This car came home in the fall of 2002. It needed rear end body work, safety inspection repairs, and whatever it took to get it running OK (car was supposedly running when I bought it, but eBay descriptions tend to be exaggerated).
For the story and before photos, see 1962 Special.
In April 2003, I made arrangements for the car to go to Sobering Auto Electric to get the car running, do the auto body work, and do the work necessary for the car to meet the Manitoba safety inspection. Initially, a new distributor and battery was required to get it running, but it was running pretty rough. A compression check revealed that one cylinder had very low compression. So, the engine got sent to Joe's Machine Shop for repairs. After examination, they determined it needed a complete rebuild. There was a bit of an issue getting parts ordered, but once they got working on it, it came along. Once the engine was back in the car, a variety of mechanical, electrical, and of course body work was required. Again, a few parts were difficult to obtain and there were assorted delays. In the end, the car came home a week before Hallowe'en. Sigh.
The initial goal had been to have the car ready for the Buick Centennial Celebration organized as the Buick Club of America's annual meet in July in Flint, Michigan. Alas, it was not to be. We still went without the car and had a very enjoyable time.
Anyway, it is time for some photos. Unfortunately, since the car came home just before the snow started flying here, I haven't had an opportunity to get many good shots. Here is a start, and once spring really arrives, I will re-assemble a few things and get better photos up. Over the winter, I had the rear bumper straightened and plated. I still have to do that to the rear bumper guards and install that again. I also need to procure and install a new convertible top. There is still a bit of tuning to do and some weatherstripping to obtain and install as well. Enjoy...spring is almost here!
If you want my opinion, be extremely careful before purchasing a car through eBay. This car looked to be a decent deal, but when all is said and done, it needed a lot more work. Once I have completed repairs this summer, I will have a lot more into this car than it is worth according to the value guides. Of course, I will have a driver, so there is something to be said. The car was supposedly running. However, when it came home, we couldn't get anything out of it with a good battery. As it turns out, the distributor had been really butchered to switch it over to electronic ignition. There were filings everywhere. After a new battery and distributor, it would run, but extremely roughly. A compression check showed one cylinder at about one-third the compression of the others. So, the engine was pulled and sent to a machine shop. It turns out the heads had some minor cracking (I am told easily repairable), there was a fair amount of play in the cylinders and the timing chain cover was in poor shape, particularly the oil pump.
1962 Buick Special Convertible
Email us at: derek.thille@ieee.nospam.org and remove .nospam
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