In the later 1960s, and pressing on into the 1970s, Detroit was known for building some fine luxury cars-- boats as the generation before me describes them. Known mostly for their rather luxurious nature, these behemoths typically had V8s the size of Hawaii under their hoods-- and this once-classy Riviera is certainly no exception.
Weighing in at just over 4000 lbs, this big Buick struggled to stay quick due its lack of power. When you think of big barges, you think of a big, powerful V8, too, no? Well.. in the case of the Riv... the gargantuan 455 stuffed between the fenders only churned out a Ford Taurus-like 255 horsepower. That little fact makes me wonder what would win in a drag race? a 2010 Ford Taurus, or a 1972 Buick Riviera.
This example of brash Buick luxury wasn't without its flaws; the paint certainly has seen better days-- it's almost as if there's either tremendous overspray or no clearcoat, because the paint has ginormous amounts of heavy orange peel. It honestly The paint finish honestly looks quite wretched at best. Regarding the trim, the story is much the same. Heavy rust bubbles hide under what's left of the factory side moldings, and the trunk area appears to be suffering from immense bubbling, as well. Not quite a cheap fix, methinks.
So, is this a typical Minnesota classic being driven in the winter? All my sources point to yes; one can only hope it finds a new owner who doesn't treat like a "tight whip", but sadly with today's new generation of "car enthusiasts", that likely is never going to happen. Shame, really, because these Rivieras are nice cars not only by Buick standards, but in general, too.
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