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My Buick, Before......and After


MrEarl

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In 2004 I bought this Buick "Safir" on a auktion site here in Sweden.This car was built from a 1956 model 41 (Special 4dr.)It was done in 1962-1963 in the north of Sweden.

I started restoring the Safir in 2009 and finished in 2011.

Leif in Sweden.

Leif, Is this a one off custom build? Looks a lot like a Buick spin on a Corvett style. Cool Car. :cool: Dandy Dave!

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Yes this`s a custom built car with a glassfiber body,he must have borrow a Jaguar E-type front and copied in early 60s,the head lights are Jaguar and as well as the front bumpers,the scoop is a Thundrbird 1955-1957,I`m not sure what the rear end is but it looks Corvette early 60s ,the rear bumpers are Corvette early 60s,there are power windows from Cadillac 1959,the front window is 1957 Chevrolet.When I bought the car it had a Chev 305,restored in 1990s as well as the automatic transmission (350 I think).I still have that in the car and it works fine,in the beginning when this "Safir" was built it had a 1959 Oldsmobile 98 engine with 300HP and an electric overdrive?but the overdrive wasn`t working very well so he removed this early.I still don`t know what the front seats are,but I have heard Ferrari,Citroen-Maserati but I don`t know.(sorry Mr Earl but I had to show those pictures.)

Leif in Sweden.

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Nice. :D As customs go, this one really has a touch of Class. I like it much better in the white, and red interior that you have done it in. IMO. Buick missed the boat when they did not build a similar sporty car back in the day. Dandy Dave!

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post-41457-143141746787_thumb.jpg Seeing as we are on Customs --- here's my current project. This started life as a series 40 sedan and was chopped many years ago to a farm ute. So I'm building it up as a pickup with Chev V8 & T700 auto. I'd like to have a 401 Nailhead in it but those engines are very hard to source here ( and expensive to buy and rebuild )

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When I hear/read of CRATE engines, I think of FACTORY MANUFACTURED and SPONSORED units. It seems that REBUILDERS are getting in the action, but in my opinion it AIN'T a genuine crate engine if for example Buick isn't the builder.

Maybe I'm being a bit picky, but too many engines are being called CRATE just because they are shipped in a crate.

My LT-1 came direct from the factory assembly line, to me it's a CRATE engine that I can count on as being, "QUALITY".

Dale in Indy

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Guest frazer51

My first Buick purchase starts with this "For Sale" ad dating to April 1965. 2 days later is my purchase the 1939 Buick with my then 5 year old twin daughters sitting on the running board. A year later,1966, I had finished the car but it wasn't till 1978 that my twins took another picture with the car. Now 47 years later in 2012 my twin daughter Paula is sitting on the '39 Buick holding her Grandson Zaidyn along with her son Nathan, the father of Zaidyn. This '39 Buick Special now has about 45,000 on it.post-61302-143141749325_thumb.jpg

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Guest 75RivGS

Great to see all those Buicks that were saved.

My first attempt; 75 Riviera GS (2004/2005)

Found another 75 Riviera on a junk yard; after 10 years of hibernation it was hoisted out of a garage :mad: ; they just put straps around 4 wheels and hoisted it out leaving damaged fenders.

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It needed an engine overhaul (also had a blown head gasket):

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Sanding/primer/sanding etcetc:

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and finally a repaint:

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My 2nd: 73 Riviera (2006/2007)

Found the car for sale in a barn were it sat for quite some years:

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Among lots of other (minor) things it needed an engine and tranny job:

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A repaint:

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Later my 71 Electra and 68 Wildcat.

Hopefully I can do the same treatment for the 72 Estate Wagon (only needs a repaint), but our new government is planning on again taking road taxes for classic cars; since that will cost me about $14,000 (yes, thousand) per year for the Buicks it might be the end of my Buick hobby. I already stopped to invest money and wait for a government decision in April.

Edited by 75RivGS (see edit history)
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  • 5 months later...
Guest studeclunker
10 years, tons of Tums and major aggravation it was finally done.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]178671[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]178672[/ATTACH]

Wow, what a beauty she turned out to be!:D I even love the colour!! If you don't mind my asking; is the woodwork structural or a veneer? Whatever it is, the car is

G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S! happy0044.gif Then again... you probably hear that a lot.winking0071.gif

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Guest studeclunker

Beautiful job on those cars Rob.smiley-happy088.gif Especially the two Rivieras. My neighbor had one of those '73s when they were new. I thought it was a beautiful car back then, and they still are!

Nice cars, very nice cars indeed. smiley-happy088.gif

Edited by MrEarl
Remove off topic political rhetoric (see edit history)
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  • 5 months later...
Guest Okiekajun

Okay, so here we go!

Before:

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After:

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The first picture is circa 1956 when my pop purchased the car new... He sold the car approximately 1967! The second picture is recently finding what we think is the same car last weekend... I'm picking the car up at the end of the month and continuing to pursue positive info that it was pops car! and it will have another AFTER shot someday soon!

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Guest 75RivGS

continuing to pursue positive info that it was pops car! and it will have another AFTER shot someday soon!

Is it hard to get that information? Do you still have information about the car from when your dad owned the car? (some sort of VIN etc)

If it turns out to be exactly the same car it would make a beautiful story.

Please keep us informed!

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Guest Okiekajun

No, unfortunately we had a house fire in 72 that took everything we had, so no paperwork... the guy that bought it ran a business and may have some if I can talk to his daughter. The reason's I believe it is are:

1: Color pattern, majority I have seen have been white/black/white, not black/white/black, as this one is...

2: I has visuals of body work on front drivers fender and hood, mom got it twice in the front drivers side...

3: The guy that bought it owned a motorcycle dealership/collector, it's full of motorcycle mags, haven't found a name on them yet...

4: It's 4 miles from where my pop sold it and looks like it's only been sitting since...

Edited by Okiekajun
spell correct (see edit history)
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  • 1 year later...

This is my '53 Super 56R, "Naomi". 13 years and still going. She's a little bit custom and little bit original. Rebuilt 322, Dynaflow, Front disc brakes and a purple/black two tone paint job (which will soon be just all black as it was my first attempt at a paint job and I don't care for the purple anymore) Just took her for my first real drive around Athens last week.

I bought the first one in January of 2002 off of ebay from a guy in Florida for $1500. It was originally a Maryland car and had been in a junkyard since the 70's. 100% complete, but not running, half attempt at priming the body and soon found out that it was mostly bondo. Rocker panels, floors and drip rail all shot to heck. But I did a lot of mechanical work and the interior. After the first year of learning and working it came to my attention that I needed a second car for parts and preferably one with a solid body. I found another one for about the same price in Nebraska and that is the green one. My dad had some guys put in the rebuilt engine and transmission in the second one with the solid body. I painted her 2012-2013. Lamar and I got her running and he helped me re-install the windshield and backglass with new rubber back in 2013.

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Leif, what Model is this '24? What an awesome restoration from what you started with

1972 and 1993,but not working all the time with the car just becuse we had 3 small children and I couldn`t find the right rear axle for a long time to this 1924 4cyl.1993 picture from the "new" registration with a friend of mine working there,and driving the car .

Leif in Sweden.

176845d1360144748-my-buick-before-after-buick-1924-besiktning-med-ralf-sberg

Edited by MrEarl (see edit history)
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BEFORE (what I started with) in 1972

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DURING (what it looked like after years of drive it) 1983

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DURING (after new top, tires and engine swap) 1992

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AFTER????? 2015

Need a bit more time till she is back on the road again after a complete brake job...:o

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While I tinker with the Rivieras, I also play with old Schwinn bicycles. Here are before and after pictures of one I recently did. All the chrome is the same, just bathed in oxalic acid for days and rubbed with wet aluminum foil, had a friend with an English wheel roll the fenders.

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