1970 Buick Estate Wagon

Where in Germany do you live? I will attend a few meetings in Germany this season..hopefully I can take a closer look at the wagon somewhere

 

Hey Rob, it seems that you have some big garage :2_thumbs_up_-_anima
I live in Bavaria close to Regensburg (and only one hour from Munich). I also have a second Buick, a 69 Skylark 4dr hardtop. Which meetings have you planned to attend in Germany?

 

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I have a 70 Estate Wagon - I am the third Owner here in central florida - It has sat for over a year due to a blown motor - just got it back on the road May 7 2009 -

 

We have a '70 Estate wagon with the woodgrain on the sides sitting out back. I bought it years ago to save it from the crusher and it has languished out back with the rest of my "orphans" for close to twenty years. It's a dark blue car with a really pretty bright blue interior - the car was going to be crushed at a local wrecking yard and I bought it just to save it ans possibly use some of the pieces on the '70 Pontiac Catalina wagon that my wife and I drove when we were dating. I have never pulled anything off the car because I sort of thought that it was too unique and maybe one day I'd find a home for it. I can't say as I have ever seen another one like it that I can recall. I haven't checked to be sure but I believe it to be a Canadian built car and from what I have read, there weren't many Buick wagons built here. It is minus engine and transmission but a friend of mine has a '70 Buick Wildcat with the original engine and transmission in it. I always wanted to do something with the car but the years have passed so quickly..

 

Yup...those years sure have a way of doing that. July 5th is my birthday and I can't even BELIEVE how old I'll be. Where the hell did all the years go???

 

I remember when that started happening to me...When I was a kid,the three months of summer vacation seemed to last as long as the nine months of school...Then,,,between 10th and 11th grades,something changed.Those three months of summer seemed almost like three weeks.And the nine months of school didn't change...It's like life is in overdrive now,cruising along at 65 mph,and there's nothing I can do to slow it down.No slowing down to see the scenery.No stopping to smell the roses.All that romantical stuff is on the wayside now.Trying to do those things make other people look at you like there's something wrong with you.(Ever been pulled over on the side of the road,and noticed people driving by,peering into your car like there's going to be something lurid or gory to see?)

 

Wow!! Did you ever put that well!!!! A friend of mine from out of town was just here visiting and we talked about how the world and life and people have changed in the last few years. I don't get to see Craig but once a year but he is a great guy and he and I think so much alike and we shared some interesting thoughts and ideas.
Yes, life is indeed in overdrive and accelerating. It's like we are on a runaway train, going faster and faster and most people can sense the acceleration. In my own life, the week is usually all planned out and spoken for before it even begins with appointments, things with the kids, attending to our responsibilities and obligations in life and places to go and deadlines to meet.
Our lives are wayyyyyyyyyyyyy too fast paced today. People drive down the highway talking or texting on their cell phones, eating a McDonald's burger that they grabbed at the drive thru because they are in a hurry, looking at their electronic schedule thingy ( what ever those things are called) and all the while, trying to keep what ever they are driving on the road and honking their horn at you because you are driving the speed limit - like, how dare you?????????
I see our kids heading down a vastly different and more treacherous road than we have gone down as they are mentally stretched to the max. Kids will sit at a computer and chat with several ( or more ) people at one time while "surfing the net" and at the same time, they are doing homework, texting on their cell phones and goodness knows what else at the same time.
I think that is what endears me so much to old cars. They come from a time when the music was so much better, life itself was so much more simple and people had time for other people and relationships. Kids came home to a mom who was waiting for them and glad to see them no matter how bad her day had been and sending an infant to day care so she could go to work was never considered an option. Families went for a drive in the family sedan or wagon on Sunday afternoons and people visited each other and interacted with each other rather than sitting at home watching the idiot box. There were fewer rules and laws dictating what you had to do and what you were forbidden to do for fear that you may harm yourself. Bias ply tires and drum brakes were acceptable and the norm - a tune up consisted of replacing or setting the points in the distributer, changing the oil and replacing or gapping the spark plugs - all for under $20.00. Today a tune up can cost hundreds of dollars and heaven help you if the electronics are giving intermittent problems as they are prone to do. we drove on bias ply tires and stopped with drum brakes for decades - today they are scoffed at as unsafe and inefficient. A friend of mine just took his Ford F350 into the shop - it was $350.00 to put the truck on the computer to tell him that he needed to spend another five thousand dollars to replace all of the injectors and glow plugs. And we wonder why people are stressed. All I can say is that I am glad that I am pretty much on the downhill side of life now and I am not a teenager looking at the mess that exists.
Sorry for the rant, but life really is indeed a lot more harsh and unforgiving than it used to be.. At least, that it my opinion. Old iron rules!

 

Walk in to a shop these days and tell 'em you think you need your carb rebuilt-->

 

Walk into a NAPA or any parts store and ask for a set of points.. and try to buy whitewall tires... I asked for a price on a set of 225/75 15" whitewalls the other day and the guy at the tire store shook his head and told me that that size was getting hard to get and whitewalls were no longer avalable from his suppliers.:confused::confused::confused:..the world's going to hell in a handbasket I tell yuh..:confused:

 

"All I can say is that I am glad that I am pretty much on the downhill side of life now and I am not a teenager looking at the mess that exists"


X2

 

I wasn't in on it,so I'm not sure exactly when it happened,but---it's gotten to the point where the vast majority of people are doing this thing where every last second of their day HAS TO BE filled with them doing something "constructive/productive". It's where they get that "Can't you see I'm doing something important?!?!" attitude,when they're driving around in traffic.And God forbid,you suggest they leave five minutes earlier to get somewhere! Judging by the re-actions I've gotten,in the past,that's a very upsetting concept. Oh,and remember this part too,whatever that something important is that you're doing,is nowheres near as important as the something important that they're doing...

 

Traffic, The days I drive my truck to work are hilarious to me! The old girl is geared low so on the highway I drive just under the limit witch is 90kmp(55mph'ish) and every body is passing me like I'm standing still and get alot of from people. The other 1/2 of my drive is down old farm back roads and the line of cars behind me is nuts, cars pass me and there ! Even a few people I work with have complained to me about how slow I drive yet on those farm roads yet I'm driving over the limit and then when I answer back saying " it's not 7am yet, your not late, whats the problem?" I'm looked at like I'm from another planet.

In the crewzer I'll drive with traffic, no more no less. The last couple days I drove one of my honeys Celicas, the car has been modified by one of the last owners and I have no clue as too the real extent and I have to admit I drove that car...it's freeken cool go cart IMO. On that note for myself I feel I don't ever need to build up my truck or wagon's engine as I would only get myself into trouble

 

I have a chance to potentially trade my 72 Caprice Estate wagon for a nice running and rust free 70 Buick Estate Wagon. I think whats stopping me is the lack of the woodgrain option and the 3rd seat option. I was looking at the pics of the woodgrained one on here and it looks like it may not be too hard to add the woodgrain, but I am sure you would never ever find the original style woodgrain to put on it.

Also not sure how hard it would be to add the 3rd seat into a 2-seat 65-70 GM wagon if it were even possible.

 

Woodgrain on ´70 Estate Wagon

... a guy I recently met - he owns a 72 Estate Wagon - told me that he was able to find probably the last meters of the original material for his car, he said it was made by 3M and it is kind of semitransparent so it looks different on any base color. But I think also the trim which surrounds the woodgrain should be hard to find... of course the woodgrain option is unique to these old station wagons and it lookst just cool on them, but on the other hand: aren´t they even rarer without this option? Consider the rust free condition, how many more will you find?

 

Yeah, apparently GM used this transparent type woodgrain on the early 70s models. My 72 Kingswood Estate wagon has a very dark woodgrain, thanks to it being a brown car. I say the NOS would be very hard to find. Mine is still in good shape for a couple of weeks with some "dressing", but there is finally a hole popped through it on the far back driverside. Other than that, its perfect.

I dont know if non-woodgrain 70 Buick Estate wagons are more rare or not. Seems like I see more without it. I too think the surrounding chrome would be the hardest thing to find. IF I could maybe get some fairly decent woodgrain added and put in a 3rd seat easily, I would probably trade... especially considering that wagon is 100% rust free and mine is about 95% rust free (needing work around back windows and lower 1/4 panels and spare tire carrier.