Hello, I've been reading this forum for some time, then logged in... Today i decided to post this thread. It will be (hopefully ) about buildup of my '55 Buick Special. I will post separate 'stories' from my homepage to give You all the chance to watch my story from the beginning. So, let's start
02.12.2008 As a good start (i hope that my page will slowly but steady grow) - photos from ebay auction. Bidding ended 2nd of december, 2008. I won The car itself is a '55 Buick Special. My expectations are that it will take few years to make it drive like i want it to. At least it is intact and complete. For me the worst part in restoring a car is searching for missing stuff, when one don't even know what to search. Plans? Let's bring it to Poland first
16.12.2008 Previous car (European Ford Granada, rare 2-door version, from 1979 - 60 000 kilometers, like new - i will miss it) sold, money paid via paypal, shipping arranged. Now I walk on the walls and ceiling trying to find out what and how paperwork need to be done. I don't like even thinking about talking with Customs Office about fees... First thing (even when Buick will be still on the ship) - get a moto expert's opinion that Buick is a historical car and approve that opinion in Antique Keeper's Office (I don't know how this is called in english). It will let me have very little Customs fees, instead of normal (like for normal, not classic car). That is the right way, I hope I just called Customs Office information - they say, that this expert's opinion shoul be done before Buick shipping - in order to ship it as a historical car. But how shipping company in US could respect our law and paperwork?!? Anyway - I'll ship it anyway and won't listen to them.
Thanks for that link to my page, but please don' visit it yet The story will be much more fun to read here, with delays between updates And please, not 'Sir', i'm not that old, just 30. Thanks!
Right now everything is ok, Buick is in my garage, all paperwork is done. I will post everything a little bit later, to make things more thrilling There will be many questions, but a little bit later.
Next chapter... Forgive me such obvious facts, i write my page for people knowing nothing about Buicks 18.12.2008 Little step forward - got the pictures, it means that Buick was moved and everything seems to be going forward... That photos will be presented to the moto expert. The car is Buick Special Riviera advertised as "The SPECIAL -- Buick life, lift and luxury at lowest cost". This one is two door hardtop - four door was more expensive. Riviera is equal to hardtop. It differs from regular sedan with not having a B-pillar (between door and side window) Interior has seats for six persons. And a radio Whichever this one is - every one was an option, standard was only a radio delete plate. Nice face. As I love customs I could imagine a lot of mods... I don't see badges and ornaments here, as well as I see grill built from vertical teeth instead of this one. Big bumper bulges are going to go, front bumper could be altered to look better. I think about frenched lights. Fortunately this side marker lights could be used as a indicator lights... I dream too much. I will eat You! Booo, side trim is bent It could be a problem. Nice hubcaps.<BR> The seller told me something about missing trim being in trunk, but I'm not sure. And maybe I will remove all side trim? On the other side - i like it, it goes very well with this three tone paint job. A three tone paint job like this one was also an option, standard was single colour.(my later note - side trim stays on, three tone paint job will be white-green metallic-white). This three holes (portholes) assure that it is Special model indeed. Bigger, more luxurious Buicks Roadmasters had four of them.(my later note - portholes are still ugly to me, as long as i look on them). I don't know if in customizing madness this rib under side window will disappear (author's later note - definitely not). As a curiosity - that piece of chrome around fuel door is an option too. It would cost $ 1,95 at the dealer. Looks good Interesting - if this white round lenses are backup lights or only a delete? Backup lights were not a standard, but they would be needed. It could be used as a rear indicators... (needed as a separate lights in Europe). Bumper bent. I don't know if that emblem is going to stay here. Wow, looks good... But how much work would be needed before I could drive it somewhere... Booo. No door upholstery (my later note - I found it in the trunk when it arrived). Fortunately it has simple shape, and the handles are in place. What a seat. Here you can see, that although door upholstery is in place - it is not a reason to be happy, because it is only suitable for trash But at least it shows what to fabricate. And you can see old good friend of old cars lover - rust. I am worried by this right fender - it seems to have heavy rust. But these old iron is solid and thick, maybe it is not that heavy... (my later note - they are leaves! No rust.) What we should do with this? Restore or replace with newer one?
Now I know that, back then i did know nothing And yes, red indicators are forbidden, as long as i don't want to register this car as a historical wehicle. And i don't We have strange law here :/ I think, that i will put in backup lamps some white LEDs for backup and some amber for indicators and it will be fine.
To present You my story in a way I have lived it. I know that it may be a little confusing, but at least You know how it looked like to me, when i was new to Buicks, knew nothing and was afraid if this car will be at my home someday at all. Don't worry, the story isn't that long, 3, maybe 5 posts later i will be writing about current progress
Yes, not all pages are done yet, for now last one is 11. But don't read yet I'm trying to give You Hitchcock-like story here
Ahh, now i'm able to post photos just the way i want. 12.01.2009 Buick travelled from San Francisco (Vallejo to be accurate), where it was bought, to Los Angeles, from where it will be shipped. Unpleasant surprise - seller called shipping company before about shipping fees, they told him $1450. When he arrived with the car on a trailer and showed it to them, they said it is soooo big it would cost $2400 to ship it The difference between these two prices was divided by two of us. Really honest person - he brings the car to the shipping company, he for sure is tired of eight hour drive... He could sell the car to someone from US or tell "ship it yourself". In next episode: "Buick arrives..."
When it will be time to move it under it's own power, it will have small block chevy + TH350, just because it is still V8 and cheap. Later, when time and money permits it will be it's original 264 nailhead mated to that TH350. A few posts later You will see frame/suspensions donor...
Ok, i see that not so many of You are interested, so now it's time to turn up the heat... 31.03.2009 Shipping company had nothing to put to container with my car for a long time. They offered to ship it to Germany or Lithuania even the next day. It happened that I hadn't plans to do such a trip, so i refused Then all that crisis thing begun and nobody here wanted a car from US. Fortunately for me they found something to ship and they put everything in container. They even informed me that yesterday the ship flow out. It should arrive to Gdynia May, 10th. I received an Fedex envelope. Papers. All the time the seller and the shipping company told me that all papers, especially Title, will go with the car; what had I found inside that envelope? Certificate of Title and few others. 20.05.2009 HERE IT IS! After several phone calls to Gdynia harbour i managed to make an appointment with them on monday, may, 18th, to open the container together. I booked bed and breakfast in Gdansk, i've borrowed GPS to not get lost, i took all the paperwork... And I set off. In the evening of sunday of course i couldn't sleep. I got up at 6 and after light breakfast i headed to Gdynia harbour. I was there at 7.40. I went first to spedition agency. They billed me the maximal harbour fees even before opening the container - i think due to this f*** crisis. We went to the harbour storage area... ...and opened the container. After that i spent 6 more hours filling all the paperwork needed in Customs Office. Then - free to go! I made an appointment with my car club friend who has a suitable truck for such occasion. He arrived, we went to harbour storage again (forklift operator got a little money to drop Buick on my friends car) and got out of there finally with marvellous Buick on top. We loaded mine (borrowed) Toyota Yaris on the trailer (i told people it will give to Buick its engine and trans) and headed home. Evening left no memories - i literally touched the bed and fell asleep. Happy of course Summary - i am satisfied. The car is rebuild worthy. It will be good! In next episode: "It even runs!"
Marcin: Congratulations on your "rebirth" of the '55 Buick. You will find her a joy to own and improve over time. Sharing rides with friends is A GAS ! Mine is a '53 (pix at my username RipRohring). It has the 322 C.I. displacement "Nailhead", with automatic transmission. It has no manual choke and has been hard to start and keep running this past month. I am in Buffalo, New York - on the Canadian border. She (my car is an unnamed, as of yet - gal) had 5 inches of wet snow layered on her yesterday morning when I awoke. I pushed it all off with a work rag, freezing my hands in the bargain ;-((( Some things you might jot down to follow up on. The transmission is "designed" to leak oil (?) Perhaps a knowledgeable mechanic can explain why ? Perhaps you might want to "keep" the dual protuberances on the front and rear bumpers. They give EVERYBODY an instant appreciation for your auto as a Buick. They also protect the bumpers from inadvertant errors on the part of other drivers - they are formidable and imposing - and those pesky Fiats and VW's keep their distance. The "chrome" swoops on the side give you some leeway on the 3 tone paint job. You will have to get rid of the few dents, and polish them up with aluminum polish (mine are all aluminum). . . Also, when you remove the swoops (and don't put them back on) - you leave a long trail of (spring clip holes) holes in the body that need filling and invariably the "shadows" do not go away without a LOT of work. My door panels, and the sidewall kick panels in front of the door are EXACTLY like yours - trash . . . I do NOT take 'em off and toss 'em for the same reason you don't - they are good guides for tracing to replace them. Also, mine have a few little doo-dad pieces of chrome accent, including the word "Super" with a tiny emblem. I have an upholsterer close by me, who is going to work with me to make panels and cover them and transfer the chrome. Thank goodness. He likes my car and is going to help me at cost -not at retail. I need a whole new interior with headliner - that can wait. I am estimating $10,000 U.S. to rechrome all my chrome. UGH. I am planning on doing 10% every year starting in 2010. My car's wiring harness is at best "serviceable". I would recommend consulting with a wiring expert on how and what to replace the harness with ? It is a lot of work, and is a lot easier to do while the engine is out of the bay ? I have 30 paint flaws - mostly bubbles that burst a few years ago and have expanded over time. A few are surface rusted. I am in the middle (have concrete poured last week) of building a garage 24 ft by 24 ft - total of 576 sq ft - lots of room to store stuff plus the car, plus workspace. I plan to use a dremel tool to remove these flaws during the winter time, and apply only primer paint. One has to be careful and heat the target paint area up to maybe 60 degrees (farenheit) to apply paint in the cold - else it pops off. I've got an old floor jack - a friend's - that I am worried about using. Have acquired some really heavy duty jack stands to hold the car while I work on it. Oh yeah - I have one rotted rocker panel - right rear door (mine is a 4 door) - and today I was noticing some bubbling underneath the swoop at the bottom of the "v" on the passenger side. The radio antennae is on the roof - squarely in the center above the windshield- close to the chrome - and it has a "turning knob" inside on the headliner. It had leaked, but has been sealed with silicone sealer - UGH - gonna have to take off the antennae and buy a new one - another paint area to redo. My mirrors are all less than desireable - I want to keep the car as original as possible, so am watching for suitable replacements. Oh well - I also want to tell you how much I ENJOYED your recitations herein. Quite an expedition. Picking up my car was a 24 hour driving Odyssey - I pulled a trailer behind my FORD Expedition at the end of June as I drove to Detroit, Michigan - 550 miles each way. Rained all the way to Detroit. I found the house, got the car on the trailer while the (lucky) rain stopped for half an hour. Then I paid for the car, got the title signed over, and started back towards Buffalo. It started raining again - REALLY HEAVY on the way to Buffalo. Stopped underneath a gasoline station roof to double check the bindings, then kept driving all the way back to Buffalo - a total of about 1,100 miles in one day. Stopped to eat two or three times each way (McDonald's).Took two days for my tiny brain to recover. I don't know how e-Bay works to ship small purchases to you ? However, many of the little widgets and accessories I need come up every once in a while. There was a set of 53 door panels with kick panels - for a 2 door car a few months ago. I didn't bid - but have been watching for a set for a four door sedan. Likewise for an antennae. There have been a number of used ones and one new one that I passed on - can't tackle everything the first 6 months. Good Luck with your new car. Over time, you will forget these days of bewilderment - "where do I start ?" . ..Just take your time, get one foot in front of the other. If your car runs - you might not want to put that Chevy crate motor in there ;-((( And oh yeah - I had a 1978 Ford Fairmont. During my divorce - my ex-wife got the car. I, of course, got the payment book. Rip Rohring :Comp:
Thanks for watching About parts - everything i buy i request sending to my aunt's home, then she sends me big parcels once a few months. It is slow, but very cheap method. But what i can do from such a long distance? Some parts for american cars are available new here, in Poland, but they are extremely expensive. For me it is a lot cheaper to buy something on e-bay or in NAPA, let them send it to my aunt and pay for shipping all the goodies to Poland. Ok, so back to the thrilling story 26.05.2009 Customs Office / party I was knocked off by a message that in order to finish procedure in Customs Office i have to bring them the car. I quickly managed to borrow another car trailer - i had it at 22.00 the day before my appointment with Customs. I loaded the car in the dark and gone to sleep. In the morning i woke up and what do i saw? Buick BARELY fit the trailer... Front bumper bulges touched trailers front wall, rear wheels were on the trailer, but left about 3 inches of space behind them. All of the car's rear were behind the trailer. Not speaking of the trailer being overloaded slightly I hook up reflective triangle on the back and called it done. I regret not having pictures of it... I drove it to the Customs Office - my worst 22km ever. What a load... In the beginning they even refused any talking - car must go to the customs parking. Period. I requested talking to their principal, especially that i had some issues with paperwork. I talked to him for a while - that the trailer is heavy and i want to drive it not more than necessary, that i don't want to waste his or mine time, or that nevertheless i've paid them provision, so they can be sure thay can let me take the car with me... At last he told me: - OK, let's see that car, we'll see... Then he walked into his ofice, and got back with many papers, dressed fully in uniform and a hat. I said - Uhhh, that's going to be hell of a inspection. - Why? - he asked glaring at me. - I assume that if You wear your official hat - it must be serious matter. - I said From then on we checked my car on a loose, 10 minutes after i could drive home with my Buick I drove fast in order to return the trailer to my friend. Then quick drive to Antique Keeper's Office for a document stating that mine 1955 Buick Special is a historical vehicle, and back to Customs. An hour later i had a document in my hands stating that i'm clear with them. What a relief! And a little anegdote In Customs Office there was a guy speaking with a clerk about his just bought used car: - You know, it is old car, it's from '98... LOL! Anyway - let me give you an idea how much it cost me. Prices are in $, although most of them were paid in PLN, so i roughly rounded it. <table width="380px"> <tbody><tr><td width="80%">- Buick</td><td align="right">2550$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- shipping</td><td align="right">2000$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- moto expert's primary opinion</td><td align="right">70$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- Antique Keeper's Office fee</td><td align="right">6$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- unloading the container</td><td align="right">534$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- Customs Agency - filling the paperwork</td><td align="right">85$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- Customs fee</td><td align="right">395$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- trailing the car from Gdynia to Warsaw</td><td align="right">250$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- moto expert technical opinion</td><td align="right">40$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- trailing the car to the Customs Office and back</td><td align="right">95$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%">- Customs Agency - filling the paperwork again</td><td align="right">35$</td></tr> <tr><td width="80%"> - T O T A L</td><td align="right"> 6060$</td></tr> </tbody></table> And... I held a grill party two days ago. It's purpose was to eat, drink and get the Buick started. I invited some of my friends... In the party also participated: garden hose (cooling system - radiator was empty), one additional battery, post-soviet starting/charging device (lights dimmed in few houses around), three sets of starter cables, gas can, old condensers from Polish Fiat 126 and a grill. I consider party as a success, Buick has started. After 5 hours of wrenching and cursing, but nonetheless. There were problems with searching for lost sparks. It wasn't under the car, but we finally found it. First starting try we encountered large cloud of rust being sprayed from inside of the exhaust pipe. That was fun! Unfortunately we could't run the engine for a longer time because needle valve was stuck and the carb spilled gas generously all around the engine. The brakes and trans were howewer ok, so the next day i took a short ride around the block The rest will be said by a photos. That happy guy is me. And a movie! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzfkRgjC9fU
Here's my favourite movie from Poland: <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/WlC93lTEwBQ&hl=nl_NL&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/WlC93lTEwBQ&hl=nl_NL&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
