How to spot a '66 GS?

[JonW]

I have my eye on a '66 GS. What was included with the GS package and how can I determine if it's real?

[BadgerRivFan]

Click here:

Riviera Owners Association - Gran Sport

[JZRIV]

Lots of clones out there so be careful. Some of them are unintentionally advertised as a GS because the seller is uneducated on Rivs and have been mislead while some are intentional. Most of the time they are fairly easy to identify but sometimes its not so easy.

Best thing to do is what you are doing by running your concerns through this forum. If you can post some pics of the car and general geographic location someone may already have the low-down on the car you are looking at.

[JonW]

Here's the car. Looks the part of a real GS. Price may be a bit on the high side, but I really like the color combo and equipment level.

1966 Buick Riviera GS Tudor Hardtop at Fast Lane Classic Cars

[RivNut]

Jon,

Unless you have someone to look at this car for you, you need to see LOTS and LOTS of pictures. The seller has the wrong gear ratio for the rear end; Buick never had a 3.40. From the only picture I can see of the car, it looks as if the webs of the wheels are painted the same color as the body. The webs should be painted a dark charcoal color to be correct. No pictures of the engine or the interior. You should ask for a detail pictures, including the stamped engine serial number and the VIN from the cowl. Get a picture of the tag on the passenger's side of the transmission, the posi tag on the rear end, and the fender badges, and glove box door. '66 is one of the easier years to clone. Caveat emptor.

Ed

[1965rivgs]

Nice car. Some concerns but also some nice original features. Definitely not Riviera Silver Green though...and it is pricey. Good luck,

Tom Mooney

[JonW]

Ed, maybe the interior and engine pics didn't load, but they are there. The webs on the wheels are black, a little faded though. Tom, agreed on the paint. Looks more like Turquoise Mist.

Edited May 22, 2012 by JonW (see edit history)

[JZRIV]

I have seen that car for sale two or three different times over the past 3-4 years and have molled over the pictures time and time again. Its a striking color combo and the redline tires go well with it. Looks to have many original parts that are often long gone such as the Bendix screw cap master cylinder that still has some gold cad finish left on it. Still has the original exhaust hangers by the mufflers. Usually the rubber dried out and broke with a makeshift hanger in place. The interior looks pretty much original also. Many signs the car was well cared for at least a good portion of its life.

I always liked that car and wondered why it had trouble finding a good home so that would be a bit of a concern.

If I was buying it here is what I would do. Get confirmation the tag on the passenger side of tranny has a BS code. Based on everything else I can see if its a BS code I'd have much confidence it is an original GS. If you wanted to cement it ask them to try and read the stamped two letter code on the bottom of the axle tube. I can see it has a limited slip tag so thats good. Confirm the engine VIN matches the body VIN.

Then attempt to find out if there was any rust repair on the body. About the only way to do that is view the car in person. Based on what I can see it probably didn't have much rust. Are you close enough you can view the car? If not and you need to put holding money on it get something in writing that clearly states the sale is dependant on your final inspection and a full refund of any deposit money will be honored if its not as represented.

I would never buy a car this expensive without viewing it personally or having a very knowledgeable person view it for me. Especially since its been for sale for awhile.

Forgot to comment on the price. This is your call because as long as you are happy thats all that matters. For me, if the car has no mechanical needs nor signs of major body repair and no rust anywhere as well as an excellent paint job its easy a $20k car IMO. If it has any issues start subtracting value from there.

Edited May 23, 2012 by JZRIV (see edit history)

[CheezeMan]

Looking at the '67 next to it, I'd say that the dealer pads their sales price quite a bit. You should be able to knock off a lot of $$$ if you are good at that.

[1965rivgs]

Wheels are the correct dark charcoal in the lug nut area. Also the correct `66 wheels or at least the single closeup pic. I am always careful to inspect each wheel because it is very common to find mismatched wheels.

A couple of nice things to see...original trunk lining (check under that incorrect trunk mat) and, if the front seats have been reupholstered (hard to tell from these pics) the trim person took the time and had the expertise to give the pleats in the seat inserts some contour. Quite often trim shops sew the inserts flat which appears just plain boring as compared to original.

Tom

[JonW]

Thanks for all tips guys.

[epriv]

Hi Jon,

You may want to check out these 2. I have no affiliation with the dealers, just stuff I seen on the web.

Mitch

Nelson Auto Group | Vehicle Profile

Grand River Auto Sales - www.grandriverautosales.com

[Guest BJM]

For my time and money I would just lean on the ROA and join the club and get my car out of the classifieds if possible. I am amazed at the nice cars offered in the club's classified and seperating them by years always makes it easy.

[JonW]

For my time and money I would just lean on the ROA and join the club and get my car out of the classifieds if possible. I am amazed at the nice cars offered in the club's classified and seperating them by years always makes it easy.

Sent in my dues last week.

[Guest Riviera66]

Sent in my dues last week.

Great News Jon... a good investment.

There's a 95% chance that this is a legitimate '66 Riviera GS. As other posts have mentioned, it is not terribly hard to clone one... but cloners rarely get all the little clues right. Of the visible ones, they're all there and as expected. To confirm further, we'd need to see stamped codes.

The car was originally Riviera Silver Green...but this is definitely not that color. (Actually, this color looks nicer to me... closer to a Turquoise mist). For top dollar like this, if the color isn't an exact '66 Riviera color, it harms value ... (I mean, it looks nice, but if this turns out to be a Toyota paint color, the value of the paint job goes way down).

Also, it's not a great restoration... all sorts of things that weren't done to the interior. For this price, the woodgrain should be replaced, LOL.

Darwin Falk

1966-70 ROA Technical Advisor

[RivNut]

For the money, either one of the cars that Epriv sent links for in post #12 would be a much better buy for the money, IMHO.

Ed

[JonW]

For the money, either one of the cars that Epriv sent links for in post #12 would be a much better buy for the money, IMHO.

Ed

I agree, but the olive car doesn't have a/c and the blue car doesn't have bucket seats. I want both.

[Guest BJM]

Interesting observation regarding needing bucket seats (and a/c). The a/c I 100% agree with and since it's going to be your car, specification of buckets/ a/c etc. are fine I have no issue with a person getting the exact car they are looking for.

But....

I always thought I need buckets/console too but the Rivieras for me are purchased for their styling and overall asthetic beauty, not specific options.

I have gone around and around with guys that "must have" the 2x4 Nailheads in their 64's or GS 65's. They were willing to wait or buy less of a car just for that "rare" option when in my opinion they were missing out on better cars.

A 66 with bench seat looks just as nice, drives just as nice etc as a bucket seat console car. Apples to apples, if a very nice bench seat car came along I would grab it and start enjoying the hobby.

But like I said, just one man's opinion. and I 100% see your viewpoint because I own a 70 Buick Wildcat 2 door with bucket seats and console. It transforms that interior. But my 73 Centurion has the 40/60 seating with fold down armrest. I am OK with that set up.

[RivNut]

The bench seat car looks as if it has the Strato bench seat. It's the base of a bench with the seat backs of the buckets. From others I've talked to, these are very comfortable seats. And the addition of the center arm rest is a big plus in my book. For the savings on this car you could find the steering column, shifter and console, and bucket seats and still have money in your pocket. One thing to remember is that there is a definite difference between a '66 and a '67. '66 was the last year for the nailhead and '67 was the firts year for the 430 Big Block.

Ed

[JonW]

Well, I drove up to St. Louis today to check on the '66 Riviera at Fastlane. Interesting thing about the color. Maybe I misread the data tag, but I thought the OEM color was Silver Grey Poly. Upon opening the trunk, the underside of the trunk lid is factory paint, and it's Turquoise Mist. Maybe someone more knowledgeable about Rivieras than me can shed some light on that.

Overall, the car is OK. The paint job is very wavy, which is unfortunate because otherwise it's pretty decent and a striking color combination. The interior looks to be original and is in good shape. We really didn't have an interest in the car after seeing the wavy paint, so I didn't delve into it any further. IMHO it's overpriced by about $10K, especially if the paint mystery can't be resolved.

They also had a '63 they just received. The '66 was a tight squeeze for me and the '63 was a no-go as far as interior room. I guess I'm going to have to try a '68 - '69 and '71-'72 and see how they fit. The quest continues.

[JZRIV]

Well, I drove up to St. Louis today to check on the '66 Riviera at Fastlane. Interesting thing about the color. Maybe I misread the data tag, but I thought the OEM color was Silver Grey Poly. Upon opening the trunk, the underside of the trunk lid is factory paint, and it's Turquoise Mist. Maybe someone more knowledgeable about Rivieras than me can shed some light on that.

I was noticing the inside of the trunk lid in the pics pics and thought wow that looks like factory paint that matches the exterior color yet not the body tag. More digging would need done to figure it out looking in other inconspicuous areas on the main body shell.

Could be as simple as the trunk lid being repalced and they stayed with that color but who knows.

Sounds like you helped determine why the car hasn't been selling. At that asking price it needs to have a quality paint job. Thanks for the feedback.