1962 Buick Special

JacobR

JacobR

Member
Hi,



I just purchased a 1962 Buick Special convertible. I bought it with the hopes of restoring it with my father. It currently isn’t running and has been sitting covered for about five years, but I was able to turn the engine so I am hopeful that I can get it running (it’s the v6 engine). I am very new to this sort of thing and admit I don’t know much (I am still in high school) but my dad knows some basic stuff and I think we can figure it out – so I will likely ask a lot of what are probably very basic questions. My apologies in advance. I will probably ask on some other forums as well, so you may see me in several places online J



I have attached a picture of the car and I will post some more of the interior later – it only had a front seat and some rotten carpet, both of which I removed. It is currently an empty shell with what seems to be some minor surface rust on the floorboards, almost no rust on the body and the frame seems to be in good shape. It lacks most everything! It doesn’t have door locks, trunk locks or latch, hood latch, side mirror, etc. It needs a lot of work! But I am excited to get it running.



My current plan (aside from engine work) is to 1) see if I can find a full set of matching locks for the ignition, doors and trunk plus the trunk latch and hood latch 2) remove rust from interior floorboards (maybe using brass wire brushes?) and then either get a shop to paint the floorboards professionally or do it myself (my dad has an air compressor and spray gun) 3) reupholster the front seats 4) clean up the convertible mechanism (its manual and seems to work) 5) buy new convertible top 6) find latches for the top (the ones that attach to the window and lock down the top) 7) get new wheels/tires. I am going to keep it original except I would like to put a little bit bigger wheels on it so I can add some sportier looking tires – and figure out an appropriate size that I can go up to that fits as is and doesn’t look ridiculous.



If anyone happens to know anything about where to find some of the above parts or tips about how to do it I would really appreciate it.



Thanks so much,



Jacob
 

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Welcome!, the car looks like a great project!
Your list of items looks good, except you wont' find the matching keys. GM used a different, square ignition key and a round lock key.
Hope you and your Dad have a great time doing it!
 
Floor boards on a convertible that only have surface rust on the interior are a godsend. You can go after the rust with steel brushes rather than brass. Steel is often cheaper and lasts longer than brass. Power equipment (wire wheel chucked onto a drill) is usually quicker for large open areas of rust. Just be careful. Finally, because the floors will eventually be covered with carpet, you and your Dad can certainly handle the paint without professional help. Just be careful to mask off anything you don't want to be painted. RUST-OLEUM has some useful products for painting over formerly rusted metal. Good luck.
 
Great find! I had a 62 skylark 2 dr I bought brand new . I was a very nimble handling car with just the right amount of power. That said I now have a 1965 Skylark GS convertible that I replaced the top on. One thing I want to say, DO NOT remove the convertible frame or disturb the settings if possible. If you must remove the frame be SURE you mark every thing you remove to be sure you put everything back the same way you removed it. Secondly, DO NOT just rip off the top. Be sure you mark the center lines, mark the end to end of the rear window and all the other places where the top terminates on the car body. You can even hold a crayon type marker and draw a line by tracing a line on the original top along the entire rear where the boot snaps on then transfer that line and all the other marks to your new top. Most all the above I did not do..... Ask me how I learned.......😁

Good Luck and have fun!
Leonard
 
Bob said:
Welcome!, the car looks like a great project!
Your list of items looks good, except you wont' find the matching keys. GM used a different, square ignition key and a round lock key.
Hope you and your Dad have a great time doing it!
Click to expand...

Thanks
That actually helps a lot, I've been trying to determine how I should purchase the locks and if I would need to buy a complete set, but it seems as if I just need to purchase a 2 door lock set and then I can get a locksmith to work on developing a new key for the ignition.
 
'51 Special said:
Floor boards on a convertible that only have surface rust on the interior are a godsend. You can go after the rust with steel brushes rather than brass. Steel is often cheaper and lasts longer than brass. Power equipment (wire wheel chucked onto a drill) is usually quicker for large open areas of rust. Just be careful. Finally, because the floors will eventually be covered with carpet, you and your Dad can certainly handle the paint without professional help. Just be careful to mask off anything you don't want to be painted. RUST-OLEUM has some useful products for painting over formerly rusted metal. Good luck.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I was very pleased with the state of the interior, I was very worried that there was going to be much more damage then there was.

Thanks for the advice on the rust, I definitely think that we can pull this off without the need of too much professional help, I am just worried that we will miss some and end up with rust spreading underneath the carpet. I am assuming though that with the right products we can make sure the interior floor can stay protected so it will last.
 
lbrod said:
Great find! I had a 62 skylark 2 dr I bought brand new . I was a very nimble handling car with just the right amount of power. That said I now have a 1965 Skylark GS convertible that I replaced the top on. One thing I want to say, DO NOT remove the convertible frame or disturb the settings if possible. If you must remove the frame be SURE you mark every thing you remove to be sure you put everything back the same way you removed it. Secondly, DO NOT just rip off the top. Be sure you mark the center lines, mark the end to end of the rear window and all the other places where the top terminates on the car body. You can even hold a crayon type marker and draw a line by tracing a line on the original top along the entire rear where the boot snaps on then transfer that line and all the other marks to your new top. Most all the above I did not do..... Ask me how I learned.......😁

Good Luck and have fun!
Leonard
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for this, I would not have even thought about that, this will save me from a lot of hassle and wasted time.

So would you say that this is a job that we should probably get professionally done? (Currently the top is completely destroyed except for where it is connected to the frame of the mechanism)

Also is there a good place to buy a new top or is that something that could be done if given to a professional, and if so which would be the cheaper option (I would probably still have it installed professionally if I bought a new one unless it is easier to install than I am anticipating)

Thanks again
Jacob
 
Jacob,

A convert top is an art in replacing. Leave it to a Pro. Don't provide the top or material as the Pro will have a favorite he may want to work with & provide some kind of warranty. A quality top would be one made by Electra & some others. This will NOT be a cheap endevour. BEFORE using ANY Pro shop go to some car shows, cruise nights & ask questions who did the convert top that looks good to your eyes. Get RECOMMENDATIONS from others. This is very important. DO NOT remove any part of the top yourself as the installer has his ways that he does things.
Very early cars only had one key for everything. My '61 LeSabre only has one key for ignition, door locks, glove box & trunk.

Tom T.
 
tom telesco said:
Jacob,

A convert top is an art in replacing. Leave it to a Pro. Don't provide the top or material as the Pro will have a favorite he may want to work with & provide some kind of warranty. A quality top would be one made by Electra & some others. This will NOT be a cheap endevour. BEFORE using ANY Pro shop go to some car shows, cruise nights & ask questions who did the convert top that looks good to your eyes. Get RECOMMENDATIONS from others. This is very important. DO NOT remove any part of the top yourself as the installer has his ways that he does things.
Very early cars only had one key for everything. My '61 LeSabre only has one key for ignition, door locks, glove box & trunk.

Tom T.
Click to expand...

Thanks so much for the advice Tom!

I will definitely take it to heart.

---Thanks everyone for the helpful replies, I really appreciate it.
 
JacobR said:
Hi,



I just purchased a 1962 Buick Special convertible. I bought it with the hopes of restoring it with my father. It currently isn’t running and has been sitting covered for about five years, but I was able to turn the engine so I am hopeful that I can get it running (it’s the v6 engine). I am very new to this sort of thing and admit I don’t know much (I am still in high school) but my dad knows some basic stuff and I think we can figure it out – so I will likely ask a lot of what are probably very basic questions. My apologies in advance. I will probably ask on some other forums as well, so you may see me in several places online J



I have attached a picture of the car and I will post some more of the interior later – it only had a front seat and some rotten carpet, both of which I removed. It is currently an empty shell with what seems to be some minor surface rust on the floorboards, almost no rust on the body and the frame seems to be in good shape. It lacks most everything! It doesn’t have door locks, trunk locks or latch, hood latch, side mirror, etc. It needs a lot of work! But I am excited to get it running.



My current plan (aside from engine work) is to 1) see if I can find a full set of matching locks for the ignition, doors and trunk plus the trunk latch and hood latch 2) remove rust from interior floorboards (maybe using brass wire brushes?) and then either get a shop to paint the floorboards professionally or do it myself (my dad has an air compressor and spray gun) 3) reupholster the front seats 4) clean up the convertible mechanism (its manual and seems to work) 5) buy new convertible top 6) find latches for the top (the ones that attach to the window and lock down the top) 7) get new wheels/tires. I am going to keep it original except I would like to put a little bit bigger wheels on it so I can add some sportier looking tires – and figure out an appropriate size that I can go up to that fits as is and doesn’t look ridiculous.



If anyone happens to know anything about where to find some of the above parts or tips about how to do it I would really appreciate it.



Thanks so much,



Jacob
Click to expand...
Hi Jacob
I know a little about the 1963/64 V6. They were only made for a little over 2 years and have become quite rare. Some did not like the motor because the odd firing order caused it to vibrate. Also parts are hard to come by. It is however a very good powerplant (I used to race them) I would strongly suggest you not disassemble the motor at this time, If you decide to keep the v6 reply and I will help you to the best of my ability.

Greg
 
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Lots of new products out there for rust removal and protection. Check them out for suitability for your project. POR-15 is great stuff.
 
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