Ryan submitted a new blog post: My Old Rivi Sells At Auction... Continue reading the Original Blog Post
Cool Car Ryan. Always will love these rides. Can't help you on the new owner other than he is probably quite happy.
Couldn’t figure out why in the hell you sold that beautiful car...... man those gold line bias plies are bitchin on there, I hope the new owner is smart enough to leave them on it.
There will always be a place in my heart for a 65 Riviera. Recently they've been getting really hard to find for sale, seems like people who own them tend to keep them. And I can't blame them.
Remember when you were interested in a 65 Riv in Canton? I remember taken some pics of it for you. I too always loved these cars. Classy and sexy. Didn’t realized you actually owned one. Jealous. What a beauty! The later first year Monte Carlo reminds me of them.
They make for some beautiful rides. Hope you do in fact get another one day. Would love to have one myself. They are a work of styling art.
Buick did a nice job when they introduce this model, people may not have realized back then, but today they are highly sought after
I also regret letting my Riv get away, It was a '66 and I loved it, lace paint on top, hood, and top of trunk lid.. wires and all.....
I heard by phone it sold for wayyyyy over that. Where did you get that price? I haven't seen the car since I sold it, but if it's anywhere close to the condition it was in it's easily worth $30k these days. Hell, the wheels are worth $15k. I would have bought it back had I known it was gonna go for that cheap. Damn. I only sold it cuz my buddy that painted it passed away... and everytime I looked at it, it made me sad.
I understand, I was in Denison this weekend and had to do a drive by his shop. Good memories, good times. I enjoyed your thread when you were driving the Riviera back. You had a kool adventure.
I got to drive that car, and it spoiled me on Rivieras forever. I'll have one someday. Such a nice car.
That is cheap! Auctions are weird. The simple fact that the engine/engine compartment isn't detailed to spotless may have a bidder apprehensive, thinking the engine must be in need of 'work'. Though car auction prices are way down lately. You can buy a finished car much cheaper than building one. Was listed at no reserve; https://www.mecum.com/lots/DA1018-332591/1965-buick-riviera/ Here's to praying the new owner doesn't go stupid with billet engine compartment and wheels, ugh.
It has since earned Milestone status from the Milestone Car Society. Jaguar founder and designer Sir William Lyons remarked that Mitchell had done "a very wonderful job," and Sergio Pininfarina declared it "one of the most beautiful American cars ever built; it has marked a very impressive return to simplicity of American car design." At its debut at the Paris Auto Show, Raymond Loewy said the Riviera was the handsomest American production car—apart from his own Studebaker Avanti, in his view the Riviera's only real competition for 1963.[9] The first-generation Riviera is considered a styling landmark, and is quite collectible today. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buick_Riviera
I've always felt the '65 Riviera specifically is the most beautiful car to ever come out of Detroit... and it's definitely the most comfortable. They just fit me like a glove... I've owned four of em!
I owned one for a short time. It was my High School buddies car and he wanted a few years newer Caddy and of all things heated seats, in SoCal! Mine was silver, black interior like yours with Cragar SS and Wide Ovals. One of the nicest cars I ever owned. The only pics I have of it are on super 8mm film somewhere.
A turn key '65 Riviera with nice paint and Borranis goes for half the price of a new Altima? Excuse me while I go PUKE. If you've got some cash and space, it's a buyer's market for really good cars.
Ryan, I really wanted to buy your old car when you had it up for sale a few years back, but the timing just wasn't right. I remember checking it out at the LSRU around 2013 and it reigniting my want for another Riv, after I sold my black 64. I had bought and sold several 63-65's in the meantime, but none were "right." Thankfully I am back in the Riviera game with a very nice 65 I picked up recently. I just installed the Skylark wires, and it will be pointed towards the ground soon. My plan is to hang on to this one as long as possible!
The sad truth about collector cars is that the market peaks when they are 35 or 50 years old. Old guys all buy what they wanted in high school. I wanted W motor Chevies, Corvettes and 64 GTOs. As beautiful as they are, Rivieras (or Studebaker coupes) weren't on the hoodlum radar at all. The next boom in the old car market will be early 80's SUVs, Blazers Broncos and Jeeps. I bet that Riv would have done better completely unmodified, with original Buick chrome steel wheels. I bet the market for even the nicest Rivieras and Cadillacs is less than the part out value. The good news of all that is that you can enjoy some really great cars for not a whole lot of money.
[QUOTE="Ryan, post: ....I only sold it cuz my buddy that painted it passed away... and everytime I looked at it, it made me sad.[/QUOTE] that is what it's about, Ryan, not just a car but a ride with friends, even if you're ridin' alone. more than a car, but thanks to the friends, memories and stories, it is growing to a personality. Cheers, Carsten
Hands down, the classiest car ever offered by GM! My high school pals' mother had a friend with a ? 65 Riviera, was a factory 2x4 car, I was only 15 at the time so was not very savvy on cars yet and I remember thinking thats pretty cool, its got a Corvette engine.
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