There's a common saying in my "circle." "There's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes." This really applies to all makes though. Buying any classic or custom necessitates a careful pre-purchase inspection. Cheapest insurance out there. Great video Kiwi!
well yeah with the newer ones atleast , however the older w123 and w124 is so strong so i used to purchase very cheap ones as winter drivers ,espesially the diesels simple reliable and strong as hell the last one had 1,3 million km on it
@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 yep the diesels espesially non turbo are crazy strong,,mecanical fuel pump i ran that thing on all kinds of oils (diesel is not cheap here ) so when the shop had lowered prices on sunseed or rappseed oil i just purchased that and ran it strait in the tank, the car smelled like french fries ,i have another w124 200D 892,000km a bit worn in the steeringbox it was tho ,, and also a w124 250D 5 cyl with 592,000km that thing is like new they still ran a stearingbox wayup in the 1990 but had a damper , they are really good cars not fast but the 5 cylinder 250 or 300D can follow trafic just fine
All those repairs were fine back when i was a teenager and those cars were only about 10 years old and absolutely worth nothing and you didn't have the money to do proper repairs but now that they are worth way more than the $200-400 I used to pay for stuff like that theres absolutely no reason for repairing them like that - especially to take advantage of someone. At least he didn't get beat up on what he paid from what you said. I'd just fix the frame and keep it for a driver - those rode and drove so nice and that effortless steering is what I love the most - my '68 F100 steers like that! Another great informational video Kiwi! Hopefully people are paying more attention to what they are buying by watching you!😉
I believe the outrageous prices seen for these cars on tv auctions is cause for much of these. I had a 64 Pontiac and a 72 Chevelle, both rusted away horrible but today they're everywhere looking awesome, for ten times what they're worth.
I would take it right now if I had the money. I would never be able to afford to restore it properly. But I have decent fabrication skills, and by the time I got done with it, I would be even better. I'm from Southern Ohio. Rust doesn't scare me. If this was a more modern or common vehicle. It would be Junkyard bound. But being what it is. It's worth putting some time, effort and money into. Maybe not completely restored. But properly welded in panels and made into a nice, safe driver. To a guy like me with decent experience replacing rusted panels, but without the money to do the interior and drivetrain. This car is the perfect starting point to a great project. If I had the money I'd be all over it
Great comment, and I respect your skills. The problem is this car isn't especially collectable, there's better candidates (especially minor crash damage) , and every bit of all the work that's been done, needs re-done. If you didn't care what the end value of the car is (your own satisfaction) that's fine, but it does really matters. At Kiwi's level, fixing everything to stock condition would be more than the value of the car if it was a stock, good candidate. No good choices IMO. 👍
@@fredjones1238 to be fair, maybe someone doing the work on this car kept it on the road for a few more years of enjoyment. If Kiwi works on this car without disclosing everything wrong with it, that will come back to his reputation when something goes wrong, not whoever originally did the work. Legal hassles, lawsuits and such have caused other talented guys to close shop and hang it up, go work someone else willing to accept the liability. It's a tough world.
It is a beautiful car. But when the foundation is that far gone, it's tough. I would drive it and just start to collect the parts you need for it, and do as much as you can yourself to save some money.
@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 you have the skills, I am just a fluffy half simple man with a limp and a speech problem that pretends very, very well,lol.
Drives nicely for its era and doesn't seem to have any dangerous flaws. Drive and enjoy it in nice weather for ten more years without sinking any more $ into it.
All those buicks originally had double pulley alternators when they had AC. The AC compressor hung to the right side type that would be passenger side of the alternator. The car did not have an AC firewall. When they didn't have air conditioning, they ran a double belt on the alternator with air conditioning the ac belt kind of passed over the extra pully groove
It's a sharp looking car from 50 feet away, but you can see the rear bumper took a shot over time and it's bowed in near the middle and out more on the driver's side. Which probably was the hit that caused the quarters to be funky. Old cars have a long history of good and bad.
To be fair all of them ended up like that. I can't remember one I have seen over the last 40 years that fit like it should. I think it has something to do with the placement of the tail lights, just as the '65 Riviera had low tail lights and they all got rear ended at some point.
Man I really enjoy these videos, when you pick a part a car that looks great, but hidden underneath are r issues. Pretty educational. Thank you Keewee.
He had a friend from high school. He had a 68 Buick convert. Took it in for some minor body work and rust repair. They found an entire quarter panel over. The existing quarter panel original Was slightly damaged.They took off the extra quarter panel and fixed the original
This would be a great driver car. Not a show car, not a restoration, just a good driver, which is what most of us can afford, or would be more than happy to drive.
Which is exactly what it is now. The customer and his wife have had 4 years of fun with it, there's probably another 2 years in before it looks bad. At least by getting it checked out properly he can now make an informed decision.
You guys deserve a medal for staying under it on the lift after seeing the state of the chassis next to where you are lifting it from! I caught your last comment on the Wednesday night live too Kiwi. Glad you liked the design idea. It ties kiwi, ford and kev all in one 🙂
I like a 350 wildcat,and have made good power with them. Finding the parts to do so,is probably getting harder. I don't mind repairs,and have seen people with the popgun,doing panel repair. Some think that is how it's done. I don't blame for making the car look,and it's convertible. The paint cost the same,whether it's after weeks of prep,or a couple of 6packs. I can't think of anything a pop rivet is good for. Zip screws are nice for,sizing and placement. When you take em out, put a rosette.
While I'm not a Buick fan I can appreciate a good looking car, but that's a shame on the up shot he's got a great mechanical start if he can find a solid roller.👍👍
I bought a '68 to '72 A-body frame about 18 years ago from a junkyard in Pennsylvania that would use a behind the firewall frame of a '69 to '72 Grand Prix or a Monte Carlo and the front section of an A-body frame. Those 2 cars the frames were the same as an A-body convertible so welding the 2 together made a convertible frame. Not sure if that yard is still there, the guy was older back then. He claimed he had a jig to weld to 2 frame sections together. It seemed to work well, if the owner is a big diy guy he might be able to use the front section of his frame if that section isn't as rusty as the middle section and buy the above mentioned frame to combine.🤔😎👍
Car looks great from here! Sounds like the owner (even though he bought it sight unseen - paid accordingly) I don’t think us as your viewers have ever seen so many pop rivets! And they didn’t even try to hide most of them! I would think he should just sell it and look elsewhere. Maybe someone that can do the work themselves would love this project! Thanks, Kiwi!
Kiwi, there's one thing I was told by an experienced body man years-ago that I never forgot; "Never mud over a seam, it'll quickly come back to haunt you!" Sadly, that generation of Skylark were prone to rust. Being a New Englander, I've seen a lot of them in pretty tough shape,
Surpringly you saw a lot of this done in the 80s and before. It wasn't till the 90s and all the car shows on tv that you saw mostly top notch body jobs starting to be the norm.
Pretty car, and a driver Buick. A project for an ambitious owner. Needs a donor frame, floor pans, and most likely more. Drive and enjoy for a while, and then either repair or sell it on.
I thought of Uncle Tony as soon as you showed us the trunk. Its a classic flipper special . My condolences to the customer. That beautiful skylark was done dirty by some heathens .
At a fair price a great fun car that will last for lots of drives to the ice cream shop with the grand kids. All you need for fun to last as long as many ever did when new in the rust belt.
Those GM quarters ( Olds, Pontiac and Buick) have always made me nervous , they were notorious for hiding rust. Up here in the Northeast a five year old car would already need lower quarter repair.
Two rules in life. When going out to eat at a restaurant look at the restroom. The kitchen will be no cleaner. When looking to buy a vehicle looking in nooks and crannies and especially underneath. Some both cases what you don't see 🙈, welcome back to bite you. As always Mr kiwi hair has given us a great tutorial.
So, it needs new floors, quarters and a frame to start. Good prop car (thinking Thelma and Louise). I love Buicks but they never really did any kind of corrosion protection.
I had a buddy in high school whose Dad had a 72 or 74 Buick 350 4 bbl. Dead stock. It would top out at about 110 mph, so we figure it must have had some "trailer pulling" gearing. He would flip the air breather lid over and drive the half hour to the city and race people stop light to stop light. He would regularly beat hopped up Mustangs and Camaros! Those Buick 350s were good engines and I believe that they were about 50 lbs lighter than the 350 Chevy.
If I could afford it, I would bring you my unrestored 74 maverick grabber, one of 186 with my options and have you do it right. The one thing it doesn't need is floor pans... But the quarters are hosed and so are the doors thanks to another car shop.
It will be interesting to find out what the owner decides. The truth, and the reason for the popularity of aftermarket chassis swaps, is that many of these once common muscle era cars have seen enough road time to have compromised chassis and rotten quarters and floors. If the owner really likes this body style he could try to find a nicer example - but he is only likely to find one that while nicer, is still not great and also needs floors and quarters. If he really wants a next level car he might as well spend the money on this one.
Seems like its time to find a new convertible for that guy, I can't say I have ever been to the part of TN where its "raining Buick" great video and nice convertible drive !
Dana "60" Glass. I've owned 2 of these, both hardtops. One a '68 Skylark Custom, the other a '69 GS400. Both had major rear quarter panel issues as well as under the front fenders. It is an A body, so frames are available, but a convertible needs a boxed frame. 2 door Chevelle, Cutlass, LeMans will all fit from '68 to '72. Shame about the way the quarter panels and floor boards were done. Hope the owner didn't pay a lot for this.
Too bad about the frame and extensive bondo. Nice interior and always liked that vintage Buick steering wheel. Local car cruising only, until she gives up.
In one sense, I do enjoy Kiwi's reveals. His walk-arounds of gorgeous cars with myriad hidden issues is always an education, but I have to say, I'm always left feeling a bit depressed. This one doesn't come close to penciling out. Probably paid $25 to $30K for the car warts and all. It will need at least $60K to make right. Would owner get his $90-$100K return on investment? Not likely. Sad.
Looks about normal to me. My dad had '65 & '71 Skylark ragtops that both rusted to death! My '73 Centurion went the same way. They all ran great until! As Kiwi said, the salty roads....
It's a real difficult one you've got there. What a shame that someone put all that effort into doing it wrong in the past. Perhaps the best option would be to use it as is for another two years until the paint gives up and then either fix it properly or scrap it.
I have not seen a car in that condition for many years ( Australia ) they just will not pass a roadworthy test here. I personally would give the owner a detailed list of faults found, give it back and say " you have a nice day ya hear ".
When buying always ask if it’s a “California car” …. less or no rust! Guessing in New Zealand the cooler weather wouldn’t be kind on cars like this for rust
Your customer is lucky to have bought it cheap because it needs some work. You were talking about pre inspection (can you really in spect a car at an auction) I think these auction should have inspections made by qualified people through the auction house because there would be less flipping of cars then
That looks like a back yard fixer-upper from a time before home mig welders became an actual thing. Not many people were actually even able to weld 40 years ago, much less, able to weld sheet metal. I remember back when I was a kid if a car was that rusted out it was pretty much like you "had" to use pop rivets to put in some kind of metal, just so you could put some tiger hair bondo over it to at least give it something to sorta "hook" onto. But pretty much every time a car got that rusty, they went to the junkyard's crushers. And replacement panels???? There pretty much was no such a thing as replacement panels back then..... It sure was a sad time back before small mig welders became a regular thing.
My uncle had a 69 skylark convertible for years. He blew up the original motor and put a Buick 350 in it instead. It was your typical Midwest car. Bondo, paint job done in the early 80’s. Was maroon with a white interior and white top. He sold it a couple years before he died, and the guy who bought it put some big stupid donk wheels on it
You could patch that frame I guess but I really think the best option is to find a good replacement. The amount of heavy rust scale coming out of that frame is too much for me to be comfortable with. Keep in mind doing repairs like this as a professional brings a different level of expectation and responsibility. My rule of thumb is "is this how I'd fix this if it was my daughter's car? " Some think that's a bit over the top but I'm ok with that.
we took them in for W.O.F late Friday afternoon pissing down with rain. inspectors just wanted to go home and didn't want to get under a wet car , the station i went to was in Onehunga . back in the 70's pop rivet gun was my best friend
Not worth putting a ton of money in that one. Best to fix the frame rails and run it as it is. Looks like it came from the rust belt. Nice looking car as a driver. Garage kept and driven in good weather it will last a long time as is. If he wants to put big money into one to have a show car, it would be best to find a more solid one.
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
It's a Buick Rivitera! 😂
That's pretty good🤣😂
That's a good one, very clever 😅😅😅!!!
Took me a minute but that’s hilarious
hehe yes indeed it is
It's like you go to hospital, gravely ill, and they bring in a make-up artist instead of a doctor. "We'll get you looking good in no time!"
LOL. That's a pretty darn good analogy!!
😂 pop rivet gun for his birthday lmao first time I've heard that one
I got mine for Christmas, 1974. "Fixed" a bunch of 66 Mustangs with it.
@@paulhare662 so your the one?! 😂
@@Mark-um7ey Yeah, it was me. They looked good for 5 years or so. You don't wanna know how I fixed the leaky heater boxes.
This video was riveting!
An automotive Dad joke😁😎
Its a 55 year old car Not a bad core A friend of mine did a 57 T Bird it can in three pieces
He specialized in 356 Porsche Porsche's
There's a common saying in my "circle." "There's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes." This really applies to all makes though. Buying any classic or custom necessitates a careful pre-purchase inspection. Cheapest insurance out there. Great video Kiwi!
Exactly !! Thanks for watching!!
well yeah with the newer ones atleast , however the older w123 and w124 is so strong so i used to purchase very cheap ones as winter drivers ,espesially the diesels
simple reliable and strong as hell
the last one had 1,3 million km on it
@@kimmogensen5390 wow, 1.3😳
@kimmogensen5390 I have a 1977 240D. Painfully slow but would drive it anywhere.
@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 yep the diesels espesially non turbo are crazy strong,,mecanical fuel pump i ran that thing on all kinds of oils (diesel is not cheap here ) so when the shop had lowered prices on sunseed or rappseed oil i just purchased that and ran it strait in the tank, the car smelled like french fries ,i have another w124 200D 892,000km a bit worn in the steeringbox it was tho ,, and also a w124 250D 5 cyl with 592,000km that thing is like new
they still ran a stearingbox wayup in the 1990 but had a damper , they are really good cars not fast but the 5 cylinder 250 or 300D can follow trafic just fine
All those repairs were fine back when i was a teenager and those cars were only about 10 years old and absolutely worth nothing and you didn't have the money to do proper repairs but now that they are worth way more than the $200-400 I used to pay for stuff like that theres absolutely no reason for repairing them like that - especially to take advantage of someone. At least he didn't get beat up on what he paid from what you said. I'd just fix the frame and keep it for a driver - those rode and drove so nice and that effortless steering is what I love the most - my '68 F100 steers like that! Another great informational video Kiwi! Hopefully people are paying more attention to what they are buying by watching you!😉
Whenever I see a driver's door close like that my mind skips over "hinge adjustment" and goes right straight to "severe structural rust".
Your client is lucky that he can get an honest answer from you.
I believe the outrageous prices seen for these cars on tv auctions is cause for much of these. I had a 64 Pontiac and a 72 Chevelle, both rusted away horrible but today they're everywhere looking awesome, for ten times what they're worth.
When I was A young man we used pop rivets on floorboards to patch them to get a little more time out of a shit-box.
My 17 year old working at a gas station and fooling with cars I could get cheap in 1975 fully approves of all restoration work performed here.
Nice👍😁😎
I would take it right now if I had the money. I would never be able to afford to restore it properly. But I have decent fabrication skills, and by the time I got done with it, I would be even better. I'm from Southern Ohio. Rust doesn't scare me. If this was a more modern or common vehicle. It would be Junkyard bound. But being what it is. It's worth putting some time, effort and money into. Maybe not completely restored. But properly welded in panels and made into a nice, safe driver. To a guy like me with decent experience replacing rusted panels, but without the money to do the interior and drivetrain. This car is the perfect starting point to a great project. If I had the money I'd be all over it
Great comment, and I respect your skills.
The problem is this car isn't especially collectable, there's better candidates (especially minor crash damage) , and every bit of all the work that's been done, needs re-done.
If you didn't care what the end value of the car is (your own satisfaction) that's fine, but it does really matters.
At Kiwi's level, fixing everything to stock condition would be more than the value of the car if it was a stock, good candidate. No good choices IMO. 👍
@@outlawbillionairez9780 most of them after restore if you pay someone your in the hole these days of restoring cars are dying slowly
@@fredjones1238 to be fair, maybe someone doing the work on this car kept it on the road for a few more years of enjoyment.
If Kiwi works on this car without disclosing everything wrong with it, that will come back to his reputation when something goes wrong, not whoever originally did the work. Legal hassles, lawsuits and such have caused other talented guys to close shop and hang it up, go work someone else willing to accept the liability.
It's a tough world.
It's 50 plus years old I love it, I would drive it and like it too
With the frame being rusted thru, that car should not be on the road. It would fail most states safety inspections
@@garykerkstra1067 I think a LeCar would offer more crash protection
I'm just visualizing all that at the border inspection here in NZ!!
It would have them rushing to order more pink stickers!!😁
It is a beautiful car. But when the foundation is that far gone, it's tough. I would drive it and just start to collect the parts you need for it, and do as much as you can yourself to save some money.
That's a good plan. Tough if you don't have the skills you and I have and have to pay for all of it...
@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 you have the skills, I am just a fluffy half simple man with a limp and a speech problem that pretends very, very well,lol.
Drives nicely for its era and doesn't seem to have any dangerous flaws. Drive and enjoy it in nice weather for ten more years without sinking any more $ into it.
Those rear bumpers always looked like they had been hit.
LOL. Yes they did!😁
All those buicks originally had double pulley alternators when they had AC. The AC compressor hung to the right side type that would be passenger side of the alternator. The car did not have an AC firewall. When they didn't have air conditioning, they ran a double belt on the alternator with air conditioning the ac belt kind of passed over the extra pully groove
It's a sharp looking car from 50 feet away, but you can see the rear bumper took a shot over time and it's bowed in near the middle and out more on the driver's side. Which probably was the hit that caused the quarters to be funky. Old cars have a long history of good and bad.
To be fair all of them ended up like that. I can't remember one I have seen over the last 40 years that fit like it should. I think it has something to do with the placement of the tail lights, just as the '65 Riviera had low tail lights and they all got rear ended at some point.
Man the guy who put those pop rivets it was good! After looking at this , I have the confidence to pop rivet my boat now, thanks!
😅😂🤣
Kiwi, Over all the rust and bond that Skylark has 1 good cover the problem paint job!
I’m an American who is a 4 generation Ford guy, but I also love my Ford Australian Falcon cars.
That would be a good buy for someone who already has a frame for it sitting around or nearby
Yes it would, great mechanicals!!
Man I really enjoy these videos, when you pick a part a car that looks great, but hidden underneath are r issues. Pretty educational. Thank you Keewee.
Glad you like them! Thanks for watching!!
I would definitely fix the imperfections. I wish i had that Buick!! Great video Kiwi!!
Thanks for sharing..👍
Good stuff Kiwi! It's amazing how many people get screwed over buying classic cars these days... This one is such a nice car, in SUCH terrible shape!
He had a friend from high school. He had a 68 Buick convert.
Took it in for some minor body work and rust repair. They found an entire quarter panel over. The existing quarter panel original Was slightly damaged.They took off the extra quarter panel and fixed the original
This would be a great driver car. Not a show car, not a restoration, just a good driver, which is what most of us can afford, or would be more than happy to drive.
Which is exactly what it is now. The customer and his wife have had 4 years of fun with it, there's probably another 2 years in before it looks bad. At least by getting it checked out properly he can now make an informed decision.
@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 agreed
It's not too far away from my Buick Wildcat. Came from Canada....but no rivets ....but plenty of rust 😮
I riveted my first car back in the 80's.. l didnt have a welder. With the plastic filler the repair lasted 10 years till the frame rusted out.
You guys deserve a medal for staying under it on the lift after seeing the state of the chassis next to where you are lifting it from! I caught your last comment on the Wednesday night live too Kiwi. Glad you liked the design idea. It ties kiwi, ford and kev all in one 🙂
Nice ride along mate!
It is a nice ride for it age
All the parts are there
I like a 350 wildcat,and have made good power with them. Finding the parts to do so,is probably getting harder.
I don't mind repairs,and have seen people with the popgun,doing panel repair. Some think that is how it's done.
I don't blame for making the car look,and it's convertible.
The paint cost the same,whether it's after weeks of prep,or a couple of 6packs.
I can't think of anything a pop rivet is good for. Zip screws are nice for,sizing and placement. When you take em out, put a rosette.
Pop rivets = quick and easy....
While I'm not a Buick fan I can appreciate a good looking car, but that's a shame on the up shot he's got a great mechanical start if he can find a solid roller.👍👍
Pop goes the rivet! LOL
🤣👍😎
Thank you, for the ride along!
Thanks for watching!!
I bought a '68 to '72 A-body frame about 18 years ago from a junkyard in Pennsylvania that would use a behind the firewall frame of a '69 to '72 Grand Prix or a Monte Carlo and the front section of an A-body frame. Those 2 cars the frames were the same as an A-body convertible so welding the 2 together made a convertible frame.
Not sure if that yard is still there, the guy was older back then. He claimed he had a jig to weld to 2 frame sections together. It seemed to work well, if the owner is a big diy guy he might be able to use the front section of his frame if that section isn't as rusty as the middle section and buy the above mentioned frame to combine.🤔😎👍
Interesting! Thanks for the tip!!
I had a 1968 Buick Sport Wagon with the glass windows in the roof. It was a medium blue.
Those are cool!!!!!
Car looks great from here! Sounds like the owner (even though he bought it sight unseen - paid accordingly) I don’t think us as your viewers have ever seen so many pop rivets! And they didn’t even try to hide most of them!
I would think he should just sell it and look elsewhere. Maybe someone that can do the work themselves would love this project! Thanks, Kiwi!
Thanks man and thanks for watching!!
Reminds me of a 340 buick special I once had, though it only had 76,000 miles on it with no rust!
Kiwi, there's one thing I was told by an experienced body man years-ago that I never forgot; "Never mud over a seam, it'll quickly come back to haunt you!" Sadly, that generation of Skylark were prone to rust. Being a New Englander, I've seen a lot of them in pretty tough shape,
An Ontario Canada car of that vintage would look like that . If it hadn t crumbled entirely by now , lol
Surpringly you saw a lot of this done in the 80s and before. It wasn't till the 90s and all the car shows on tv that you saw mostly top notch body jobs starting to be the norm.
door adjustment hope it's the only thing. good looking car.
That Buick isn't safe to be on the road. Thanks Kiwi at you sharing this!
Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for watching!!
Pretty car, and a driver Buick. A project for an ambitious owner. Needs a donor frame, floor pans, and most likely more. Drive and enjoy for a while, and then either repair or sell it on.
I thought of Uncle Tony as soon as you showed us the trunk. Its a classic flipper special . My condolences to the customer. That beautiful skylark was done dirty by some heathens .
Nice too see a fellow Kiwi in the states.Kia Kaha bro!😎
Thanks man! I'm living the dream !!
At a fair price a great fun car that will last for lots of drives to the ice cream shop with the grand kids. All you need for fun to last as long as many ever did when new in the rust belt.
This is true!!!
Just like that beautiful Cougar
Ugghh yes!! This one's not quite as bad as the cougar though
It is a shame, those Buicks of all type in that era were beautiful cars. My grandpa had a 56 Century 2drht white on black , loved that car.
Those GM quarters ( Olds, Pontiac and Buick) have always made me nervous , they were notorious for hiding rust. Up here in the Northeast a five year old car would already need lower quarter repair.
Your audio is so much better now.
Good!! Thanks!!
Two rules in life. When going out to eat at a restaurant look at the restroom. The kitchen will be no cleaner.
When looking to buy a vehicle looking in nooks and crannies and especially underneath.
Some both cases what you don't see 🙈, welcome back to bite you.
As always Mr kiwi hair has given us a great tutorial.
Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for watching!!
With that funky rear deck, I was thinking maybe someone converted a hardtop to convertible
I don't think so
So, it needs new floors, quarters and a frame to start. Good prop car (thinking Thelma and Louise). I love Buicks but they never really did any kind of corrosion protection.
Kiwi, You found enough at the 2:30 mark for me to say stop. I'll buy a couple cases of beer.
The car is what it is, no improvement is Worth it being born in the rust belt many years ago. Just drive and enjoy.
I had a buddy in high school whose Dad had a 72 or 74 Buick 350 4 bbl. Dead stock. It would top out at about 110 mph, so we figure it must have had some "trailer pulling" gearing.
He would flip the air breather lid over and drive the half hour to the city and race people stop light to stop light. He would regularly beat hopped up Mustangs and Camaros!
Those Buick 350s were good engines and I believe that they were about 50 lbs lighter than the 350 Chevy.
If I could afford it, I would bring you my unrestored 74 maverick grabber, one of 186 with my options and have you do it right. The one thing it doesn't need is floor pans... But the quarters are hosed and so are the doors thanks to another car shop.
My current project is a 68 hardtop, about to receive a 454/TH400
Nice!!!
It will be interesting to find out what the owner decides. The truth, and the reason for the popularity of aftermarket chassis swaps, is that many of these once common muscle era cars have seen enough road time to have compromised chassis and rotten quarters and floors. If the owner really likes this body style he could try to find a nicer example - but he is only likely to find one that while nicer, is still not great and also needs floors and quarters. If he really wants a next level car he might as well spend the money on this one.
That's solid advice!!
Seems like its time to find a new convertible for that guy, I can't say I have ever been to the part of TN where its "raining Buick" great video and nice convertible drive !
Entertaining and Educational ! Thanks 🥝😊.
Really great shew .😊 Thought and comment provoking car
Dana "60" Glass. I've owned 2 of these, both hardtops. One a '68 Skylark Custom, the other a '69 GS400. Both had major rear quarter panel issues as well as under the front fenders. It is an A body, so frames are available, but a convertible needs a boxed frame. 2 door Chevelle, Cutlass, LeMans will all fit from '68 to '72. Shame about the way the quarter panels and floor boards were done. Hope the owner didn't pay a lot for this.
Too bad about the frame and extensive bondo. Nice interior and always liked that vintage Buick steering wheel. Local car cruising only, until she gives up.
In one sense, I do enjoy Kiwi's reveals. His walk-arounds of gorgeous cars with myriad hidden issues is always an education, but I have to say, I'm always left feeling a bit depressed. This one doesn't come close to penciling out. Probably paid $25 to $30K for the car warts and all. It will need at least $60K to make right. Would owner get his $90-$100K return on investment? Not likely. Sad.
Looks about normal to me. My dad had '65 & '71 Skylark ragtops that both rusted to death! My '73 Centurion went the same way. They all ran great until! As Kiwi said, the salty roads....
It's a real difficult one you've got there. What a shame that someone put all that effort into doing it wrong in the past. Perhaps the best option would be to use it as is for another two years until the paint gives up and then either fix it properly or scrap it.
The extra pulleys are probably left over from the A.I.R delete.
Did these have that in 69?? My guess was A/C
I have not seen a car in that condition for many years ( Australia ) they just will not pass a roadworthy test here. I personally would give the owner a detailed list of faults found, give it back and say " you have a nice day ya hear ".
Not in NewZealand or Europe either. If they brought in roadworthy tests here it would turn the industry on its head!!!
Nice Video Kiwi 👍👍 it’s not worth restoring at that Cost never get your Money out of it !! Thanks again for a Great Video Kiwi 👍👍
My favorite rims for so long, maybs still
Classics never go out of style!
Get a frame from a salt free state? Maybe. Convertible frames are boxed , and rarer than hens teeth. If you can find one it's not going to be cheap.
Rivets are an old school way of doing it. Not really right but not really wrong if the seams are done correctly
Old school yes but not really right for body repairs 😬
This is the $15,000 facebook bargains! Pretty, Disk brakes!! Wo,wo!
When buying always ask if it’s a “California car” …. less or no rust! Guessing in New Zealand the cooler weather wouldn’t be kind on cars like this for rust
A pretty paint job can sell anything..
Your customer is lucky to have bought it cheap because it needs some work. You were talking about pre inspection (can you really in spect a car at an auction) I think these auction should have inspections made by qualified people through the auction house because there would be less flipping of cars then
That looks like a back yard fixer-upper from a time before home mig welders became an actual thing.
Not many people were actually even able to weld 40 years ago, much less, able to weld sheet metal.
I remember back when I was a kid if a car was that rusted out it was pretty much like you "had" to use pop rivets to put in some kind of metal, just so you could put some tiger hair bondo over it to at least give it something to sorta "hook" onto. But pretty much every time a car got that rusty, they went to the junkyard's crushers.
And replacement panels???? There pretty much was no such a thing as replacement panels back then.....
It sure was a sad time back before small mig welders became a regular thing.
I think you're right on the money there sir!!!
Kiwis Pop rivets and soda cans
My uncle had a 69 skylark convertible for years. He blew up the original motor and put a Buick 350 in it instead. It was your typical Midwest car. Bondo, paint job done in the early 80’s. Was maroon with a white interior and white top. He sold it a couple years before he died, and the guy who bought it put some big stupid donk wheels on it
Uggghh I'm pretty open minded on car styles but I just can't do those Donks !! They just don't make sense.....
Swiss cheese frame would crumble in a wreck. Watch out for bondo shards flying. Maybe a good parts car.
Not a Buick specific frame. They can be had,
Junk pop rivets will break apart with the body twisting there will be a major restoration down the road...
Almost 20g subs looking good
😁🇬🇸👍
So close!
Kiwi, Could you fix the frame and box it. Leave the body to make a nice driver ? If so, what would that cost?
You could patch that frame I guess but I really think the best option is to find a good replacement. The amount of heavy rust scale coming out of that frame is too much for me to be comfortable with. Keep in mind doing repairs like this as a professional brings a different level of expectation and responsibility. My rule of thumb is "is this how I'd fix this if it was my daughter's car? " Some think that's a bit over the top but I'm ok with that.
Definitely a fifty footer. Here in Nova Scotia it’s illegal to use pop rivets on a unibody car.
That's an unusual rule, so you can use them on a full frame car ?
Thats why I always bring a magnet & mirror to investigate the condition w/o a lift. It's now a parts car.
Imagine taking that car to a VTNZ for a wof in New Zealand .... pink sticker material
Ha! The inspectors would be in the corner in the fetal position gibbering😂🤣
we took them in for W.O.F late Friday afternoon pissing down with rain. inspectors just wanted to go home and didn't want to get under a wet car , the station i went to was in Onehunga . back in the 70's pop rivet gun was my best friend
It isn't in a parts field somewhere. If it was purchased cheap enough, make it safe and have a nice day like Kiwi is doing in this video.
Not worth putting a ton of money in that one. Best to fix the frame rails and run it as it is. Looks like it came from the rust belt. Nice looking car as a driver. Garage kept and driven in good weather it will last a long time as is. If he wants to put big money into one to have a show car, it would be best to find a more solid one.
Solid advice!!! Thanks for watching!!
I guess you really can't buy an old car without actually inspecting it in person. The body on this one looks great to me in the video.
Speaking of Buicks, any idea how Dallas is doing?
I really don't know, something went down there and I don't ask. The couple of times I met him he seemed like a good guy.
The other option is to drive it and enjoy it until you can't anymore.
Yeah I figure it's got two more summers till it looks bad. Meanwhile locate a chassis and have at it 😁😬
Another case of looks good from far but far from good
It is what it is..
You don’t want any cheese in the body. Always put them on a hoist and have it looked at by a pro. You can save a ton of money