not a race story, but I wanted to kill the guy

I like the poeple who tell me I have a nice "old" car. I ask them if they think I'm "old" too and then I explain that my dad bought the car when I was one. The look on their face is priceless!!! hahahaaaaaaaaaaaaa :bla:

Or the time I went to NAPA for all the gaskets for the engine. The partsmonkey was some young kid who became very confused when the "computer records" didn't go back that far. he pounded the keyboard for quite some time before the manager had to step in to show him the books as it were.

AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH nothing like good service. :Brow:

 

My turn..........

About 12 years ago I went in to to see if I could order a green horn button for my '74 Apollo with a green interior and sport wheel. The guys asks, "What's an Apollo?". I tell him it's an X body. He proceeds to explain to me that "Buick never made an X body car. It must be a Nova that sombody put Buick emblems on."

I take him outside to show him the car, and even after seeing it, he sticks to his explanation.

I told him to forget it and left "quickly".

Bad thing was, I was at a Buick dealership!!!:af:

 

He proceeds to explain to me that "Buick never made an X body car ... Bad thing was, I was at a Buick dealership!!!

rimshot!

a "Buick guy" at a Buick dealership has never heard of a 70's Skylark or Apollo? sad.
and we wonder why Buick is the sick man of GM. ou:

 

Here's my story... I've been in MS now for about five months. I've taken the GN and several GSs out for check ups (oil chg, lube, checking fluids & pressures) since I don't have a workshop set up yet.

People love the cars. Seems like everyone has to go out of their way to comment how they like them, both the shop guys and other customers. I sense that some have no idea what they are but who cares about that. Every once in a while someone says, hey, I had one of those and does know what he's talking about. Like the guy who told me he had a 72GS Stage1 in high school. I said, I bet you made some of the other guys look bad to which he responded, "Hell yes!".

A classic was last week taking the black/gold 71GSX clone into the local penzoil place for oil change, fluid check, etc. When I was pulling in the attendant realized my headers wouldn't clear the couple inch rear lip on the open floor bay. So we had to make everyone in line behind me back up so I could go around to the front and back in, with cam and 3" exhaust sounding like something wicked that you don't hear every day.

 

Back around 1980 I had a 1974 El Camino that I wrecked in the front . A friend had a 1974 Regal to which he gave me . I took all the front sheet metal from the Regal and put on the El Camino along with the doors and changed the rear contour of the doors to match the 1/4 panels . I put the Regal dash in too . In the rear I got a station wagon rear bumper to make the conversion look correct . Put Buick emblems in all the correct looking places . Even used the Regal wheels . I needed an upper tailgate moulding so I went to the Buick dealer where I had worked , went to the parts department and asked the guy in there for the mldg . He could not find it listed , DUH . Then he got the parts manager to help , to which he wanted to see what I had . After he saw it we all had a good laugh . It drew lots of curious looks . :bla:

 

Everytime I talk about Buicks from the mid 70's, I always get comments that go something like this" Oh yeah, those cars are boats, they are pretty much a cheaper Cadillac..."o No:

 

I was talking to a couple buddies of mine the other day, while they were working on a 94 Supra. The owner was like . . . "blah, blah, blah, it'll have over 1000HP, blah, blah, blah". I proceeded to tell him that I'd place a bet that my Buick could waste that car if it were finished (mine's not even close to done yet). Anyhow, one of the "gurus" in the group asked me if I was taking my grandma for a ride in my nice shiny Buick". I just about tore him a new @sshole. Ignorant people :af:

I know his Supra is nowhere remotely close to being capable that much power (with what he's done to it), and I wanted to put him in his place, but those retarded rice boys just wont listen sometimes.

Makes me wish I had the "Lark X" going so I could spank him! :moonu:

 

. The owner was like . . . "blah, blah, blah, it'll have over 1000HP, blah, blah, blah".

I know his Supra is nowhere remotely close to being capable that much power (with what he's done to it), and I wanted to put him in his place, but those retarded rice boys just wont listen sometimes.

I saw on "Nopi tuner -vision(whatever the shows' name is on Speed channel - Tons of hot chix in bikini's that's all I know -:TU: ) There was a twin turbo Supra allegedly rated at 700+HP. As you can see from my signature I am not a fan of the tuner guys, but this car was wild. It wasn't a typical ricer (1993 Honda civic 4DR with a fart pipe and 4 different color panels, rims sticing out of the fenders, and a JC whitney 1000 watt crappy sound system) I equated the car to be more like a Ferarri or Lamborghini. The guy had 100K or more into the car, those I can deal with. The guy you describe sounds full of crap, get your BBB done so you can blow his doors off.

I was getting some ink done and of course there was a kid in the other chair who would not shut up for one second bragging about how he was going to go to NASCAR driving school, and how he drives his Supra 150mph into turns and he wants to get the car upto 300mph. . . Blah Blah Blah. He had an audience of a couple of 18 y/o girls looking to get belly button rings or something. I asked him if he raced any dirt track, sprint, etc. He says no, I just race my car on the street. Now I must embarass this kid. My wife is squirming cause she sees me lining this kid up for the kill, I am acting interested and I look like I am buying into the crap coming from his mouth. I ask where he is going to go to school for NASCAR. He says - Down south. -No ****, I say which school. No answer. I go at him with a few more tech questions about his car (can't remeber exactly what I asked) again no answer. I tell him with everyone in the shop now paying attention, Days of thunder and Fast and furious were just movies and he wasn't in either of them as I recall, so he should really get more facts about his bull **** stories before he goes and tells them. After he went from red to purple with embarrassment that was the last of him on his soap box and he quietly sat for the rest of his tattoo. Oh yeah his Tat he was getting accross his back was FAST TRACK in olde english lettering. - I swear to God.

 

Calling your Classic Muscle Car a grandma ride was very rude and offensive, and he diserves to be educated on Buicks and there performance.

On a side note, I understand that the guys 94 Supra may not have the supporting Mods to make 1000 HP on his car an Im not sure about the cars in your town, but here in KC I know of atleast Two off the top of my head that put down Over 1000 HP and one of them is a daily driven street car that is in the upper 9's...... which isnt bad for a Daily Driver no matter who its made by. :3gears:

 

Back in the 90's I had a girlfriend with a 68 Javelin and nobody ever knew what it was. I t was cool getting a thumbs up from people follwed by "What is it?", had the same problem in the 80's cruisin in my friend's 67 Barracuda, These yuppie kids pulled up next to us a told us we had a cool car, then asked what it was, my friend says "Barracuda" they just had blank stares, obvious they still didn't know what he was talking about so he says "it's a Plymouth" still blank stares.
On another note, had a guy tell me he used to own a 72 Skylark with a 350 Stage 2! it was wicked fast! Took me a while to figure out the Stage 2 350 and then I realized he must have read the air cleaner sticker that said:
350-2
Didn't have the heart to tell him that meant 350 2 barrel. i guess that means I have a 455 stage 4 cuz my sticker says 455-4!!!!

 

my best experience was a short discussion with an employee of a local car wash. when arriving at the self service wash boxes i earned lots of un-believing eyes on my 65rivi. after some seconds one the employees enthusiastically tried to "entangle" me in some "expert" :boring:discussion. it went like that: "wow ... is this your car?" "semms so because i am the one who's driving and washing it" "i have seen this type of cars here in wuppertal before." "ah. i thought i had the only 65 riviera in wuppertal." "it's a ford mustang, isn't it?" ou: i nearly felt to death ... what a moron. after a short deadly silence i replied "no. it's nothing from FoMoCo." "??heh??" "ford motor company. the ones who built the mustang in the sixties." "ah. but i looks like one." i said "i doubt it because the mustang isn't even the size nor does it look like a buick. have you REALLY EVER SEEN ONE?" "yeah ... i think so. what is the engine capacity?" i could hardly suppress my need to grab his throat and calmly replied "425cui." i earned the next "????". "SEVEN litres." i nearly shouted "and if you want to see a mustang look at those 2 guys." and pointed to my two buddies from my paint shop both arriving with their modified 2006 V8 mustangs. "and mustangs do not even make this sound when the engine is running (i must admit i have a 2 2/1" flow master exhaust system installed)! sorry but i have to wash my car." i stated and started to clean my battle ship. also in germany people can't stop giving these kind of "expert" comments even if those type of cars are more un-common than in the US. just like politicians: instead of saying nothing and simply behold the beauty of old cars they have to say something ... even if it's the greatest bullshit.

 

my GS, has been called everything in the book probably.. and the reason i say that,is because it was called a "mustang" to my face one time... i was SHOCKED... frankly i dont like ford to much ou: ... and then some other teenagers passed me doing 90 it a saturn... that the bumper was falling off of...wanting to race i guess... i just smiled and grinned as they drifted off into the distance.. i mean.. whats the point in racing, if you know your gonna win?.. there has to be some excitement.. right ?

 

I reckon that we should give the well meaning people the benefit of the doubt. That means, roll with it, right or wrong facts, and be polite. The Buick GSs were such low production that many young people never saw one before, and they're relating to something they did see. Best way we can attract future potential owners for our old GS Buicks is by being nice to them, as opposed to making them feel bad.

 

Hey Mike you are right with treating the unknowing with courtesy . Since many of the people around now dealing with the cars were not born or were very young when they were new and do not remember them , expecially the GSX . After reading your post I have given a lot of thought to changing my attitude toward some of the unknowing .

 

fellow buickers ... please cool down. the title of this forum's part says it all! i was using strong sarcasm and due to my coolness i would never attack anyone who does not recognize my car.

 

got another winner at the parts store

so i pulled the bbb outta my skylark today. i noticed that the header gaskets are cracked so i proceed to strip the heads off, put on the new ones with new gaskets. i call up the parts store and ask them if they have a set of header gaskets for my big block. (i know it was a long shot but it was worth a try). the parts monkey types in my info and tells me that they dont have header gaskets for a 455 "buick" but they have them for a 400 "buick" but they wont work. i tell him ill come in and take a look at them to see if the 'might' work, which im 99.9% sure they will. when i drive across town and get to the place he tries to hand me a set of mr. gaskets header gaskets for a 400 "chevy". it clearly is written on the package. i polity thank him for making me drive there for no reason and leave.

just another day in my world, stay tuned il sure ill have more.

buickbert

 

Local gas station on a Sunday afternoon. 2 oldtimers watch me roll up in my 72 GS 455 Convert and one looks over his shoulder at it , then looks back at me and says "That thing real ?" "Yep." I say. "Nice." Is his reply. Fact is , he was wondering if it was a clone or not. It needed a door , fender , bumpers rechromed, paint and lots of TLC, but it was on the road and a real GS. That's what he thought was nice about it.:TU:

 

Yep thats the way us old timers think Even if the car needs some work , its still out there going and someone is enjoying it . Keep up the good work !!!

 

Good points

 

I really wish old timers would act as Mike suggested. I can't tell you how many times I've felt unwanted or felt like an idiot at car shows where I didn't know the local guys.