TxBuicks Posted September 3, 2013 Share Posted September 3, 2013 (edited) A man from Houston emailed me recently with a possible Buick Rescue candidate. He had read about my Buick Rescue efforts on this forum. He said his neighbor has a 1966 Electra 225 convertible sitting in her driveway for the past (who knows how many) years. The owner's aunt bought it new and it was willed to her mother when her aunt died in 1984. Her mother kept the car but hardly drove it, and she died in 2004. So it has been in one family since new. She is finally willing to part with it. After seeing a few pictures I decided to go look at it. As you would expect a car from Houston, the humidity had caused surface rust on all horizontal body pieces. The engine hadn't been started in years but it did turn over. Although the top had a hole in it, she had covered it with several heavy tarps to protect the interior. It has power windows, front seat, brakes, and steering. No A/C. The odometer shows 63,600 miles. I had to have it. Pete Phillips and I went and picked it up this weekend. My 12 year old son is excited about it, too. So my plans are to restore it with him to have in 4 years when he can legally drive it. I think I will start a thread on Me and My Buick, but here are a few pictures of it. The one on the trailer shows just how huge this car is. It fit in my garage with about 2 inches to spare. Edited September 3, 2013 by TxBuicks (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Roth Posted September 3, 2013 Share Posted September 3, 2013 Roy,Congratulations on a great find..and working on the Buick with your son will surely be a rewarding (AND SOMETIMES QUIETLY FRUSTRATING) experience.savor every minute - it will be something he'll remember and appreciate when we are all just a memory Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted September 3, 2013 Share Posted September 3, 2013 Oh man, nice score Roy!!! You just never know what is out there! White w/ red interior and no A/C. Gotta be a fair weather car only. Bet your winch was working overtime to get that baby up there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jscheib Posted September 3, 2013 Share Posted September 3, 2013 Roy, Fantastic! Never anything like that around the northeast, or maybe rarely. Looks like she kept the sun off the interior, too. Congratulations. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithbrother Posted September 3, 2013 Share Posted September 3, 2013 Nice, and HEAVY TOOOOOOO. I see you loaded it near the back of the trailer to reduce some of the tongue load.Love those Flex Ford's. Wife hates them, what does she KNOW, hehehe. Wishing you and the son a great time.Dale in Indy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TxBuicks Posted September 3, 2013 Author Share Posted September 3, 2013 Smithbrother, that's exactly why I loaded it so far back, to keep the weight off of the car. According to the Flex manual, it is rated to pull only 4500 pounds. Well, the Buick Electra 225 Convertible weighs in at 4300 pounds, plus at least 1200 pounds for the trailer, plus 4 passengers and luggage for 3 days, I figure I was at least 6500 pounds. But Texas is flat, and the drive from Denton to Houston is all highway, so I wasn't (that) worried. It ran great after I got it going up to speed. Braking was a bit scary, so I left plenty of room to stop, and I took my time. Overall, the Ford Flex handled the task very well. I was impressed. I got the Ford Flex because it looked more like a station wagon than an SUV. I love it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted September 3, 2013 Share Posted September 3, 2013 Nice find Roy. Enjoy it.I had a garage like that once too...with a workbench up front, I had to push out on the door when opening or closing to clear the Wildcat. Said garage has been replaced.While you managed to make it without incident, I do have to chastise you for the tow job. Honestly, it is people who are towing beyond the capabilities of their vehicles that has resulted in some of the overly zealous rules we have in place today. If need be, rentals are available that can handle the load. Had you been in a collision, odds are good your insurance would have been void due to being loaded well over capacity of the tow vehicle. Those are some of the reasons I have Max, so that I don't need to worry about any of those sorts of issues. You got away with it this time, but should there be a need to tow your Electra again, please borrow or rent a proper tow vehicle that can properly handle the weight.[/rant mode] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old-tank Posted September 3, 2013 Share Posted September 3, 2013 RoySo you are going to keep the best ones? You deserve it!(by the way that trailer weighs 2000 lbs unless it is aluminum)Willie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTX5467 Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 That'll make a really nice car! Congrats!NTX5467 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrEarl Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 That ought to keep you AND the boy outa trouble for a few years. Congrats on the great find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serb Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 Roy, nice find! A great project to work on with your son,maybe he will teach you a thing or two that you forgot.Stevo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wildcat465 Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 No rust holes? Really nice interior?You and your son will miss out on some of the most exciting parts of restoring a car!Should be a fun project for you two, can't wait to see it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 At one time the car of my dreams!!! I am envious. May I ride in it when it is road worthy??? Real happy for you. Enjoy Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 I've received both positive and negative feedback on my earlier post here and wanted to clear the air a bit.First of all, I know Roy and like him very much and appreciate what he does for the club (handling National meet registration being most prominent) and the hobby (rescuing Buicks). However, as with anyone you like, you don't have to like everything they do.It was suggested that I should have handled it in a PM, but what would that do, other than to serve as a conversation in private that perhaps generates more animosity? Part of the reason I posted was more as a warning to others that you should not tow beyond the rated capacity of a tow vehicle (and in many cases, shouldn't get anywhere near the rated capacity). Everything worked out fine in this case, but effectively Roy was more or less an uninsured driver on the road (and I've heard many rants against that).It most certainly was not my intent to offend anyone, but tact has never been a strength of mine.Again, Roy, great car. I hope to see it in person some day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrEarl Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 Said it before and I'll say it again D, sometimes a man's just gotta do what a man's gotta do. Some folks live on the edge and take a few more chances than others. Had it been somebody but these two guys, I'd probably agree with you more, but I'd like to hear how many miles both of them have racked up hauling old Buicks. I wasn't necessarily thrilled to haul this thing from Mobile AL to Athens GA, for two reasons. Firstly because I literally had to have the sheriff on standby a block away because the seller had backed out on the deal she had with the friends who asked me to go after it. But that's why I felt compelled to go after it, more or less a rescue. Secondly and mainly because it is the longest station wagon ever made and was bigger than anything I had ever hauled before. It took 3 pull-overs to try and get the weight distribution just right due to the weight of the rear third of the car and the clamshell tailgate. And as you can see in the one pic, the weight was still to much on the rear. I still wagged a couple times when the semi's going 70 passed me going NMT 55. so "just saying" I am sure these two experienced haulers knew they were stretching the limits but took measures to try and compensate and make it as safe as possible for themselves and the other motoring public. I'm also pretty sure too, that the front seats of that Flex probably have a couple of new and permanent pinched creases in them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithbrother Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 Risks are something many/most of us have taken in our life time. When I think back when I was a repo man/young guy, ( I WAS 17) working for my dad a Buick dealer in Bloominton, Il, I often used a TOW BAR to pull the car back home. I even repossessed a car from the famous SHELTON FAMILY in southern Il. That was 1953, Google that family, hehehe. Talk about RISK, the good Lord was with me. My dad was the most trusting guy, can you imagine a TOW BAR on the back bumper of today's cars? My driver to repo was a CAR, not a truck. Most of the time it was a 48 Roadmaster, stick. The good ole days, MAYBE.......Glad it all worked out for you both.Dale in Indy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TxBuicks Posted September 4, 2013 Author Share Posted September 4, 2013 Thriller, I respect your opinion and did not take offense to it. In fact, I admire your nerve to post it publically. When I first thought about the possibility of using the Flex for hauling this Buick I did a little internet research. Yes, the rated capacity was only 4,500 pounds. Which really surprised me, because I have had it for two months and it seemed like it could handle more than that. It is as big as a Yukon or Suburban, and has the dealer installed towing package with the 2 inch hitch. Yes, you are correct about the insurance company probably not approving this decision. But I read many blogs from other Flex owners that had pulled things heavier than 4,500 pounds and the consensus was that it could handle much more than that safely. No telling how much of a safety factor Ford put into their 4,500 pound rating. I talked to Pete, who has hauled more than 50 Buicks on that same trailer, and he was familiar with my Flex. His thoughts were that it could handle the load on the very flat Texas highways. In fact, he wanted to go with me! Now, if it were just me and Pete we would have used his truck and trailer. But my wife and son wanted to go, too. So, the Flex it was. Once we got going, had I felt unsafe, it was already discussed that I leave it and come back another day with the truck. The seller was not in any hurry.So, technically and legally, Thriller is correct. It was just that the Flex made it a more adventurous story, which included the whole family.That's all I'm going to say about that. Now, on with the Buick restoration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BJM Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 (edited) The conversation is helpful, regarding the towing. I don't want to see Buick friends get hurt this way. If it causes one person to reconsider, then it has been a good use of forum space. Now, Roy, what about the other convertible? I used to go pick up my cars with my friend Al. For my last 3-4 cars though I have used a good Texas fellow out of Sherman, TX that I found on Yesterday's Tractor. Compared to putting miles on my truck, wear and tear and so on, he is a bargain. Edited September 4, 2013 by BJM (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithbrother Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 It's a WONDERFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD.All is well, that's good,Dale in Indy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 I know one unofficial consideration is that automobile manufacturers are conservative in the towing capacity. Lawyers are probably a pain in their lives too, so if a vehicle is rated for X, there is a safety factor engineered into the vehicle. The long arm of the law won't take that into consideration though should they pull someone over or if an overloaded vehicle is involved in a collision.I'm glad the adventure went well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithbrother Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 OK, OK, we understand, time to move back to the BUICK. I can't wait to see the pictures as it moves along its journey to restore. Your son will learn so much, and enjoy at the same time. Did that with my father back in the mid 40's. Dale in Indy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rob McDonald Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 Still off topic but part of the story anyway: when is someone going to finally slap some wood grain on the sides of a Flex? The lines are already there to help get it nice and straight. Roy's right, it's not an SUV - it's the latest generation Country Squire.Of course, Google shows us that somebody's already done it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_Maine Posted September 5, 2013 Share Posted September 5, 2013 Did whoever put the wood paneling on the Flex also put on some Country Squire nameplates? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rob McDonald Posted September 6, 2013 Share Posted September 6, 2013 Doesn't look like it but I sure would! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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