63 -65 TV Rivieras

[5632]

Last night I saw another car show building a custom Riviera.  This is the second different show I have seen building one lately.  TV shows are all scripted and written to get the most attention in order to sell advertising.  Rivieras must becoming an even more attractive and popular car.  I understand most forum members are mostly purest car collectors which is great but there still many custom Rivieras that are gorgeous.  With the popularity apparently increasing I am wonder if the selling prices are also increasing?  I am not interested in selling mine today but with all the attention it gets at car events and shows people ask if it is all the time.  The truth is everything is For Sale.  (I will send pictures some time when my daughter helps me learn to do it correctly.)    

[60FlatTop]

Since new the first generation Riviera has been a "keeper". The nice ones have had long term homes. The people whom bought them in the 1970's and early '80's started letting them go a few years ago.

 

And the majority may be selling too cheaply if they are chopping them up.

 

In their original form they are the equivalent of a Bentley Continental for the discerning, notso common man.

 

Bernie

[Seafoam65]

Every time somebody builds a custom Riviera, the value of the original ones that are left go up.

As far as very nice ones, the customs already outnumber the stock original ones that are out

there. From what I've seen, most customizers are starting out with very nice original cars due to the lack

of repro sheet metal. In my observation, early Riviera values have gone up slightly in the last four years,

while cars like Shelby Mustangs and GTO's have gone down about 20 per cent in the last four years. The really

hot cars for   collectors with deep pockets are the Ferraris, Bugattis, Porsches, etc. They are climbing to the moon right now.

Any thing old and foreign, no matter how ugly, is 200,000 and up. When you take an early Riviera to a car show in Texas

where I live, it causes a riot. In east Texas, which is a blue collar area, most folks, even older ones, have never seen one

before. The looks on the face of a person who has never laid an eyeball on an early Riviera before is a sight to behold!

Edited August 13, 2019 by Seafoam65 (see edit history)

[RivNut]

If you like to look at Rivieras that have been (or tried to be) customized, take a look at the Riviera Owners Facebook page. Always someone looking for a thumbs up.

[5632]

Mine his been chopped.  At car shows people do know it because it looks just right.  Unless it is parked next to a stock Riviera which makes the stock one look like a pickup truck.

[Seafoam65]

20 hours ago, 5632 said:

Mine his been chopped.  At car shows people do know it because it looks just right.  Unless it is parked next to a stock Riviera which makes the stock one look like a pickup truck.

Can you post a pic of your car? I agree with you that the roof should have been a tad less tall on the early Riviera. That is the worst aspect of the styling

on the cars.

[RivNut]

18 minutes ago, Seafoam65 said:

Can you post a pic of your car? I agree with you that the roof should have been a tad less tall on the early Riviera. That is the worst aspect of the styling

on the cars.

When Bill Mitchell built the Silver Artow I, he chopped that top 2".  He added a fiberglass top to it. If you look at it, you'll also notice it's peaked down the middle.  To make it "longer and lower" he extended the front fenders 2". That also allowed him to pancake the hood.

 

Remember, the car was built to sell to the masses, and most of the new buyers were more interested in ingress, egress, and headroom than in a chopped top.   

[5632]

I have never had a head problem with a chopped top.  Although I don't ware a cowboy hat.

[RivNut]

Neither one of my step sons wear cowboy hats either but they wouldn't like a chopped top.  But they're 6'-5" and 6'-7" tall. One of the biggest complaints you'll hear from 63 - 65 owners is the lack of leg room.  I don't have that problem.  I haven't heard you say anything about it either.  You must be like me - short.  We short guys look better in cars with chopped tops.  Makes us look bigger.

[jframe]

On ‎8‎/‎14‎/‎2019 at 10:01 PM, RivNut said:

Neither one of my step sons wear cowboy hats either but they wouldn't like a chopped top.  But they're 6'-5" and 6'-7" tall. One of the biggest complaints you'll hear from 63 - 65 owners is the lack of leg room.  I don't have that problem.  I haven't heard you say anything about it either.  You must be like me - short.  We short guys look better in cars with chopped tops.  Makes us look bigger.

I am 5'10" with a 30" inseam, and the legroom in my Riv is fine, although I can see it isn't great for long legged folks. My girlfriend is 5'5", and she has no problem. Power seat on mine is stuck pretty much all the way back, and it sits fine for both of us. I can hear the motor run, and the PO spent a ton getting it to work, but it quit not long after I bought it.

[jsgun]

I'm 6' 5", I seem to fit in my 64 ok. Right leg is on the console though. I figured I was going to have to modify the tracks to get it farther back. I barely fit in my 92 vette, the sport seat is all the way down, with the back laid at an angle. I had to modify the seat tracks on a 67 mustang to fit in it. I tried to explain it to the new owner but he didn't listen. He'll figure it out when he tries to drive it. Being tall is a bit of a PIA on older cars.

[TKRIV]

I am 6' 7" (I am long in the torso) and I do find head room a problem with my hair touching the headlining. The seat has to have a little sag in it to be comfortable.

No problem with leg room.

American cars of the 50, 60, 70... are large but I am surprised how some have so little head room.

If Bill Mitchel chopped 2" of the 1st Gen Riv there is no way I could drive it in comfort.

Happy just the way it is  🙂

 

I think Darwin Falk is a little taller that me, I wounder how he sits in a 2nd Gen Riv.

Tom Kunek

ROA3845