures. That kind of indifference completely destroys any confidence in the integrity of both the listing and the car.

I get why they moved Reverse to between Park and Neutral, but that Dynaflow shift pattern sure comes in handy when you're trying to rock your car out of the snow.

Which is part of the question: three years of first gen cars, each with a different indicator pattern (PNDLR, PRNDL, PRNDL2L1). I guess this might work for a 64.

Don't quite understand some of the bonus lights on the Dakota Digital gauge (check engine, cruise(?), etc.). Or how they implement the gear indicator. I do think the calibrated gauges are an improvement, though.

There are two versions of that cluster: one with gauges and one with idiot lights. Both say they're plug-n-play with the stock harness. I don't see any sense in the idiot light version (because all it gives you is a tach), but one of the eBay listings for one of the versions (I forget which one) mentions converting idiot lights to gauges and some kind of a kit. I don't know what connections each gauge expects, but if you're lucky it might be a simple matter of changing sensors and some minor rewiring. I guess you'd also want to make sure the fuel gauge is expecting the same 30Ω sending unit. You might also want to check if the oil pressure gauge requires an oil line in the cabin or just a wire. Of course, there's also the question of fitment. Maybe they have a second-quality shell they could send you to drop into a spare panel to see if it works. I don't know what the market would be for these in a first gen, but it's certainly a cleaner solution than sticking gauges under the dash, in the ashtray, under the windshield wiper, etc.

Been a long time since I had 5 high school girls in my car. You dog.

Might be these guys: https://www.oerparts.com/product/6491313.html.

One recommendation: use a smaller amp. You ain't playing Woodstock. Another: put the inverter in the trunk or under the passenger seat. You could also hide a receptacle behind the grill (easy to get to) and mount the inverter on the inner fender (if it can withstand the environment). One problem you will run into is that the alternators for these cars aren't as beefy as you may be accustomed to. You're going to run out of juice if you try to power too much.

If you'd get that other project done, you could push it back in. 😛