I am posting this here and in cars for sale because I did not know exactly where to post this thread. As some of you know I have been looking for a GS and and my good friend Mark(MBtex) might have found it for me. He located a 68 GS in Colorado. Here is what the add say's. BUICK: 1968 Gran Sport Classic Limited Edition GS-400, 4-bbl, 2-dr hdtp, 1 owner, original, unrestored in good to fair condition, automatic, needs some interior work, 104,870 miles, bucket seats, console and grey interior, still runs good, Mom's car, $5,100 obo. PH: 970-245-5871, CO. I called the man who is selling it. He stated that the car has never been worked on. Never wrecked. It has a couple of very small rust spots on the quater panels. I checked the VIN and that part checks out. The car is white with a red stripe running along the bottom of the door. The weird part is he say's the interior is a greenish gray color. Does that sound correct? Those are his exact words. PS, PB, No AC, center console, 8 track. He said the only thing wrong with the interior was the rear package tray is not in very good shape. I guess the sun got to it. The trunk is in great shape. Almost sounds too good to be true. Has anyone heard about this car or has anyone seen it? The add had one picture but that is not a very good one. The car is in Grand Junction Co. Is there anyone here who might live close to it. If so would anyone be interested in taking a look at it for me?
If this helps any, this might be the color of the interior. The link is to a 68 GS that was for sale here last July. It looks sort of greenish gray to me. Click me.
Jim, I think you are right. Add some dirt and wear and tear and poof you have it. I am going to try and get him to take some better pictures of the interior for me. Thank you for that link.
I think you found your car :TU: :beer :TU: I like how it sounds because its an original 1 owner little old lady car - same as GoldieLox was !! Find out when the last time it was on the road....is it driveable ?? I got my SportWagon out of Denver from the original owner / little old man and it was in very decent condition bodywise with respect to time and climate. I even flew in, spent a good day working on it, and drove it home to Long Island :Brow: Id be all over this in a hurry.....at least to get much better info
I saw that ad and picture on Hemmings online, sounded pretty good! Have the guy give you the paint and trim code from the cowl tag and you will know what color the interior should be.
I would be all over that.But I am a young guy who tends to do things without thinking first. Sounds like a heck of a deal to me though. I wanted the exact car but found my 67' and was hooked on it. Good luck.
Sounds good, but - The price may be high if any of the following are true - Rear package tray is usually trashed if the rear window channels are rusted out and water has been leaking in. This is a universal problem, and fixable, but keep it in mind because it costs money. "Minor" or "very little" rust still has to be fixed. If the car has no bondo, it's pretty easy to assess the extent of repairs needed. A total repaint is still going to cost you at least $3k if it is needed. If the motor, trans, shocks, brakes, suspension bushings, fuel pump, radiator, etc. etc. etc. really have 104k miles and "no work has been done to the car", you will have a bunch of deferred maintenance to catch up on. Maybe he was just saying that the car was never crashed or rust repaired, but ask about maintenance records. You can see my '68 in my avatar. I bought this car for $3000 and now have probably $15000 into it. I love the car, but I have touched EVERYTHING in an effort to make it the way it should be. And that is with mostly used parts and my own labor. I say go for it, keeping in mind that you may have work to do, and I'd suggest trying to negotiate the price down a little.
I know what you are saying John. I don't mind working on the car. Any car I finally buy will be gone through like you have on yours. However a basket case is not what I really want. What appealed to me about this car was the fact that is sounds like it is all there. 1 owner also. That is half of the battle. I hope I will be able to find someone who is willing to look at it for me. I hate to make the trip all that way and find out it is not what I think it is. Most of the work I can do myself. This might sound silly but exactly where is the cowl tag located. I will have to explain to him where is it so I can get the numbers. o No:
Cowl tag is located under the hood - drivers side, furthest part closest to the windshield. Basically straight down from where the VIN tag is inside the windshield. Make a new post asking for "Anyone near Grand Junction Co. that can check a car for me??"
Thanks Alan. I did a post similar to what you said. I am going to call the guy tonight and get some more info. :TU:
A couple things to look for - '68 GS Grille - worth it's weight in gold. Make sure the car has a good one. Grille surround is a more common part. Hood scoop chrome - hard to find in good condition. Same with front fender "gills" little stuff - I had the hardest time finding a nice heater/AC bezel for my car. The more complete and unmolested the car is, the better.
Re: A couple things to look for - Hmm, maybe I should go weigh my grille! There is a very nice used 68 surround on ebay ending soon, was at $127 last night. It's nearing reserve price, the seller told me. I wanted to bid until I saw his reserve... Mine's straight, but has some kind of "etching" on the surfaces. Especially true of 68/69 cars, not much of anything reproduced in the way of emblems, trim, panels, etc...
I got veyr lucky when I had my 68 Conv. All of the emblems and trim pieces were in awesome shape. I am still kicking myself for getting rid of it. ou:
