Finally getting at it! My Buick Project.
- Thread starter jdustu
- Start date
jdustu
Club Sponsor
That's a cool looking ride dude.
mikesfastss
Club Member
was nice driver but had alot of rust in the trunk.and lower quarters 350 with a powerglide ran like a champ my buddy bought it and is in the prosess of a major over haul.
Sweet ride.
But do yourself a favor and store it with the top up. Leaving it down will create some pretty nasty wrinkles, creases, and odd wear. Will also save your interior from all the dust and crap. Even if you put something over the top to protect it, better to have it up than down folded up and the interior exposed.
But do yourself a favor and store it with the top up. Leaving it down will create some pretty nasty wrinkles, creases, and odd wear. Will also save your interior from all the dust and crap. Even if you put something over the top to protect it, better to have it up than down folded up and the interior exposed.
jdustu
Club Sponsor
Yeah, that would have been the smart thing to do:redface:
It's been sitting for a while already now.
jdustu
Club Sponsor
The paint is ok, but there is rust at the bottom of both quarters. Right now I just want to get together and drive it.
In the future, I'm not sure. Blue isn't my first choice for a car's color, but it looks decent and I wouldn't mind keeping it semi-original.
jdustu
Club Sponsor
Thanks Nick. I've pretty much got what I need as far as the brakes go now. For whatever reason, this year was kind of an oddball as far as conversions/swaps. But now I just need to figure out which master cylinder to use and I think I'm good.
I don't think traction will be an issue. A guy named Scotty Guadagno had a 11 second '70 Electra sleeper that he built years ago, and his quote was "it'll hook on spit" :lol: There was even a pic of it lifting the front tires! This was his dd too. There is so much trunk overhang past the rear wheels, there's a lot of weight over the rear axle.
Kaline
Forum Member
It sounds like you are well on your way, but if you hit a snag, check out Scarebird's front disc brake conversions for old Buicks: http://www.scarebird.com/index.php
I've owned several old Buicks and love cruising them. Also, unless you are doing performance driving (which you WON'T in this car) would keep the stock rear end with drum brakes. I saw very little difference in brake performance going to 4-wheel disc on a few of my cars outside a track environment. It will keep your costs down and replacement parts readily available. Best of luck!
I've owned several old Buicks and love cruising them. Also, unless you are doing performance driving (which you WON'T in this car) would keep the stock rear end with drum brakes. I saw very little difference in brake performance going to 4-wheel disc on a few of my cars outside a track environment. It will keep your costs down and replacement parts readily available. Best of luck!
jdustu
Club Sponsor
Yeah, scarebird is where I got the conversion brackets from.
What, no performance driving in the big buick? :lol:
I already had a 9" built to bolt in a few years ago.
What buicks did you have?
Kaline
Forum Member
Old Buicks & Oldsmobiles
If you already have the 9", cool. It will look bitchin' with rear discs. A friend of mine used a Wilwood adjustable proportioning valve on his '53 Chevrolet pickup, as he had home-brewed brake system. We tuned it in a parking lot near his house and it has worked safely every since then. Basically, you don't want the rear brakes to lock up before the fronts!
I've had two old Buicks and one old Oldsmobile. My first Buick was a '75 Regal that I bought off a friend's grandfather, who was the original owner. He drove it daily from 1975-1999 until he was not able to drive anymore. It was a 350/2bbl posi car. I drove it daily for about a year: the car was in great mechanical shape and the interior was decent, but it needed some quarter panel and trunk work due to rust. I had just bought my house and really did not have time or space to do bodywork. I sold it to a barber in Detroit who restored the car and painted it red.
My next Buick was a '66 LeSabre 400. I REALLY LIKED this car. It was a clean, 3-owner car from North Carolina that would have been perfect with fresh paint and rechomed bumpers. The interior was immaculate and the body was straight and rock solid. It was a 340ci/ST400 car with only 76K miles. I drove it a lot in the summer of 2003; daily for 2 months after I sold my '94 Impala SS. However, after I bought my Corvette the Buick sat alot, and I sold it in November 2004 to a retired gentleman in Oak Park. He had plans to repaint it and use it as a summer cruiser.
I also had a '64 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 Convertible that I just recently sold. The car was a straight, low mileage car (39K miles) that had been parked behind someones' house in Pontiac back in 1989 and left with a car cover on it for 15 years. As such, the paint and interior were shot, and the lower part of the body was really bubbled up with rust. I got the car running reliably and safely driveable, and cruised it the summer of 2008. I sold it to a guy in Wyandotte earlier this year; he is now taking care of the body & paint work. I'm anxious to see how the car turns out!
If you already have the 9", cool. It will look bitchin' with rear discs. A friend of mine used a Wilwood adjustable proportioning valve on his '53 Chevrolet pickup, as he had home-brewed brake system. We tuned it in a parking lot near his house and it has worked safely every since then. Basically, you don't want the rear brakes to lock up before the fronts!
I've had two old Buicks and one old Oldsmobile. My first Buick was a '75 Regal that I bought off a friend's grandfather, who was the original owner. He drove it daily from 1975-1999 until he was not able to drive anymore. It was a 350/2bbl posi car. I drove it daily for about a year: the car was in great mechanical shape and the interior was decent, but it needed some quarter panel and trunk work due to rust. I had just bought my house and really did not have time or space to do bodywork. I sold it to a barber in Detroit who restored the car and painted it red.
My next Buick was a '66 LeSabre 400. I REALLY LIKED this car. It was a clean, 3-owner car from North Carolina that would have been perfect with fresh paint and rechomed bumpers. The interior was immaculate and the body was straight and rock solid. It was a 340ci/ST400 car with only 76K miles. I drove it a lot in the summer of 2003; daily for 2 months after I sold my '94 Impala SS. However, after I bought my Corvette the Buick sat alot, and I sold it in November 2004 to a retired gentleman in Oak Park. He had plans to repaint it and use it as a summer cruiser.
I also had a '64 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 Convertible that I just recently sold. The car was a straight, low mileage car (39K miles) that had been parked behind someones' house in Pontiac back in 1989 and left with a car cover on it for 15 years. As such, the paint and interior were shot, and the lower part of the body was really bubbled up with rust. I got the car running reliably and safely driveable, and cruised it the summer of 2008. I sold it to a guy in Wyandotte earlier this year; he is now taking care of the body & paint work. I'm anxious to see how the car turns out!
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JoeliusZ28
Club Member
I love how GIGANTIC the floor mats are in those old cars
Lovin the boat dude. I have a soft spot in my heart for big old ugly battle barges. But a 2dr convertiable battle barge. Thats awesome. All ya need is a 632ci big block with a giant pair of turbos so you can go piss of the sports car guys.
Mods, feel free to move to the project section. Why is the html code is off in there? I didn't want to re-do all the pics.
This is the first car I ever drove. I was 15(must have been the summer of '93), my gramps put me in the driver seat and said "let's go!" 510 lbs of torque from the 455...I was hooked
Fast forward to 2003. I'd always told him to keep me in mind if the time ever came to get rid of it. My grandma always loved riding in it with the top down, especially after the onset of alzheimers. Once she died, he decided to move and had to give up the car....so I bought it from him.
I cruised it for a couple years, then decided to rebuild it from the ground up. Unfortunately once I took stuff apart, I never put them back together. In the meantime I picked up a z28, and I spent most of my time/money on that. I also learned that I HATE working on cars
But I miss cruising this beast, and the Z28 is gone. So I'm gonna get it back together.
Today I ordered the front brake conversion kit. I'm planning on replacing pretty much the entire brake system. I don't know jack about brakes, so feel free to hit me up with advice!
Years ago Scott Koresky built me a 9" that should bolt right in. I used the center section on the camaro, but just picked up a replacement from fastbackcoupe. The 9" is set up for disc brakes already. I'll need to do a custom driveshaft too.
I also need to rebuild the front end. I'm working on digging up some part numbers, and Reiko is gonna try to help me order what I need.
I should pry replace the shocks too, and I may order some slightly lowered springs from Eaton. I could do air ride in the future, but I just want to get this car on the road for as little cash as possible right now.
The interior is pretty nice...the car only has 46k on it. The body is in need of a little work, but that'll be on hold for now. The engine will have it's day in the sun too, but it runs strong. At least it did the last time I fired it up
Here are some pics. The first few are from a few years ago, and the last ones I took today after making some room to work on it.
And these are from today:
jdustu
Club Sponsor
Shit, like I mentioned before there was a dude with a hardtop 2 door '70 Electra with a built 455 and nitrous that hit 11s....and then there is the dude building a twin turbo'd 430 road racing '69 225. Actually the engine in both are being done by the same person....... but right now I just want to get this whale back on the road :lol:
It's definitely gonna be a buick block though.
I have a bunch of Funny BOP big block storys. so put a 90mm on the 455. that should make a retarded amount of low end grunt.