Thinking about a 73 convertible

[Centaur]

Hi,
I am new to this forum and to american classics in general, as I mostly have experience with Alfa Romeos.
I am contemplating a search for a 73 Convertible with a 455: does not have to be a perfect car, infact a mild restoration project is ok. It needs to be a complete car in running conditions, with a straight body, from and located on the west coast.

My question is: what kind of price range am I looking at for something like this? I know it's one of those "subjective value" kind of questions, but I recently saw a rough but running 73 conv sold for $2000 in the Portland, OR area and feel like I missed the deal of a lifetime...
Any input on this is greatly appreciated!
Thanks

[The German]

... My question is: what kind of price range am I looking at for something like this? ...

Welcome to this forum! I´m sure you will enjoy our discussions and share special informations with us. Regarding your question we had a discussion some weeks ago and I posted a price list:
http://www.buickcenturion.com/forums/showthread.php?p=2052#post2052

(The prices are given depending on the condition of the cars from left to right side starting with the poor condition.)

Good luck !
____________________________
Rolf

[72gsx4me]

Don't know your budget, but I suggest buying a solid Centurion. Finding parts for a Buick Centurion is not easy. It takes time and a lot of money. Parts start adding up on a fix-er-upper. My friend paid $500 for a NOS hood off ebay 4 years ago and if it was available today, I bet it would go for $750+.

Restoring a 68-72 Skylark is a different story. Vendors are making parts for these cars and most are readily available.

I just bought my 1973 Buick Centurion 455 Convertible from a little old lady in Buffalo, NY who was original owner. The car has 60k original miles and it is a beauty. You can see a photos of it in Me and My Buick.

During my long search I came across this car in Portland Oregon, so if I did not buy the Buffalo car, this would have been my next choice. Not the greatest color combo, but a solid car with a lot of options.

http://www.riggsboysracing.com/73%20Buick%20Conv.htm.

If you do call, ask for JR and tell him Manny gave you the lead

Good luck and welcome.

:cool:

[Centaur]

Thanks Rolf and gsx!
gsx: is the green car in your link the one for sale in the Portland area? If so, do you have a contact #?

Alex

[The German]

Alex, that green car was for sale in craigslist of Seattle in May :
http://www.buickcenturion.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1578#post1578

May be you can get the address with a mail to craigslist (?) if Manny (Will) don´t have it! I don´t know whether that would be possible. But I guess this car would be worth asking for; - for me it has a very fine colour and it seems to be in a good condition.

Good luck again !
_________________________
Rolf

added some minutes later :
You can contact the dealer by email : http://www.riggsboysracing.com/index.htm

[72gsx4me]

Alex,

I spoke to JR many times on this car. He emailed me more photos and the car is clean. No rust. It is a solid car and well worth looking in to. Contact JR and tell him Manny gave you his number.

JR
Jeff Riggs
360 518-7404

Good luck,

Manny:cool:

[Centaur]

Thanks Manny!
Actually I emailed JR about the car... the bad news: it's a bit out of my price range. The good news: now I know how much I have to save up!

And I agree, I'd rather find something turn-key than a project... unfortunately it seems that there is no middle ground on these cars, they're either mint or ground-up restos.

The search continues...
Alex

[73 Centurion]

Watch Craig's list and eBay. They do turn up from time to time. I almost bought another Centurion last year. It was from Texas with no rust, but it was worn out. Getting a solid body would be priority #1 on my list. Even if you can weld in your own patch panels finding good sheet metal to work with is a bitch!

I bought a pair of quarters that were supposed to be "solid". Yeah right. I fell for that one. They were better than what was left of my quarters and I used them but there was some metal magic required to make them truly solid.

It's easy to spend more on fixing a rusted body than fixing all the mechanical bits combined.

The second priority would be a smoothly working roof mechanism. These are a very complex roof and they get out of alignment or bent fairly easy. It's hard to get them working right once tweaked.

Most of the mechanical bits are standard GM and easily available.

Good Luck, let us know what you find.

John