1965 Buick Riviera - Wildcat 445?

[Mark S]

I have the opportunity to buy a 1965 Buick Riviera. I looked at it today and it appears to be all original with very little rust. It is a recovered stolen car from California with replacemnt VIN tags riveted to the body in two places by the State of California. The body trim tag is still there (numbers shown below). I have missed previous opportunities to purchase all-original Buicks ('73 Riviera, '55 Special) and I'd like to learn more about this car. The engine appears to be original. As I understand it, '65 Riviera engine opions included a 401 and a 425. I don't think it's the 425 dual-quad Super Wildcat because there's only one QuadraJet. However, there's an air cleaner in the trunk with stickers on it that read "Buick" and "Wildcat 445". I couldn't find the engine code stamp; I looked on the right-side engine block and left. The intake manifold has F-15 stamped in front of the carb and B 13687 2 stamped behind the carb. The carb itself says "4Jet". The water pump tubes have "1356095-7" stamped on them, and on the left cylinder head is stamped "B-1374603-E". Also, both valve covers are stamped with the firing order. The VIN is 494475H946958, which doesn't give a whole lot of info when decoded. The interior is really nice with the factory A/C and AM radio. It is a really cool car that can probably be started with minimal effort, and driven while I fix it up. Can anyone please give me some direction on finding more info about this car.
Body Trim Tag:
O6C
ST 65-49447 FB 246512 BODY
TR 628 KK PAINT
EXT-2K-4F-5W

Any info/direction will be appreciated.....

[Mark S]

After further research, it appears that the "Wildcat 445" refers to the torque of the 401 nailhead engine, which is blue-green in color. Also, the numbers on the side of the cylinder head correspond with the "401/425" designation, and the numbers on the rear of the intake (I apparently did not se the complete number but I think it was 1383782) correspond to a '65 4 bbl. So, I think that this is the original engine. I just need to go back and find the engine production code which should begin with "LT". Then I need to find the engine serial number which should be the last 8 digits of the VIN. This should tell me if the engine is the original one. If so, I'm buying this car. Someone tell me what you're thinking... Is this thing on?

[WildKitty]

My 64 Wildcat has a 425cuin nailhead that is also rated 445ft lbs torque. It came with
the breather cover; "Wildcat 445".

Is it your aim to restore it to original?
Butch

[Mark S]

to Wildkitty: I thought the 425 cid engine had the "Wildcat 465" designation, according to info on this website. Not sure, I'm pretty new to Buick's verbiage. I need to go check it out again, but even if it's a 401 vs. 425, I still think it's a great car. My short-term goal is to buy it, get it running and legal, and drive it. Then I'll start improving it. I don't think I have the skills/time/money to restore it to original, but I don't plan on doing anything drastic to it. Just replace worn/broken parts and keep it looking like new and running good. I haven't seen many of these for sale and I don't think I've ever seen one on the road. I love the big, two-door, pillarless body style, but if I'm going to buy it I want it to at least have the original engine, transmission and rear-end. I was thinking about offering him $2000 and pick it up on Monday. What do you think?
ps: I saw a '64 Riviera up in Rhode Island a couple of years ago... all original and very clean...$30k. I really like that car.

[telriv]

Since their start in 1963 ALL 425's were rated @465 wether it be 1x4 or 2x4

[bhambulldog]

$2,000 sounds like a good deal. Did you Buy it?

[Mark S]

$2,000 sounds like a good deal. Did you Buy it?

Sorry for the late reply... I passed on the '65 Riviera. It was a recovered stolen vehicle with replacement California VIN tags, and the seller seemd a little shady... I opted for a '55 Special instead (see post on this site).