bob71GS

I checked the ROA membership roster, it appears that he is no longer a member as his ROA # is no longer listed. I always liked giving my business first to any ROA member like Cars or Classic Buick. It looks like you will have to do business with Classic Auto Air in Florida. Bob Bonto # 277 Technical Advisor 71-73

Did you also try contacting fellow ROA member Jorl Hafner? He might be able to do it for less and a shorter time frame. Just because he did not have an ad in the latest Riview, does not mean he is not in business any longer. I keep all my past Riview's in a large 3 ring binder so that I can go back to them for reference. Bob Bonto #277 Technical Advisor 71-73

Joel Hafner ROA #5205 314-996-0009 morning or evening reprodues A/C & Power steering hoses. His ad was listed in the Nov/Dec issue of the Riview page 29. Bob Bonto #277 Technical Advisor 71-73 Former Board President

Like you Ed, when Chris would call me, his first words were "Hey Brother, how are you tonight?" We called each other "Brothers" I will truly miss him. I've known Chris since the early 80's when he was doing research for his book and he asked me to send him pictures of my 71GS which was in the book. Chris also told me about an new Riviera car club called the Riviera Owners Association and I should call a guy named Ray Knott. The ROA was only two years old at the time and Ray asked me to join and become the 71-73 Technical Advisor. Ed you must have joined right after as my ROA # is 277 and yours is #279. In 2001 Chris flew to Akron to cover the Glenmoor Gathering, he ended up judging one of the classes. Something he truly enjoyed and still talked about it. He also autographed his book for me. Brother, someday we will be together again at that big Riviera meet. Robert Bonto#277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73 Former Board President.

Checking my Buick master parts catalog, it shows for a 74. 75 has a different #. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

QUOTE=mannemerjung;1200845]Thanks Bob - the confusing thing is that the different manufacturers offer AC belts in different sizes: 63 1/8" 64 1/2" 64 5/8" 65 5/8" Maybe I am overcomplicating this - but a price-range from $1.71 to $13.91 implies that there have to be differences. I think I will let my lucky dice decide on which belt size to buy. Regards, Alexander Alex, The reason why there are different sizes is due to the two different sizes on the A/C pulley, if you noticed they list the size of the pulley, one is for the standard Riv and the other is for the GS option. You did not state if yours is a GS or standard. I own a 71GS and it has the larger diameter A/C pulley. Measure the diameter of your pulley and then you will know which one to get. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

Check Rock Auto RockAuto Parts Catalog They list all the belts. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

I have lived my entire life in Akron, OH which is only 50 miles from Euclid. GM has never had any plant in Euclid. All Riviera's were made in Flint, MI. The closest plant is in Parma, which was Chevy and is still in operation. Bob Bonto #277 ROA 71-73 Technical Advisor

Cars is just buying them from Steele or Metro and re-selling them. Just like what OPGI is doing. I prefer Metro as they have a better warranty and will replace with no questions asked. Check part #RR5008 at Metro;s web site. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

Here is another one listed on Ebay 1963 1965 Buick Riviera Original Interior Rear View Mirrior | eBay Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

I suggest that you let your fingers do a search for a tie rod. Rock Auto has pictures of tie rods and the adjusting sleeves. If your so called mechanic knew what he was talking about, then he would certainly know there is no spring inside. There are two bolts on the sleeve that allow it to be screwed in or out for toe-in or toe out. I certainly would think about finding another mechanic that knows about older cars from the 70's. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

In checking the Buick Club of America web site, there is a BCA chapter in Fenton, MO. Having owing a 69 Riviera before I purchased my 71GS Riv., I can tell you the 69's only had a 430 engine, there were no Stage 1's for the Riviera. There was a Stage 1 engine for the Skylark GS400 but it was only 400 cubic inches, not 430. As Ed stated, all Riviera's were built in Flint, I would also suggest joing the Riviera Owners Association. Robert Bonto#277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

Brian, My 71 has the sandalwood custom interior. The medium gold vinyl top was not available until after January 1971. My original plan was to go with the sandalwood top like my 69 had, but when I went to go order it, the salesman showed me the medium gold and I liked it much better with the Copper Mist. Send me a PM with your email and I will be happy to send you pictures. Bob Bonto # 277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73:)

Bryan My 71 GS is Copper Mist but it has the cloth custom bench seats with a medium gold vinyl top. Which only 456 71's had. Hope you get a chance to speak to the neighbor and find out if this was the one from the Honda dealer. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

Is this the one that was from the Honda Dealer? If it was, I had it saved in my Ebay as I was watching it. But Ebay finally dropped it off my list. If I recall, the dealer wanted $35K for it which I felt was way over priced for the condition it was in. The top bid when it was on Ebay was $14K which would have been spot on. I noticed a lot of things like the right side of the dash having all the finish wore off and the bumper guards which were not available in 71. Item 271171457433 was a 73 and the seller did note that on a revision. Bob Bonto#277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

Alexander, You are correct that the cylinder head temperature switch must screw into the back of the left head. The part # 6489285. I did a search on parts voice.com Welcome to the part locator The first drop down menue will ask for a manufactor, then put in the part # then your zip. Four suppliers came up as still having NOS. If you are looking for parts, I would suggest that you join the Riviera Owners Assoc. Welcome to the Riviera Owners Association Homepage. They publish a bi-monthly magazine that has many suppliers and used parts for sale. Robert Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73:D

Ed, Tony Gentilcore from Australia also had a two page color picture step by step in the Nov/Dec 2012 issue of the Riview. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

I was watching it on TV when it came up. All they said was it was a low mileage 54K car. Mecum did not say too much else. Then the bidding stopped at $20K and was not sold. If you happen to notice, car after car did not sell. I think they only sold between 6-8 cars in an hour & half time period. It looked like a nice driver. Top bid was spot on. Too many sellers expecting grandiose prices. The one that did shock me was the 57 Chevy Belair that had a frame off totally correct restoration and topped out at $41K with a no sale. Bob Bonto # 277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

For those that wanted to see pictures of my 71 GS, here they are. Hope you enjoy. Bob Bonto #277 ROA :cool: Technical Advisor 71-73

A 71 that was not a GS, but had a repaint recently sold for $19,000 on Ebay. I thought that was too high due to the fact it was not completely detailed out. There was another standard 71 with standard interior and not highly optioned out was listed on Ebay for over 18 months. The seller started out asking an outrageous amount of $65,000, it finally sold for $18,000. In my opinion, the majority of the sellers on Ebay today have nothing but a vision of grandiose prices for the boattails. Paying $15-$20,000 for a super nice one is a bargain. You are not going to restore one for that price either. I have turned down some insane amounts for my 71GS, but how many people can have the bragging rights that "I ordered it new, has been garaged it's entire life, never seen snow and only has 19,800 original miles with no repaint, no rechrome and the interior looks brand new as does the engine comparment as well as the undercarriage" That to me is priceless. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73:cool:

FYI This message was sent out by Cars Inc. today. Dear Buick Enthusiast, As you probably know by now Hurricane Sandy has left most of the northeast US in a state of emergency. We here at CARS, Inc. have not suffered great damage but are unable to process any orders for at least the next 4 or 5 days. We hope and expect that we will be back in action on November 5, 2012. Our telephone lines are down as well as many other of our services we rely on day by day. We appreciate your patience. CARS, Inc. Robert Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

The problem with Barrett Jackson is those idiots pay way too much for a car just to satisy their ego. Then a year or two later when they try to sell it again and they can't get what they put into it and they can't understand what the problem is. Nice to see they got that much for the Riviera's, but the true market value is much less. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

No you cannot change the fittings without loosing the R134. I suggest you take it to a shop that specializies in A/C work. I'm not talking about Goodyear, Firestone, or NTB or any of the chain shops. It sounds like whoever did your conversion, did not put the proper fittings on. In addition to having a set of R12 gages, I also have a set for R134, with quick disconnect, the low pressure fitting is smaller than the high pressure fitting. They are made that way so you cannot mistake which is which. Your situation makes for my stance on R134 vs the old factory R-12 systems. These cheap retro kits don't work. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

Try the port by the POA valve, that is the low pressure side and the port at the compressor is the high pressure side. I'm not a fan of the R134 coversions from a system that originally had R-12. Nothing beats a fully functional R-12 system. Bob Bonto# 277 ROA Technical Advisor 71-73

Has your 63 been converted over to 134A :confused: Unless your system has been converted for 134A, the ports are different for 134A vs R-12 and you will not be able to use what you have purchased. Bob Bonto #277 ROA Technical Advior 71-73