1932 Buick Model 98

[alsancle]

Bring a trailer has this 90 series 32 Buick which I find very very cool.   I have this vague recollection this was on the forum before but I can't find it.

 

Anybody want to guess market?

 

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1932-buick-model-98-convertible-phaeton/

 

This 1932 Buick Model 98 features two-door convertible bodywork by Fisher and was acquired in the 1970s by marque expert McClellan “Mac” Blair. A five-year restoration was completed in 1996, and in 2009 the car spent time on special display at the Gilmore Car Museum in Michigan. It is finished in its factory combination of Maxfield Blue and Maxfield Blue Dark over blue leather with Aluminum Bronze wheels and a tan top. Power is from a 344.8ci OHV straight-eight backed by a three-speed manual transmission with Wizard Control shifting. The selling dealer acquired the car in March 2018, and service performed since included rebuilding the carburetor, cleaning the fuel system, replacing the spark plugs and points, and setting the timing. This Model 98 Buick received awards from the AACA, CCCA, and Buick Club of America. The sale includes 1975 correspondence between Blair and the prior owner, as well as photos from the restoration, score sheets from shows in the 1990s, and a clean Ohio title.

 

Edited May 21, 2020 by alsancle (see edit history)

[edinmass]

Mac is the go to guy on 32 Buick’s. That’s a very rare car, one of two or three if I remember correctly. Fantastic driver is an unusual bond style. Not long ago, that car would easily be in the six figures. In today’s market?????Who knows.

[Pilgrim65]

Smart ,Beutiful Buick , love it but will be beyond my budget , pity 

Edited May 17, 2020 by Pilgrim65 (see edit history)

[alsancle]

I want to say that is a great advertisement.   Everybody that wants to sell a car should take a lesson from that auction.   Restoration photos and judging sheets included.

[Przemek M]

Beautiful car! Also very useful advertisement with so many detailed photos. 

Regards

[Crazyfamily]

Wow.....all I can say.  It’s spectacular!  Well done.....

[Matt Harwood]

Neat car, very rare, probably a great driver if Mac put it together. Not sure I'm in love with the bronze wheels (my '32 Model 97 was the same blue but had red wheels) but that's a really rare find. I understand not putting the top down to avoid wrinkles (I've done this before on high-end cars) but it always seems like you're doing the car a disservice by not putting the top down. This one is arguably better looking with the top down.

 

Also nice to see a complete Wizard Control setup--lord knows whether it works.

 

I think this car is also a great example of how being in a museum isn't necessarily good for a car--lots of recommissioning to be done if it's to go back on the show field and I'd invest a LOT of time before I started driving.

 

Nevertheless, that's a cool find.

Edited May 19, 2020 by Matt Harwood (see edit history)

[Y-JobFan]

Remember when he bought this one and then was working on it, got a couple rides in it when it was finished.  It was always a standout at the shows and always drew a large crowd around it.

 

[dibarlaw]

Taken at 2012 BCA nationals at Charlotte Motor Speedway. About 105 degrees that day!

[60FlatTop]

Those last few "before" pictures are the kind of pictures that have caused me problems since I was about 13 years old. That kind of picture made me think I could do a job like that myself instead of figuring out how to buy the car that was already done.

 

[Vander]

Seller here.

 

Alsuncle- Thank you for the compliments on the presentation. You probably saw our El Paso Tan/Symphony Brown car making its rounds on the internet last year.

 

Edinmass- There are only 6 known to exist, we sold Mac's other one last year.

 

Przemek M- Yes, this car could be used as an example for anyone restoring a 32 90 series and wants to know what is correct and Authentic.

 

Y-jobfan He bought it in the late 70's and it still draws the large crowds today.

 

We have recently serviced the car and it was scheduled for numerous Concours and National events this year that were unfortunately canceled due to Covid-19. So the new owner will have the pleasure of bringing it back out to the public if they choose.

 

If you have any questions about the car it is best to use the 'Contact Seller' button in the Bring a Trailer listing as that will go directly to my e-mail.

Edited May 19, 2020 by Vander (see edit history)

[John_Mereness]

Neat car - I would be sourcing a set of rare metal side mount spare tire covers, but other than that not touching it and enjoying the driving. 

[alsancle]

On 5/20/2020 at 10:56 AM, John_Mereness said:

Neat car - I would be sourcing a set of rare metal side mount spare tire covers, but other than that not touching it and enjoying the driving. 

 

I would lose the whitewalls,  otherwise leave it alone.

[edinmass]

I really like the car and would own it. First thing is to get wheels into a better color. Yes, it’s correct, but I couldn’t live with it.

[John_S_in_Penna]

Orange is the color directly opposite to blue on the color wheel,

so they are considered complimentary colors.  I like that

combination and can see why the factory may have offered it.

 

Similarly, blue and orange in different shades were used

appealingly in the 1978 Lincoln Mark V, Bill Blass edition:

 

[Doozer]

Not to argue.....however, as an opposite range, I believe that oranges are more “across” the color wheel to purples and blues to reds. 
 

 

 

P.S.      I am dead wrong in my statement above. However I’m leaving it up as a monument to my senility.

Edited May 22, 2020 by Doozer
Error in statement (see edit history)

[John_S_in_Penna]

I don't know the science behind the color wheel,

but I believe it isn't arbitrary.  The red-and-green 

combination, in various shades, was used in Victorian

homes;  and I suppose that a purple-and-yellow

combination would be acceptable on some products  !

[Doozer]

You are correct, I was wrong. I should know better.

[Buickborn]

Lovely automobile!  But I often wonder how it came to be that so many pre-war cars sport cartoonish whitewalls resembling those outlandish near-total-whites in vogue from about 1948 through 1952.  Historically, nearly every period photo or illustration of pre-war whitewall-equipped vehicles (even the very upscale jobs) shows tasteful whites of about the same width as those prevalent in the mid-1950s, by which time designers apparently figured out that attention-grabbing whitewalls do nothing to enhance the design of any car. 

[Marty Roth]

I like the car, but really prefer to drive-

 

We plan a 200 mile round trip this coming Sunday with our local club-

 

New Orleans to Houma, and then south through Dulac to Cocodrie for lunch at Sportsmans',

then to the concrete sculpture garden in Chauvin,

returning to Houma and then the 50 miles home again.

 

Daughter and son-in-law/Chapter President in their car ('88 BMW 528e)

Son and daughter-in- law with us in the '37 Roadmaster Phaeton - hopefully top-down