2 Owner All Original Rust Free 1963 Buick Riviera

Price: - Item location: Oakland, California, United States
Description:

1963 Buick Riviera

Here comes the long story of our Riviera.
Up for sale is my son's very original, never restored, drive anywhere, first year of series Buick Riviera. He and his brother bought it at a dealer in Cleveland, OH and drove it back to San Francisco back in 2019. It was a real adventure for them and a little crazy to undertake in February but they managed to avoid adverse weather during the trip. They did have a tire blowout after crossing the Indiana state line... it's quite possible that the tires were decades-old. (I always advise getting new tires whenever they buy a classic car!!! But this car's tires are from 2019.) A state trooper who came to assist called ahead to a nearby tire shop to stay open a bit late for them, and my sons were back on the road. No other events interrupted their journey and they rolled into San Francisco 2 days later, happily triumphant after their successful road trip.This car has been faithfully garaged since purchase and was probably faithfully garaged by its previous owner, to judge by its condition. The odometer is not believed to have turned over but of course there's no way to verify that belief. Like myself, it's 60 years old but it's doing way better than I am in the wear and tear department so there's that.
As you can see there are minor paint imperfections, including a key scratch from some jealous sort that happened during my son's care when he took his girlfriend out to dinner one night in San Francisco, a mistake not repeated. There is only faint surface rust underneath (see photos!), and no body rust at all. The two-speed automatic transmission is geared to deliver surprisingly good highway fuel economy and pretty poor city fuel economy so this is a great road trip car.
It's sort of humorous that my son only recently got around to changing the points. It was always a bit sluggish to start after sitting in the garage, and he thought that to be the nature of the beast but after a new set of points, it starts right up without so much as having to tap the accelerator. This is a true driver and I would not hesitate to take it on a cross-country road trip aside from the matter of lacking air conditioning and this is still summer. It's not a heavily-optioned car (see fender tag in photos) but it does have the electric trunk release button in the glove box and it does work. The radio lights up but needs a tube or two to work. The antenna switch is missing so we can't test the antenna. That antenna is only partially retractable and is currently unextended as you can see.
Since changing the points, my son feels like if he can't get his price, he'll fix it up and keep it. He only wants to sell because he doesn't drive it often enough and doesn't like leaving it parked on the street so it limits the opportunities he has to enjoy it. We are talking Oakland here, after all. We've looked for a body shop that would just touch up the original paint instead of doing a full repaint, along with new red leather seating and a new carpet. That's really all it needs to be a solid #2 from the high #3 occasional driver it's currently at. There's also the possibility that the leather could be re-dyed as it's not torn but professionals don't often wish to do that kind of work, or for that matter mere touch-up work. My son doesn't have those skills and doesn't want to diminish this car's originality with amateurish work, after all.
I thought of running an auction - my feedback will reflect the many cars and happy buyers I have sold on eBay over the past 20 years, but this time I decided to run a classified ad, with offers accepted. My son asked me to set a reserve price so I put that into the automatic "make offer" feature. Don't be shy, it never hurts to try. The worst we can say is no.In contrast with the rest of the 1963 Rivieras being sold on this site, we're not dealers and we're not looking to get rich. We want this car to go to someone who will love it and care for it as we and its previous owner have done. Clear California title in my son's name will be conveyed to the lucky third owner of this Buick. Any questions, please ask and I will get back with you promptly.