1965rivgs

Cool picture...small emblem car? Ship it to the midwest, I`ll make a car from it! Tom Mooney

Original carpet is molded 80/20. Where to get same depends on color. If you are using black there are several sources but if doing a color, like saddle, I have found only ACC Custom Carpets are accurate. You will need to trim the carpet to tuck into the chrome moldings on the side of the console. The rear carpet tucks under the rear of the console but the front does not go under the console. Even if you buy a molded set you may need to use some padding under it for it to lay flat and even where appropriate...that`s where the pros come in....or some patience on your part. Good luck, Tom Mooney

The original should be a three wire. Two wires for the reg connecter and one hot wire to the stud on the back of the alt. Tom Mooney

The chrome cover is a mild press fit. Try placing a large screwdriver under the inside lip and use the steering shaft to pry against...not too hard! You may need to work around the perimeter to gradually pry it up and off, Tom Mooney

Will this additive have any detrimental effects on the catalytic converter? Tom Mooney

PM sent Tom

For a temporary fix, because one generally uses the tilt in the same position while actually operating the car, adjust the switch to the neutral position with the tilt wheel in place where you would normally drive the car. The turn signals and brake lights should operate normally in that position until you can get the actuating cable fixed, Tom Mooney

Hi Marty, As Jim has cautioned be careful when you open the switch as there are 4 (?) very small ball bearings which enable the contacts to glide back and forth while the other half of the switch remains stationary. Not a bad idea to have another switch handy as you will most likely find wear on several of the contacts in your switch. I`m assuming the switch does not light both front and rear signals occasionally? A good cleaning and some fresh di-electric grease along with replacing any worn contacts with good ones salvaged from an extra switch should bring your switch up to par. As Jim has mentioned, depending on your symptoms, there may be issues with the other components of the signal system. Good luck, Tom Mooney

PM sent Tom

Check to be sure the center bearing bolts and rear flange bolts are tight. Also, the rear flange is a tight fit on the diff yoke. Be sure it is not cocked. Tom Mooney

Jim, Reread the post. The poster references a window motor made by cardone which he concedes is a little longer than the original headlight motor. But the length of the motor wont be his problem. BTW I`ve been rebuilding headlight motors by using power vent window motors for decades....literally. I did my first one 30 years ago. Works for the Corvettes also, Tom Mooney

Hi Rob, Thanks for the additional info. I know the fellow who owned the car before the last two previous owners...so, three owners ago. I`ll gather the info for you. Thought I recognized that car! Tom Mooney

There is a vacuum canister near the top of the firewall on the pass side which controls the AC door and directs air flow past the evap core and out the upper vents. You can operate the pivot by hand to direct the air flow out the upper vents. Check to see if the vacuum hose has cracked at the nipple of the canister. As a matter of fact, go thru every vacuum connection and cut off the end of each hose until you cut back to the original diameter. Any vacuum leaks in the system will rob the ability of the controls to operate all the diaphrams, not just one. If the canister is bad you can block the lever which it acts on with a small wooden block, large nut, etc...until you replace the canister. At least you will have AC until then. Good luck, Tom Mooney

To dampen resonance.. Tom

My experience with `60`s Buicks is that it is not all that unusual to find a Rochester 4GC on a 401. Typically the Carter AFB is more often found but I have seen and rebuilt enough 4GC`s that I would not describe it as "rare". I suspect Tip`s car may still have the original carb. The `63 service manual lists the 4GC for 4400-4600-4700-4800 series cars with "power pack". The stamped carb number, 7023040, would appear on a triangular aluminum tab which is typically secured under an upper air horn screw, typically in the rear. Interesting to note Carter did not stamp the carb number in this same metal tag (except the very rare `66 dual quad rear carb) but used color coding to distinguish the different carbs. Tom Mooney

Sounds like you overadjusted the rears to deal with the soft pedal. If your problem was hydraulic, like an internally collapsed rubber brake line acting like a check valve or a master not opening the return port due to pushrod misadjustment and incomplete retraction, the wheels should have freed up when you cracked the bleeder...oh wait, you didnt try to relieve hydraulic pressure by cracking a bleeder, just the brake line at the front. Try cracking each rear wheel bleeder to see if you can isolate the problem to one wheel. Dont discount the possibility of a seized or lazy wheel cylinder. Otherwise, the problem is mechanical at the rear wheels. Tom Mooney

Or bend them up from bendable brake line purchased at any decent auto parts store...$20 and no shipping? Tom Mooney

Unbelievable....I have never seen a letter from Buick documenting an early Riv. The letter head looks exactly like era Buick letterhead...unreal. This must have been before the documents were destroyed in Flint. Your friend has an extremely well documented GS and it is LOADED! BTW....the codes break down as follows: JJ verde green exterior 629 custom saddle interior Z wish I knew!! Some were "X" some were "Z" C60 Air conditioning A31 power windows K30 cruise control U69 am-fm radio with electric antenna I have a roster from the Riviera Club which Evans Clagett established. That club pre-dated the R.O.A. PM me with the name of the owner that made the inquiry to Buick and showed the car at the BCA meet and I may be able to supply era contact info to enable you to put together more history. Thanks for sharing Rob! Awesome... Tom Mooney P.S. Do you also have the referenced "sheet" from Buick records?

There should be 2 headlight relays on your `65, behind the battery, unless it is a very early production car and was never taken back to the dealer to have the second installed. Originally, the first cars built had one headlight relay but Buick was receiving feedback from customers who were finding their cars had dead batteries the morning after being parked the previous day. The problem was, if the closing headlight limit switch was not properly adjusted and not breaking the circuit to the motor, the motor would continuosly run in a stalled position, breaker popping on and off, until the battery was dead or the motor was fried, or both! Buick added the second relay to pull power off the system when the ignition key was in the off position. This second relay is the hardest to find. It is possible to return the wiring to the pre-2nd relay configuration but one must be sure the switches are adjusted properly. Join the R.O.A. and as a member I can supply you with an original 28 page service bulletin, free of charge, as a benefit of your membership. Also, as Jim has pointed out, the complete set of service bulletins including the previously mentioned headlight bulletin is available from Jim Cannon. Hope this helps, good luck! Tom Mooney P.S. Dont think the window motor swap will work but I hope I`m wrong!

In addition to the larger pipes the GS models also followed a different routing. No snaking back and forth under the floor but hugging the frame all the way to the rear, a much straighter path. Tails were also larger than standard at 2 inches, not as large as the header pipes because the muffler and resonators present the most significant "choke" in the system and the they are both ahead of the tails. Choke points are critical but so is system capacity; if the overall system is too small the entire system becomes a choke immediately after the exhaust valve. I agree with Ed, anything larger than 2.25 on a standard Riv is overkill. In addition, anything larger is even more of a P.I.A. to install properly. The stock style system is hard to get "right", good luck! Tom Mooney

Hi Jim, Your local auto parts store should have a listing for a valve that will work and they are dirt cheap, most likely around $25....BUT...the replacement valve will not have the groove in the valve body which indexes into the lower bracket pictured. Also, there is a clip which secures the valve from above, most are missing at this point which also indexes into the valve body in the aforementioned slot. You can pay thru the nose for the "correct" valve or buy the readily available version and grind enough clearance in the bracket for the valve body to cradle into the bracket. There is not enough material on the clip, if you have it, to do this. It is not going anywhere as it will be held in place by the heater hoses but this arrangement is not factory. Advantage is, if you need to replace the valve again, a somewhat likely scenario, then the replacement will be a 10 minute job and relatively inexpensive. Your wallet, your call, Tom Mooney

The engine code is displayed on the P-O-P but even if the code was LX signifying the original engine was the dual quad 425 this would not prove the car to be a Gran Sport. As the above posts indicate Buick produced 454 non-GS Rivs with the 425 LX motor. The critical piece of the puzzle is the trans code. Only the GS cars had the BS trans code and that is listed on the P-O-P. The typical non-GS LX motored `65 Riv equipped with a standard 3:07 diff would not have a BS trans code. Tom Mooney

The original Protecto Plate will most certainly indicate whether or not your friend`s car is a GS. The trans code, BS, is exclusive to the GS model and is displayed on the P-O-P. The `65 P-O-P also displays some other option information. Post a pic Tom Mooney

In `63 Buick combined the owners guide and protection plan (maintenance/warranty) into 1 booklet. The back page of this booklet was to be filled out by hand with info we normally associate with both the owner and vehicle p-o-p. There were no metal p-o-p plates, just the handwritten info. Also, in the back of this booklet was a coupon for a free 1000 mile inspection which basically was an inspection and adjustment. The servicing dealer was to tear this coupon from the booklet and send it to claims at Buick to receive reimbursement. If the `63 owners reading this check their booklets you will most likely find a stub where this coupon originally appeared. If warranty repairs were performed all the pertinent owner and vehicle info would need to be filled out by hand, something which most probably did not happen to Buick`s/GM`s satisfaction. In `64 the single booklet was broken into two booklets, one an owner`s manual and the other an owner protection plan. The owner protection plan already had a metal vehicle p-o-p affixed to it and below it was a space to place an additional metal plate which was the owner`s p-o-p. This second p-o-p was obtained by the owner after the sale by filling out a request form after which Buick would send the plate to be placed in the owner protection plan booklet by the owner. There was also a hand written page very similar to the handwritten `63 page which was to be filled out by the selling dealer and affixed to the 1000 inspection coupon stub. If warranty work was performed the metal p-o-p `s were placed in a machine much like a credit card swiper and the info was thus transferred onto all the necessary warranty paperwork. If the vehicle was sold by the original owner he/she was instructed to remove the owner p-0-p plate and the next owner was to submit the same request form previously submitted by the original owner for warranty transfer purposes. Recently I purchased a `65 Gran Sport in a very rare color/trim combo. Upon inspection I found the owner protection plan booklet with both p-o-p`s still intact. The seller had no idea the p-o-p`s existed and confessed he had doubts about the legitimacy of the car as a true GS, so equipped.....until I explained the codes/info on the vehicle p-o-p. It pays to do your homework and be an informed buyer. The musclecar /Corvette guys are way ahead of us as originality relates to value and it has become readily apparent original docs are more important to value than the original components still being in place. To have both is best but original docs cement most of the value. It is becoming commonplace to restamp numbers, codes and create casting numbers but original docs are hard to recreate. The p-o-p`s are an excellent example of valuable original docs. Tom Mooney

They may have done you a favor by omitting the purse hook. I believe the purse hook was a dealer installed option and not available as a factory installed option so it would not be listed on the window sticker. Also, option N4 does appear in my `63 lit and in addition to the items mentioned also includes a litter container. However, there is a footnote for the option which states it is not available with bucket seats. So, if one trusts the factory lit this option also may not have been available as factory installed on the Riviera...:confused: Tom Mooney