Page 15 - ROA Online Riview Library

Pictured above is the stan-
dard blue vinyl interior in-
stalled in 12 percent of the
’64 Rivieras, second only
in popularity to black. This
car was powered by the
optional 425ci “465 Wild-
cat” engine rated at 340 hp
and installed in only 2,311
Rivieras in 1964. The trunk
has the original beige up-
BY DAVID ELDRIDGE holstery, including the tire
It’s a Small World rubber trunk mat.
cover and optional brown

tion. I told him about the ’64 Riviera and he said, “just a minute.” He left
the room but soon returned with a file which indicated that years earlier he
had owned the same car. He had sold the ’64 to a collector in Sydney, Nova
Scotia who sold it to a dealer in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, from whom my
friend acquired it in 1999.
A few years ago, the fellow who does body
work on my cars happened to be in Sydney,
Nova Scotia and met a fellow car enthusiast.
In his garage, there was a hand-painted sign
on corrugated plastic that read “1964 Buick
Riviera – 9700 Actual Miles...An Original 60’s
True Muscle Car – Best One in Existence.”
My body man said, “I know who owns that car.” This was the fellow to
whom Ken McGee had sold the car. The former owner asked if the new
owner would like to have the sign. The answer was affirmative!
Despite 16 years of ownership and driving 1,549 miles to the 2016 ROA
International Meet in Williamsburg, Virginia, the odometer still reads only
19,472 miles. In Williamsburg, the car was awarded First Place in the 1963-
65 Class, as well as the Long-Distance Award for a Riviera 40 years or older.
The story behind this car certainly speaks volumes about the “world being
a small place.” This is the one Riviera that found me and
we will no doubt spend the rest of my life together.

DAVID ELDRIDGE #1738 and his wife Jane, reside in Barrington,
NS Canada and can be reached at eldridgeqc@eastlink.ca.

The Riview July/August 2019 15