I see grand-sport in the URL.... And also in the description: I consider Bill Mitchell to be the best American Automotive designer of our time and I consider the 1965 Buick Riviera specifically to be his piece de la resistance. So in a manner of speaking, I’m saying that the ’65 Riv is the most beautiful American car ever made. Sincerely. The thing is though, this isn’t some regular old 1965 Buick Riviera (if there is such a thing). This, in fact, is the fabled Grand Sport – the pacesetter of all Rivieras. More so, it features 45,000 original miles, every single available option (minus the multi-tone horn), numbers to back up the GS claim, and a pretty significant history. The car was purchased new by the executive secretary of a General Motors VP. She drove the car sparingly into the 1970’s and eventually sold it to some friends of hers. From there, the car ended up with our buddy Jocko – the third owner. He’s not ready for another project at the moment, so he’s decided to let it go at The House. But, wait? Project? Yes. The car does have some rust. The left cowl as well as the driver’s side rocker and floor are showing rust, but oddly, the passenger side is not. Both the trunk and quarter extensions are solid as is the rest of the body. A closer examination shows some minor body repair here and there, but nothing obtrusive and nothing that required a pound of mud. Put simply it’s a pretty damned body that has lived a life and needs some freshening. Much of the bright work is showing some age, but nothing to the point of replacement. Things like the wheels, bumpers and trim just require some love – a light and easy restoration if you will. Mechanically, the GS is as solid as any original you might find. It’s starts easily and without any funny business or noises and that dual-four nailhead runs like you would expect a Grand Sport to run – hard. Tranny shifts just like it should too… The exhaust, however, is showing its age and a complete redo would be in order there. Brakes work fine and everything else seems to be in order. The interior? So damned nice… and in the best color Buick offered – light ivory. There are no rips, no tears, and no stains. Spend a few hours with your favorite cleaning products and you could probably skip the upholstery shop all together on this one. It’s that nice. Questions From The Jalopy Journal: What’s the worst aspect of the Riviera? “Without question, the rust. There’s not a ton of it, but it is there and needs to be dealt with.” What’s the best aspect of the Riviera? ”It makes huge power and does it so smoothly… Or, there’s also just the fact that this is a real numbers matching 1965 Buick Riviera Grand Sport – one of only 3,354 ever made. It’s special.” Thoughts From The Jalopy Journal: This auction is sort of my love letter to Rivieras. Yes, I’m biased. I love them so much… If you do as well, you probably understand how rare of a find this is…. A 45,000 mile Grand Sport is unheard of and with restored cars often bringing over 6-figures, finding something like this is getting to be next to impossible. Even better? The reserve is lower than you would think. In fact, I think this might be the best deal on The House right now…
I'm curious why you think that the 3rd week of March is a big deal. There's no A9 code for the GS option. But here's a Body Number Plate from another 1965 GS with the Super Wildcat Dual Quad engine, also without the A9 code: Built in the 3rd week of November 1964, so it came with the smaller GS script.
The A9 code is the option code which the salesman placed on the wholesale car order. In `65 the car order option codes do not match the Fisher Body option codes because Fisher used their own option codes. Because Fisher would have nothing to do with the drivetrain there would be no Gran Sport option code on the Fisher Body tag. The Gran Sport emblems were drilled and installed on the body by Buick assembly. Tom Mooney
This information is incorrect. The early version of the Gran Sport emblem was placed under the Riviera script on the right side (passenger side) rear panel, not the left (driver`s side) and not the trunk lid. When Buick changed over to the 2nd version, larger emblem, the emblem was moved to the left side (driver`s side), also on the rear panel and not the trunk lid. Tom Mooney
I already figured out that it had to do with the difference between the Fisher Body codes and GM (Buick) codes, so thanks for your explanation. (because both GS optioned cars in my post came without that code)
What do y’all think of the rust issues? Not sure how you would patch that lower cowl area without a donor body, especially if it gets in to the door hinge area.
I really like this car!... I would like to get a closer look at the rust issues prior to bidding myself. May not need a donor body, but it will at least, need a solid donor parts car.. What do you fellows think it's worth in it's present condition ? Frank..
I checked the pictures out. All the rusted spots can be fabricated by a good sheet metal mechanic. It needs a lot. For me? I'd look at it as a great driver that I could knock the rough edges off one-zee two-zee. Blow this thing apart and you're looking at a cool 100K. The GS is a nice feature and unmolested (except for tin worms) is also nice. Still, it's gonna get really ugly and expensive when it's blown apart. Mitch
There's a lt blue riv abt a mile from me that sits outside sometimes. I'll have to stop and check it out one day if it's still there. Maybe it's this car on consignment?
