1963 Buick Riviera Base Hardtop 2-door Rust Free Arizona Car on 2040-cars

 This is a 1963 Buick Riviera that got parked after an accident in late 1980's. As you can see it has a not so minor dent on the left rear quarter panel. He always was going to fix it, but never got around to it. It does have a salvage title. Of course there are no liens on it.

   The car is incredibly straight and ding free other than this accident. The engine is very clean with no oil leaks or any other noticeable oozing or grease. The critters did move in for awhile and they did chew on some wiring, but nothing that can't be easily repaired. It looks like the spark plug wires and the battery cables got the worst of it. There is only one rust spot on the right rear trunk drop. It looks like something spilled in the trunk and got that area damp and there is a two and a half inch by one inch weak spot. I took a close up of that area. I also took pictures of the heel of the front fender, the bottom lip of the hood, the bottom of the rear glass and the windshield. All of the areas you would expect rust have nothing, not even a pimple. There are a couple of chrome strips off, bit I found them on the floor in front of the seat. All of the pot metal trim is very good with little to no pitting. The lenses are all present, but they are really cooked from the Arizona sun and very brittle. They are usable as-is, but I am fairly certain all of them are available new.

   I think the quarter can be easily repaired by a competent body man, especially when you consider the massive amount of work to replace the panel. The bumper of course can be straightened and rechromed or I have found a half dozen good used bumpers if you were doing a budget resto. the rest of the bodywork is very minimal. I was going to take a picture of it wet, but I think that would be deceptive. The car was parked outside in Phoenix heat and the paint is cooked to dust. It is just falling off the center of the roof. The grille, trim and the overall body show extremely minor wear and tear. No Whiskey dent or parking lot scrapes or even door dings. It must have been a beauty when it was new.

   This is of course a restoration project and it will need everything brought up to snuff. The interior is the typical Southwest Desert baked to hell cockpit. All of the diecast, and there is a mile of it in these Rivieras, is superb. It has been protected by an inch of dust and has no pitting. The seats are still in relatively good shape, but if you even lean on the vinyl it starts cracking like potato chips. The headliner has split at the seams and the visors are all falling apart. The good news is the bones of the car are all solid as  can be and they make complete interior kits to put on these solid springs and frames. The passenger door interior panel is gone, but the screws and armrest and other goodies are on the front floor where they were taken off about a hundred years ago. I have no keys. I can't get in the trunk and I don't want to tear up the interior to get in through the back seat. I would hazard a guess that the door panel is in there, but I don't honestly know. Again I can get a used door panel for a very reasonable price. The carpet is very dry rotted and will come out easily but I don't want to screw up the pad. That can be reused. I looked underneath and it is shiny factory paint there.

  All in all, this is about as honest a car as you can find. The pictures are here as found, warts and all. If it were primered up, you never know what was done for the primer to cover up. I bought some fair used tires and put them on the original mags so it will roll. I blew about an acre of dust off of it and hosed the rest of the leaves and grass from the car. I'm offering it for sale with a very modest reserve. If it doesn't hit that, then the parts will be available. This is a very good example of a great collectible car and you don't need to start off by welding a floor in it. You will never understand how easy a restoration can be until you get a solid desert car.

   I can get this shipped anywhere in the world. I have a clear open Arizona certificate of title. The car is sold as-is, where-is. All shipping charges are on the buyer. I can store this for 30 days, then it will need to go to a storage yard. All funds must clear my bank before the car leaves my possession. No Nigerian Princes, No third party checks on an Iranian bank. Check with your wife, mother, brother, priest, Labrador, before bidding. I am only offering this once. It is worth much more in parts than I am asking.