My Dads GS

[sjfd04]

Looking through some old photos my Mom had, came across my Dads brand new 65.  Pretty cool, the first car I ever drove.  I remember going down to Smythe Buick in downtown San Jose to buy the car with him.  $3,100.00 out the door.  This car did not have any options other than the wire hub caps that he haggled over.  No power steering, no power brakes.  Did have a radio and heater.  Mom had to have red interior, too bad it had the tan exterior.  This car took plenty of abuse from my right foot, never failed.  When the oil crisis hit in the 70's,  the car was sold and I never saw it again.  Sad day.

I have more photos, I will see if I can post them.

Just wanted to share the memories,

Tom

[Chris]

Thanks for sharing your story and the picture.  I think this is one of the few photos we have of a 65GS with the wire hubcaps.  Some have debated that they were ever an option however with the factory options list, the dealer books and now this picture, this proves that they were an option and some cars shipped with them.

Too bad we can't locate this ole girl and bring her back into your family.  You never know, with the registry maybe she'll pop up someday.

Thanks again,

Chris

[sjfd04]

Chris

I can remember like it was yesterday, my Dad had to have those wire hub caps.    

I would pay big bucks to get that car back.    I could go on and on about what that car meant to me, the first car I drove, my first date, my first drag race, drive-in movies and a few first that I will keep to myself.

Tom

[Mark Ascher]

Tom,

More pics please.
My 66 Impala was bought new at EZ Davies Chevrolet in Redwood City.
I lived in Belmont for a couple of years.

Mark

[sjfd04]

Mark

I will post more on Thursday.  Have to scan them and get the correct size.

Tom

[Chris]

Tom,

Sorry for not remembering but do you have the VIN number for that car?  I think you are one of a handful of guys that  have contacted me over the years trying to locate an particular car that had been in the family.  If you don't have a VIN, I know that some guys have been able to locate it by going through the DMV where the car was originally titled and paying a fee.  If you had a VIN, we could start a thread here and the V8Buick forum to find it.  You could also run a CarFax etc on the VIN and see if there is any recent history on it (oil changes, repairs) which would tell you if it was still around. 

There is also the option of recreating the car and changing one over to the exact color and options combination you remembered.  What's nice about this option is that you can also change and add what you didn't like.  :)

About those hub caps, I have the original set from John Egle's red convertible.  After I seen the picture of them on his car, I just had to have a set also and John graciously made that happen a couple of years back... what a great guy!

Chris

[sjfd04]

Chris

Nice looking convert.  As for the vin number, I do not have that.  When I bought my car I tried carfax but it said I did not have enough numbers in the vin.

Tom

[campfamily]

My car originally came with the wire hubcaps.  The previous owner swapped them out for Buick Rallys, but he included the hubcaps with the car, I have them in a box in my garage.  I also have some pictures from him of the car with the hubcaps, before he swapped them.  I've often thought about swapping back, I kind of like the way they look with the hubcaps.  I also have the original invoice from my car, which shows the wheel covers as option N95.

Here's a picture of my car before the wheels were swapped out.

Keith

[dsags]

Keith,

That is one sweet car. It must have been brand new judging by the shine on the tail pipes.

Dan

[campfamily]

Thanks, Dan.  Actually, I believe that picture was taken around 2003 or so.  I have owned the car since 2005, and other than a repaint back in the mid 90's, it is mostly original (upholstery, carpet, dash, drivetrain, etc.).  I have the complete history on the car, including original sales invoice, all repair records, past license plates, etc.  The car was bought new in Washington DC, and never driven in inclement weather.  It "immigrated" to the West Coast in 2000, when the original owner stopped driving and gave it to his nephew.  His nephew decided to sell the car when he needed money to put his son through law school.  When I bought it, it had 63,000 miles; it just turned over 69,000 last weekend, when I drove it down to a local car gathering at a 50's diner in our neighborhood.  It isn't perfect, but it is exactly what my wife and I wanted; something we could drive, enjoy, and not be concerned about getting a rock chip.

Keith

[Chris]

Chris

Nice looking convert.  As for the vin number, I do not have that.  When I bought my car I tried carfax but it said I did not have enough numbers in the vin.

Tom

Tom, this is one of John's convertables (actually his very first from the 1970's).  Anyone who has seen it up close will tell you that the work on it is first class and John is all about the details.  My convertible wouldn't even make a good ugly step sister to this car.   

Keith, I totally agree that the wire hubcaps can totally change the look of the car.  It's amazing how quick you can go from hotrod to classic ride with just the swap of some rims.  I've always been warned that the downside of these hubcaps is their weight and they had a tendency of becoming "detached" from the car during hard cornering or higher speeds.

Chris

[dl7265]

Chris

Nice looking convert.  As for the vin number, I do not have that.  When I bought my car I tried carfax but it said I did not have enough numbers in the vin.

Tom

  yeah a 13 digit vin will not come up on a carfax. Not familiar with California . Maybe a title search ?

DL

[Chris]

Title search or it might be a long shot to check with the dealership (if known) that sold it to him.  Sometimes the dealership keeps records long enough to track down the history of the car.  You could also check with the insurance company that your Dad used.  If they are bad about throwing away old records... you could be in luck.

Chris