Fantastic Website of '58 and '59 Cars

[Centurion]

We've seen many laughable cars on Ebay and websites that were poorly done. But here is something that is really classy. Check out this website, which features the fabulous 1958 and 1959 cars collected by an individual named Kris Trexler.

www.kingoftheroad.net

Buick fans will especially appreciate the links to his '58 Buick Limited 2-door hardtop, which sold on Ebay last year for $50,000. Other links that you really ought to check out include the '59 Oldsmobile 98, '58 Lincoln Continental, and '58 Pontiac Bonneville. It must be nice to have the resources to indulge all of your automotive fantasies.

What's striking about this website are the many excellent photos, detailed descriptions, photos of some of the cars' documentation, and a complete history of the vehicles.

Check it out and let me know what you think.

[GSTURBO]

That guy has a few more bucks than me but he really gets a lot of pleasure from that varied assortment of cars.Does he like visitors? Norb

[Guest 70 Electra]

Brian,

Once again, we're on similar paths! A local friend stumbled on this site and mentioned it to me. He knew I had been working on gathering some exceptionally fine cars for the Buick class at the "Concours d'Elegance at Cranbrook" event this summer. The 58 is just the kind of car I was looking for!

When I contacted Kris Trexler, I found that last year's ebay sale (I remembered that one, too) was when Kris had sold the car...not when he bought it! It now belongs to a collector in Nova Scotia.

If anyone knows of the name of the new owner, I'd sure like to know!

[Centurion]

Right you are, Greg. When I e-mailed Kris Trexler a few days ago, I asked him why he chose to part with a car as spectacular as the '58 Limited. He replied that his collection had grown a bit unwieldy, and it was time to start thinning out. He decided to part with the Limited only if it fetched a fabulous price, which, of course, it did. When I learned that the car was now in Nova Scotia, I replied to Kris that I hoped we would see it in Flint. He said that he hopes the fellow will show it, in part so that we can make sure the new owner is giving proper care to his "baby".

There is a lesson to be learned here about selling a car on Ebay. This particular Limited attracted considerable attention and spirited bidding. Why? Not only is it a spectacular and desirable car, but the seller's photographs were superb -- as you will see if you enter the website. In contrast, I have seen other very fine and desirable cars on Ebay that have attracted little notice, and the lack of quality photographs was the culprit. Case in point: Last year, the one-off 1953 Skylark 2-door hardtop was offered on Ebay. I saw this car in Sacramento at the 1991 BCA National, and I understand that it has been improved upon since that time. This is a stunning automobile in every respect with a unique history as the personal car belonging to the wife of Buick's General Manager. In my view, this car would be one of the ultimate Buick collectibles, and it should command a very high price. The owner placed the car on Ebay, and I'm certain that he had high expectations regarding the bidding activity. The problem is that his Ebay listing had no photographs, except for a small photograph of a magazine article featuring the car. Only those who had personal knowledge of the car would have recognized its value. The car attracted a single bid at the $50,000 starting figure. I have no idea whether a sales transaction was completed, but there was no reserve on the car. If the seller was obligated to follow through on the sale, I'm certain that he did so with great regret and a substantial financial loss. When selling a car on the Internet, pictures are everything!

[Centurion]

I couldn't resist inserting one of my favorite photos of the '58 Limited from the website.

[NTX5467]

That's a great website! Thanks for the link!

If that Cadillac picture (on the front page of the website) is what I think it is, you can buy it on www.fitz-art.com.

Those were some magnificent vehicles Kris has/had! Fantastic pic of the '58 Limited too!

Enjoy!

NTX5467

[TomE_1953]

This is the SAME car used on the CD cover for a band called, The Remains (see post about "Buick Dynaflow Song by The Remains).

This had to be my favorite body style hands down! We had a 58' convertible show up at the Topeka, KS show and a favorite of many classic owners that attended. It's fun to see people stop dead in their tracks when one of these drives into a show.

Thanks for sharing the link!

[Centurion]

NTX5467 has pointed us to another great treasure. Had anyone asked my opinion about the best-ever automotive advertising campaign, I would have pointed to the fabulous print ads that Art Fitzpatrick and Van Kaufman did for Pontiac during the 1960's. Truly, the decade of the 1960's was Pontiac's golden era, and, while I personally prefer the Buicks of the era, there's no denying that the Pontiacs were beautifully-styled cars, and their great sales success was aided by the elegant and romantic illustrations of Fitzpatrick and Kaufman. NTX5467 included the link to a website where many of these great advertising illustrations are available as limited edition prints.

Lesser known are the excellent ads that Fitzpatrick and Kaufman did for Buick during the 1954 through 1957 era, and several of these illustrations are also available on the website. Have there ever been any Buick ads that conveyed such "class" as the ads below for the 1954 Buick Skylark and the 1956 Buick Roadmaster?