1970 Riviera GS ????

[Guest]

I have a chance to buy a 1970 Riviera GS (requires complete resto). <P>How rare is the GS and what options does it have compared to my 1970 Riviera. The guy said it has a factory stage 1 on it. Is this fact or fiction.<BR> <P>1970 Buick Riviera<BR>1973 Cougar XR7

[Guest]

I am very sure that the GS in the 70 Riv included being equipped with the STage 1 engine. You should be able to tell by the engine code stamping on the block. There have been a few people who claim that the cam was different than in the A cars because of the weight of the riv. I removed the drive train and engine from a 71 GS Riviera and it was definitely a stg 1 engine with big valve heads. On that car the stg 1 engine was part of the GS pkg. In 73 the STG1 became a seperate option from the GS pkg in the RIV and I beleive the code will show up in the Vin #. These are only observations and I may well be proven wrong by some of the Guru's.

[Centurion]

I think that there is a common misconception that the Riviera GS engine was a Stage 1, but not so. In fact, the Stage 1 was not available on the Riviera until the 1973 model. <P>I am less knowledgeable about the '70 Riviera, but in the '71 through '73 period, the GS option did include a "Modified High Performance 455" engine. This was not, however, the Stage 1 engine, and the engine codes for this engine are different from both the standard Riviera 455 and the Stage 1 engine. I have heard tales of Buick sometimes slipping Stage 1 engines into Electra 225's and other large Buicks, but everything I have seen would indicate that the Stage 1 was not a regular factory option in the Riviera until 1973. To better answer the question, I hope that someone here with the 1970 Buick Facts Book and the 1970 Buick Chassis Service Manual could tell us what was unique about the '70 Riviera GS and which engine codes were available for the car.

[Guest]

the 70 riviera gs came with the following as standard equipment:<BR>Heavy duty suspension,(includes different shocks,springs,heavy duty track bar),3.42 posi rear,<BR>Chrome air cleaner and H78-15 white wall tires as H78-15 black wall was standard. You could order wide oval H70-15 red line or white line tire and 3.91 pt rear as long as you didn't order ac.It also used the full size 455 rated at 370 hp,supposedly different camshaft then the 350hp used in the gs455.

[Guest]

Only engine codes I recall are SF.I got one with an SR one time.

[Guest]

Thanks Guys<BR>You have been a great help, one last question. Were can I find info on the production Nbrs of the 1970 Riviera GS?<P>

[Guest]

check out the riviera owners association website <A HREF="http://www.rivowners.org" TARGET=_blank>www.roaowners.org</A> <BR>they show total 1970 production of 37,336 Rivs of which 3,505 were GS's<p>[ 01-17-2002: Message edited by: jcaputo ]

[Guest]

I heard some where that the reason Buick didn't call the hiperformance engine in the Riviera a STGE1 was to maintain the image of luxury they were seeking at that time???? Anyway big valve heads, different cam and large oil suction tube are about the only differences anyway. I know that my 71 Riv GS had all of these and was stock. I have a 73 Riv STG1 and while stock it was a big dog in the power department!!!! It likewise had the big valve heads, large pickup tube and supposedly a different cam than the normal 73 455. I can tell you this much, the 71 cam had a whole different rumble and lope compared to the 73. Leads me to beleive that by 73 the stg1 was mostly appearance. Also had a 70 Riv when they were new with the std 370 hp rated engine. WhaT A CAR THAT WAS!!! I can only inmagine what a stge 1 with a 3.91 rear would pull like.<BR>Ed