Why is Buick forum so active?

[Guest edalfa]

Looking at the AACA forums, the Buick forum is far and away the biggest and most active. Why? Are we just that much more passionate?

Ed

[jscheib]

Of Course!!!

John

[imported_buick5563]

Mr. Earl trying to boost his numbers.

Mike

[Guest imported_MrEarl]

I resemble

[Guest imported_MrEarl]

that

[Guest imported_MrEarl]

remark

[Guest imported_MrEarl]

hiccup

[Guest imported_MrEarl]

Actually I have been noticing a lot of "new members" lately and was wondering if perhaps Peter G had somehow increased our internet visibility when he "upgraded" the site. I hope it continues and I hope everyone will welcome the new members and try to help them as much as possible. If you can't help, at least acknowledge and welcome them aboard.

[Centurion]

Edalfa, here's another thought for you.

Back in about 1976, I picked up a book called "Special Interest American Autos". I'll never forget one of the statements I read in the book, which said, "Buick ranks near the top in terms of special interest models available."

I think that the author was spot on. If you look at just one decade -- the 1950's for example -- Buick offered cars like the '53 and '54 Skylarks, the '57 and '58 Caballeros, the '58 Limiteds, the industry's last true "woody wagons", and the list goes on and on. Similar lists could be created for other decades. The fact is that few volume manufacturers could match Buick in terms of the collectible models offered.

Obviously, the availability of these special Buicks generates a great deal of enthusiasm for the marque. I've met many owners of other collector cars from different manufacturers. They may all have their favorites, whether it be Nash, Olds, DeSoto or whatever, but they almost invariably express a soft spot and respect for Buick.

[JohnD1956]

Not only is this evident on the forum, but it is evident at the local car shows and cruises too. 6 years ago you had to search for a Buick, now they are plentiful. And not just GS's or "A" bodies either. There seems to be a lot more full bodies and Rivieras showing up at the local events.

JD

[Guest imported_Thriller]

At a local event last Saturday, there were 8 Buicks that I was previously unaware of locally.

For some of us, who aren't close to a lot of Buick collectors (Ewing aside), there's a lot of technical information here that we can't get by chatting with our local car buddies over coffee or other BEvERages.

I think the Pre-War Division has also helped with the profile of the BCA and the forums.

Remember when they wanted to turn "Me and My Buick" into "Me and My Car" or whatever it was called? There are 2 things that struck me...first that we were passionate enough to get it back, and that the AACA forums were trying to pull the success of that particular forum into the bigger picture. So, from the outside, it was seen as a good thing.

[NTX5467]

Well, if you look at the WPC board and the postings in it, things are much more sporadic (by observation) in postings and the years of Chrysler Products inquired about. Although the WPC group is the equivalent of the BCA, there's not that much activity there and what activity there is tends to be pre-Korean War era vehicles--nothing bad with that, just not "young folks" usually involved with them.

Now, when you consider all of the Usenet Mopar-related groups, the multitude of other Mopar-related groups and boards, that number will probably far outstrip that of Buick-related websites. Sure, that includes the total Chrysler product model range of many eras, but I feel the fact that so many other options are out there than just the WPC board can siphon off activity to the more active boards and groups associated frequented by Mopar enthusiasts of MANY orientations (i.e., model platform-specific).

On the other hand, the Imperial Mail List is very active by itself. Many international posters in there, too. It's much more active than the WPC group's board hosted by the AACA (i.e., here). And they "support" all Imperials, including the fwd models.

I feel one great asset of this Buick forum is the multitude of "factory people" (or similar) and other active Buick enthusiasts who have worked on or for Buicks for ages who are willing to share knowledge with others--or add to existing knowledge of other posters to the mutual benefit of all involved. A great knowledge base!

And, many forum participants, with all due respect, are getting "vintage enough" to realize that sharing knowledge and experiences with others (who might be just now coming into the Buick enthusiast fold--at ANY age) is of great importance and urgency. If we don't "download" the information so that others can see and USE it, it'll go to our graves with us . . . and no farther. That would also apply to ANY age of Buick enthusiast, too!

Thanks, also to the AACA for hosting these great Buick-brand forums!

Just some thoughts,

NTX5467

[NTX5467]

Centurion, one thing I noticed after I started being involved with Buicks is that EVERYBODY used to have some memories of a Buick in their "growing-up" years. Whether it was a neighbor's mother that used the Buick to car-pool kids to school or the well-off relative or some young person who bought a GS Stage I rather than a GTO or Mopar or Malibu SS, EVERYBODY has (or had, back then) some Buick memory to relate at a cruise event.

In my case, it was an uncle's '56 Special 2-dr sedan which he and my aunt bought in Trenton, NJ after completing his tour of USAF duty in Newfoundland. It was a base model with only full wheel covers and whitewalls and a heater as options--3 speed manual trans, base V-8, white over black with red interior. They drove it for about 20 years and kept driving newer Buicks as time progressed and kept the '56 for a second car and then their son's car until he bought his own car. It had constant (seemingly) rear end bearing issues (something the local dealer's service manager said they fixed with the '57s).

Then, there was a favorite uncle that always had fast cars. First it was a '55 Olds Rocket 88 4-dr Sedan (he had port-a-walls on it and lost one one the way home one night, he liked to drive fast on the deserted roads of southeast Texas). Then it was a '60 LeSabre 4-dr sedan (with factory a/c!). He took great care of that car. I forget what he bought after that one, but it was either a Buick or Oldsmobile.

And a neighbor that moved in next door in the later 1960s. They had a '64 LeSabre 4-door sedan (and a '55 Olds 88 4-dr sedan--HydraMatic). I rode to high school with them in both of those cars, from time to time. They moved down here to run a Exxon station for the man's brother (who was the Exxon distributor). With the Atlas Bucron whitewalls, it would carve some corners for a big car!

Unfortunately, the young people of today have seemed to stigmatize Buicks for the wrong reasons, without considering the real story of why they are considered highly by more senior adults. Nor do they typically have the same opportunities to experience new Buicks at an earlier age I we did back in the 1970s and prior. Unfortunately, I suspect it would be hard to recreate those earlier times in the more current time frames . . . such that more young people would have positive Buick memories to carry with them through life.

Just some thougths,

NTX5467

[Peter Gariepy]

Another reason is that this is 'THE' Buick forum on the net.

Many other groups have their own forums. Hudson forum here for example is not busy... but if you go look at the Hudson forum on www.classicar.com its as busy as this Buick forum.

The other reason may be that the BCA website has prominent links to these forums. YOu wont find that on the Oldsmobile website.

Just my 2 cents worth.

[Guest brh]

I'll have to second NTX's observation, I should have been an Olds man a long time ago. Dad and I got a 34 Olds to restore. He had nothing but Oldsmobiles. But my grandparents had my 65 Skylark, before that I took a ride in an awesome 72-71 Skylark 4 speed convert, guy almost put me in the back seat with the power of that car. Then I wanted a convert and ran accross a 72 Buick Centurion, again a great car to own. My buddy had a 64 Wildcat.... I can go on and on.

[TG57Roadmaster]

Centurion,

Dude, you're freaking me out! The book, <span style="font-style: italic">Special Interest American Cars</span> was an epiphany for me, too. It pretty much set the stage for me becoming a "generalist"...i.e. liking ALL marques, although I do have a Buick bent.

I'd have to agree with all the above posters, and add that Buick covered all the bases through the years. Brass, Antique, Classic, Special Interest, Milestone, Muscle, wagons, etc., in price ranges just above the lowest to below the highest.

TG

(My dog-eared copy has been rebound twice!)

[Centurion]

Tom, that's the book!! I still have my copy, and I still remember the supermarket newsstand where I picked it up.

A couple of other thoughts came to mind as I considered this question last evening.

1) The BCA has a single, annual National Meet that is well promoted within the Club and on this site. This stands in contrast to several of the other clubs, who have Western Nationals, Eastern Nationals, etc. Many of the active participants on this forum have attended one or more of the Buick National Meets, and we've formed some solid connections (face-to-face) with one another. So, in many cases, we're coming to the website as friends rather than strangers. There's a strong incentive to respond to the questions and comments of your friends.

2) The BCA's officers, board members, "Bugle" editor, and office managers take an active interest in this site and post here on a somewhat regular basis. The Buick forums have been a great way to discuss club business and issues. This stands in contrast to some of the other forums on the AACA system, where there may not be active club support and involvement. The Cadillac & LaSalle Club, for example, maintains it own set of forums which are not a part of this system. As a result, the Cadillac forum here in the AACA system is not highly active.

[imported_75RivGS]

Besides...ever noticed that Buick people are different (in a very positive way and that it is a world wide thing)??

Obvious here in Europe...

[RICK YOUNG]

Well, I can tell you this. I was a "Chevy Boy" thru and thru

till I went looking for a chevy project car and stumbled on my B63. After reading up on Harley Earl and the like, I was "hooked on buick".

I'm helping a friend look for info on a 63 Grand Prix and was surprised to find it so hard to find info, cars and clubs taht had the archives found here in "Buick City".

Thanks all for your contributions!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

RICK

[NTX5467]

With respect to Peter's observation about the Hudson forum, I think that a LOT of the activity issues can be traced to where the particular marque's forum got started AND how fully it's linked and integrated into the particular parent club's website and activities.

From what I understand, there was the Usenet group of boards (Chrysler and another board were the first ones on there) in the pre-Internet era. Then as major Internet portals evolved and grew, you had the general ones at Yahoo and other similar places who ALL hosted boards and forums for their users and subscribers. Remember "GeoCities"? Then there were more specialized areas for car enthusiasts to frequent, such as Classicar.com and THAT was in the days before a famous politician claimed to have "invented the Internet" (i.e., in the "infancy" of the web). In those days, you could check most every board without too much trouble, but as more boards sprung up "everywhere", with their own clientel and users, that became more impossible to do. That resulted in people having to choose where they would spend their time in vehicle enthusiast websites and being more focused on websites that met most of their needs.

I feel that having the BCA forums hosted by the AACA is a plus, too. Not to forget about the close ties of these forums with the parent BCA organization AND the mentioned involvement and monitoring of these forums by BCA organization officers and contractors (who are also BCA members and Buick enthusiasts). There have been several BCA Board Meetings and/or General Membership Meetings that I've been at where mention was made of the orientations of the BCA Forum participants on particular subjects. So yes, the BCA Board Members are aware of what goes on in here . . . which is good . . . and even better that they participate and post in here, too.

I concur that these BCA Forums are "the" Buick forums, yet other websites have sprung up which are complimentary to these forums and also count many participants of these BCA Forums as their members and contributors. Put them all together and it makes ONE MASSIVE BUICK DATA AND KNOWLEDGE BASE from which to draw upon!

Another key aspect is the feeling of "family" in these forums. A local Buick collector-type mentioned . . . way back in the 1980s before I really knew about the BCA . . . that he could call up a BCA member (from the listings in the Roster), who owned a similar vehicle to his '58s, and this "stranger" would talk to him like he'd known him all of his life . . . like "a friend of the family". He contrasted that with dealing with another popular brand of '55-'57 era GM (high volume-high value) marque, whose owners thought you wanted to know about their car so you could come steal it or something. Not to mention that similar parts of the Buicks were much more reasonably-priced than those for the "other" GM marque. Over the years, he did strike up some continuing friendships with other Buick owner/collectors across the country via telephone in his quest for parts--even Glenn at CARS, back then. When we flew into Flint for the '88 BCA National Meet, his friend's family met us at the airport in a black '58 Century convertible (with red interior) for a "top down" trip to the host hotel--highly neat. And we rode in their Buick convertibles in the "1000 Car Parade" in Flint at that meet, too.

I know that some national groups have multiple "national meets", but I tend to agree that having one yearly national meet is the best way to do things. It provides a massive focus for the year--if you miss it, you miss it and have to wait for next year.

Just some thoughts,

NTX5467

[bhclark]

I rarely see buicks at car shows or cruise ins here in Cincinnati, unless of course, Mr. Nagel shows up to make my car look bad!

[Guest Dan Cook]

I can honestly say that the people in BCA are some of the most helpful and friendy I have ever incountered. Although I have only been a member a short time, I have always received a responce from someone. The Buick I have now is my first one. I had always been into old military vehicles before. This one has become the the love of my life, right after my wife. Maybe your question should have been "Why is Buick Forun so active", and Buick so attractive.

[Guest n1gzd]

The aaca forums are not the only forums out there. For Mopar I don't even read these forums. I much prefer www.forwardlook.net, www.desotoland.com, and www.desoto.org for Mopar forums (forwardlook.net being the best). We should not be so narrow minded as to think that this is the best forum, there are many out there. It is possible that for Buick there are fewer choices so that this one is more heavily used.

Rebecca

[Guest imported_MrEarl]

A "Forum" is only as good as the folks that visit, return, join, frequent and sustain it. I vist the others ever so often but always come back home.

[Guest windjamer]

with the popuarity of Buick why is it none of the repo.folks are makeing parts for us like chevelle or mopar,that can be purchesed at a resonable price instead of some Jessy James asking $125--$150 for a $20. hood ornament.

[NTX5467]

Windjamer, it's more about production numbers than anything else. Buicks might have have more sales than some of the more popular "collector" brands, but many ended up a normal life in the salvage yard . . . and as they were generally "heavier" cars, they were some of the first crushed. At a local salvage yard, which I used to frequent in times past, they had a section devoted to the higher GM carlines. In that area, the cars were mostly intact (but with some crumpled sheet metal, generally) or with body sections cut out for body shop customers. One of the most universal things gone from the Buicks was the chrome wheels. In contrast, the only Chevrolets that were not picked-over were the 4-door sedans with 2bbl 283s (I scored a decent set of "script" valve covers off of it!) and the Fords were similar. There was a '68 T-bird 4-door in there that would have been a great restorable vehicle. It looked like it had driven in there! Only had one cylinder head off of it, when I saw it. That was the first time I'd ever sat in one of those cars and I was IMPRESSED with it, but no room or money for such a project, however easy it might have been. Even had the missing wheel covers in the back floor board! But I digress . . .

In the repro industry, you generally need to get the products licensed if they are going to be accurate and correct. Generally smaller product runs and license fees will increase already high initial tooling costs that must be supported by product sales. Not everybody is willing to spend that kind of money on a (seemingly) less sure-fire product for a Buick when they can do the same thing for a Mustang or Camaro or Chevelle and get their investment back much sooner.

Many factors involved.

Now, there ARE some Chevelle/Monte Carlo parts that interchange with similar Buicks. For example, the deck lid on the '70 Skylark (and other years on that body style) are the same as for a Monte Carlo. Same with some of the rubber parts (weatherstrips, possibly, and body mounts) and possibly some others that would be "generic" GM parts.

Just some thoughts,

NTX5467

[JohnD1956]

I agree with you. There area lot of different Buick forums too. Some of the ones I've looked at were the V8 site of course, the Nailhead group on Yahoo, and the Regal GS site, not to mention three different venues for the Riviera group, the 29 Buick group Plus the BPG and who knows how many more.

In a way its sad. I find I can't keep up with all these separate groups and so many things that may be important can easily pass by. But everyone has the right to start their own group and I'm certain I missed a ton of them.

Wouldn't it be nice if there was some comprehensive list of the home pages for all these groups somewhere in this forum? I know you can get that via a search engine, but I get tired looking through 25 or more pages of sites with the word Buick.

JD

[Guest DELTAWINGFLYER]

[V8 site of course, the Nailhead group on Yahoo, and the Regal GS site, not to mention three different venues for the Riviera group, the 29 Buick group Plus the BPG and who knows how many more.]

Dont forget the 59 website ,buick-59.com

[Guest imported_MrEarl]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: DELTAWINGFLYER</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

Dont forget the 59 website ,buick-59.com </div></div>

NOW THAT'S A FUN SITE

[Guest ZondaC12]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: JohnD1956</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I get tired looking through 25 or more pages of sites with the word Buick.

JD </div></div>

Then don't!!! Just come here!

[Guest imported_Thriller]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: windjamer</div><div class="ubbcode-body">with the popuarity of Buick why is it none of the repo.folks are makeing parts for us like chevelle or mopar,that can be purchesed at a resonable price instead of some Jessy James asking $125--$150 for a $20. hood ornament. </div></div>

The popularity of this forum (particularly as a subset of the AACA forums, which is what I believe the original question was based upon) simply doesn't translate into the need for reproduction parts. For example, I have joined the Meguiar's forum - learned a lot, have some fun, and it takes time...however, while Meguiar's products may (or may not...I don't know) be the most popular car care products, it doesn't mean everybody uses them. I suspect the majority of folks will simply be satisfied to go through an automatic car wash (ugh) as opposed to those obsessed with shine and protection.

I hear you on the reproduction stuff...we enjoy cars from a time when they changed almost every year, meaning that many of the pieces we need are one year only, so few and far between...unless we can find them in a salvage yard (dying breed), or one of the few suppliers with items available, we are either out of luck or need to spend more to restore items that other folks wouldn't think about restoring.

I certainly wish more parts were available, but they aren't. One thing that can happen is we lobby suppliers to increase their product lines. At the National meet, I spoke with an interior supplier (I think it was Legendary, but I'm not certain) lamenting the lack of interior pieces for my cars. Their response was that they do informally keep track of the questions...if enough people talk to them about a particular year / model, then they will consider looking into reproducing it - as Willis stated, it is a business, so there needs to be the outlook of profit for them. If I were to start reproducing some part for X year, then I might consider making a run and selling at my cost, because I am in the hobby rather than a business entity.

<span style="font-weight: bold">Anyway, as with fishing forums that I'm involved in, it is a common interest that brings us together, then the individuals form the online community. Some are better than others. </span>

I belong to V8 Buick, but don't go there often because the sheer volume is overwhelming. I also originally went to join the '59 Buick group, but since I don't have one, basically found myself without the time available to commit to another forum.