(maybe) '75 Convertible; pristine, 43K miles

[Guest mgbeda]

My father bought this car in 1980. It was passed on to my mother then my brother and now me. Problem is my wife hates it. Too big, too "impractical", we don't have room / time / money for another old car, etc. So we are "discussing" selling it.

The car has 43K original miles on it and is unrestored. Though from Cleveland, it was never driven in winter- in fact hardly ever driven in rain- and is in immaculate condition. It is well equipped, with the 455, A/C, power windows and seats, leather, stereo, cruise, trunk release, rear defog, and more. It even has the original hard boot cover. This car was extensively gone over in 2004 by a restoration shop, but was left in most respects original (paint, interior, mechanicals). At that time it received a new top. It then sat in a professional storage facility from 2004 until 2010, when my brother decided to pass it on to me. We then took it to a mechanic to be checked out, have the fluids changed, etc. We did have to replace the A/C compressor (which had seized) but otherwise the car was in fine shape. So my brother and I drove it from Cleveland to my home near Denver- 1,400 miles in four days- without any problem, except that the tires (new in 2004) seem to be flat-spotted. Even the A/C worked fine.

I will enclose a few pictures, from the trip and from a car show last week that I attended. Last month Cars and Parts did a "Market Street" article about 75-76 GM convertibles and said that "extra-nice" Olds and Buick convertibles are going for $15-16K.

So...if I were to ask 15 grand for this, would anyone be interested?

Thanks for your time,

Mike Beda

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Hey, Mike, Keep the car, sell the wife!! Fabulous car.

Ben

[msmazcol]

I second that! Sweet Buick dump the dame.

[Guest mgbeda]

Yeah, but someone might pay me for the car.

-mB

[dkbuick75]

I got the same threat from wife #1 over 20 years ago!!! NOTICE, I said Wife # 1.

I have now owned my 75 for just over 35 years. Maintenance, I figure, half or less of what I would have wound up spending on wife 1; Christmas, b-days, etc---- Also no back talk, B.S. or whining from the 75. Just fresh oil a couple times a year, and stops for "go juice" when she gets thirsty, and she stays happy taking me wherever I want to go. Wife # 2 enjoys the smooth ride & comfort when She gets the opportunity to drive. And normally She does not like driving "big" cars. I know I would really have regretted selling the 75.

There's plenty of "fish" in the pond.

Edited October 8, 2010 by dkbuick75 (see edit history)

[Guest sintid58]

I appreciate my wife of nearly 30 years more every time I see a post like this. Not only does she like the cars but also the hobby. She also has a little more common sense about garage space and $$ when I get carried away.

Edited October 10, 2010 by sintid58 (see edit history)

[michel88]

This thread makes me really appreciate my wife of 22 years. She is very supportive of my interest in old cars and has become very knowledgable herself. She went to Hershey with me and walked many miles on Thursday, Friday and at the car show Saturday.

Back in 1989 early on a Saturday morning I saw an add in the paper for a 51 Ford woodie. We were the first ones to look at it. It was a totally original car that had been garaged always and had been sitting for 27 years. It was priced reasonably but I hesitated because I have a hard time making decisions that involve spending a large sum of money. She put her foot down and told me we were buying it. It's one of the best decisions we have made. It could have been one of those stories that we all have about cars we coulda woulda shoulda bought!

[Thriller]

We've only been married 16 years, but Suzanne is the financier of the Buick Orchard. She's made the call on a couple cars as well, as well as figuratively smacking me about the head when it didn't make sense.

[Guest BJM]

Well unless you already have a convertible, everybody needs one in their stable. A convertible has the same effect as a motorcycle in how the world looks once under speed. Take your wife for a drive into the mountains before it gets too cold with the top down (may be too late in Colorado now). Seeing the mountains through a 2 door hardtop is not anything like a wide open convertible. Aaahhhh!

[Guest BJM]

You asked about price. Forget the price guide story.

They are for sellers.

Well, if offered in the fall, I think your car drops about 20% to a prospective buyer. So at least keep it until May 2011.

Then, as with most attempts at a "pure" sell - that is - not selling it to a BCA member for preservation or anything remotely emotive - then a 20 high definition photo ebay auction with about 5 paragraphs of content with a $15,000 Buy it Now price should tell you about the market.

I suspect this is more like a $12,000 car - and then - the market is thin.

The hard reality is that most people are still into muscle and pony cars.

[buick5563]

You asked about price. Forget the price guide story.

They are for sellers.

Well, if offered in the fall, I think your car drops about 20% to a prospective buyer. So at least keep it until May 2011.

Then, as with most attempts at a "pure" sell - that is - not selling it to a BCA member for preservation or anything remotely emotive - then a 20 high definition photo ebay auction with about 5 paragraphs of content with a $15,000 Buy it Now price should tell you about the market.

I suspect this is more like a $12,000 car - and then - the market is thin.

The hard reality is that most people are still into muscle and pony cars.

All good points.

[Guest mgbeda]

I wanted to say thanks to all the folks that replied with their advice. I've decided, at least for now, not to sell. My wife came up with a suggestion to loan the car out to a museum or private collection until such time as I've finished my restoration project, and maybe gotten rid of a car or two. Might work. Of course '75 is pretty recent to be in a museum, but I have seen a few from that era. Hey, it's no Duesenberg, but it's not a Pinto either (no offense to any Pinto fans out there).

Thanks again for all your help,

-Mike Beda