Vehicle Description
1965 Buick Riviera
Passing over such jewels as "Centurian" and "Drake," Buick product
planners ultimately chose "Riviera," which evoked the elegance of
the Italian and French coastal playground. Of course, it was a name
long familiar at Buick, having been used for the make's pillar-less
hardtops since 1949, but it would gain new meaning from the design
on which it would now appear. The intensity Buick had built up in
preparing its competitive presentation continued into its strategy
for marketing the Riviera. Roland Withers, the division's head of
marketing, was a man who did things in grand style. The Riviera
would be crucial to Buick's recovery, and he wanted the car to have
a special image.
For consignment THE Riviera to have with its hidden headlights, and
this particular 1965 model equipped with the 425ci Super Wildcat
Engine. The beneficiary of a recent respray and original interior
other than the carpet, no rust car from California there will
definitely be a rush for this gold nugget!
Exterior
Sporting a top-notch dark Verde Green (Green Green if translated
from Spanish?) the respray is nearly flawless. From its raked
forward functioning hidden headlights, to the clean rocker trim,
wheel well trim, and special badging, side view mirrors, door
handles and bumpers all chrome is in good condition with a few
faults. The large steel slabs are straight and true and present
with good gaps. Standard Buick rally style wheels are on all 4
corners of this car. Noted is an extra set of wheels and wire caps
that come with the car.
Interior
Miles of green vinyl with some V stitching, buttons and straight
tuck and roll, in the form of large wide buckets in front, and a
split by a V shaped speaker on the rear the front drivers bucket
shows slight fraying at the stitching, and some wear on the side of
the setback. Otherwise for original these seats are very fine. A
rectangular console sweeps up the center, has wood grain appliqu�,
and houses a glovebox, and a nifty Seattle space needle style shift
lever and knob. This console rises up the center of the dash with
more V styling and wood appliqu�, where it houses the air
circulation controls and Buick radio. Dash is a combination of
black textured vinyl and green paint. Wood appliqu� is scattered
throughout as well. Carpet is gold and in very nice clean condition
and is covered carpet floor mats with Buick badging embroidery.
Headliner is new and tight. One side note worthy of a mention...
Secondary door handles are strategically placed on the inside rear
of each door for speedy rear seat egress.
Drivetrain
The original 425ci V8 Super Wildcat engine sits within the original
engine bay. Some paint chipping on the blue painted block and nice
patina abound in here. The mill is topped by dual 4 barrel carbs
and backed by a 3-speed automatic ST400 Super-Hydromatic
transmission. Correct equipment for this car save for the dual quad
intake setup which isn't original.
Undercarriage
A solid sturdy X frame is bordered by rustproofed floorpans, and
solid rockers. Very little surface rust is noted, however some of
the rustproofing has worn off over time. Independent coil springs
up front and coil springs on the rear are the suspension. Brakes
are power drums all around. A glass pack style exhaust is also
noted.
Drive-Ability
A quick starter, and smooth accelerator there is plenty of power to
get you up to speed in a hurry. The transmission shifted smoothly,
and the ride was very nice and even handled well for a large car.
Buick was not out for the handling mainly the ride, and this car is
exemplary of that fact.
The mid 1960's were the beginnings of the muscle car wars, and this
Buick with its Super Wildcat Dual 4 Barrel V8 is not to be left out
of that battle. Also, the styling on this car gives it real
provenance with mid 60's fans. This car mostly original, has been
well cared for and sports a beautiful paint job and good chrome.
Priced very right it will not last long as we've had one other and
it went fast!
VIN Decode
494475H922063
4-Buick
94-Riviera
47-2 Door Hardtop Coupe
5-1965
H-Flint MI Assy Plant
922063-Sequential Unit Number
Trim Tag
02C-3rd Week February Build
ST 65 49447-1965 Buick Riviera 2 Door Hardtop Coupe
BODY FB 122056- Flint Body # TR 620-Green
PAINT JJ-Verde Green
ACC:
EX-EZI Glass
2K-Air Conditioning
4F-Remote Mirror
5KW- Seatbelts With Retractors
Door Guard Molding
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 450 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,
Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia
on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is
www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914.
Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the
vehicle in person.