1976 225 LIMITED, LAST YEAR FOR THE 455, LOW MI,ORIGINAL UNRESTORED SURVIVOR, AZ

Buick Electra 1976 Description

This 1976 Buick Electra Limited is an original unrestored survivor in amazing condition. 1976 was the end of the line for the full size GM cars and the last year for the 455 cid engine. The 1975-76 Electras were the longest Buicks ever made and one of the longest production cars ever made period. For these reasons among others the 1976 Electra Limited 2 door coupes have become collectable worldwide in recent years. There was nothing else like them and never will be again. This Buick has only 88150 real actual miles (not a guess or someones wishful thinking) and since many of them were freeway miles the car still drives very tight and smooth. Since 1976 was the Bicentennial year Buick gave their car colors patriotic names. This Limited is still finished its original "Liberty White" paint which looks exceptionally good for being almost 40 years old.This car was purchased by Eleanor Beirle from Pollard Friendly Motor Company (a new car dealer) in Boulder Colorado on June 26 1980. The Buick was bought new from Rush Motors Buick/GMC which was located right next door and then traded in to Pollard Motors as a new car trade-in in 1980. Eleanor and her husband were retired and used the car primarily to visit relatives in Wyoming and as their "Sunday Car". Mr. Beirle said that his wife loved to drive the Electra on the highway because "it was like riding on a cloud" since it rode so smoothly. Eleanor passed away about 10 years ago and her husband kept the car for sentimental reasons until I purchased it from him. I have owned and enjoyed a number of vintage Buicks over the years including a 1970 GS 455 Stage One 4-speed A/C car. While this Electra is not the Stage 1 it still has the 455 4bbl engine turbo 400 transmission positraction rear end and chrome road wheels which are all a blast from the past and the exhaust note of the 455 brings back happy memories. I had planned on keeping the Buick "forever" but unfortunately circumstances have changed and I have decided I should really let it go to a new owner.Being a Limited this Electra was equipped with most options including power windows and locks tilt wheel cruise control 60/40 notchback dual power seats cornering lights speed alert (see second needle in speedo photo) electric trunk release electric seat back locks rear window defogger blower and so on. The car also has automatic climate control which was the top air conditioning option and it works as it should with the A/C blowing cold and the heat blowing hot all at the right times. In fact everything on the Buick works as it should except for the clock which I assume needs to be cleaned and lubed and the radio which has some issues. The radio is a rare am/fm/8-track and CB which was put in back when the car was new. The radio works but the dial indicator doesn't move and the CB activation button will not stay pushed in. Nothing was cut when the radio was installed and the original speakers were still used so you could go back to an original radio if you desired. The trunk mount CB antenna is still in the trunk and the microphone is in the glove box if you decide to repair the vintage radio in the car now.The Electra is very original including exhaust system and plug wires. Some new maintenance items have been done including a new set of extra load 75000 mile Hankook tires a new windshield and a new brake master cylinder. I went with extra load tires to minimize the "squishy" feel standard tires might have given the weight of the car. I also just put in a new interstate battery. The Buick runs and drives as good as it looks. The engine starts easily runs smooth strong and quiet and does not smoke or leak anything on the garage floor. The transmission shifts as it should and overall the car just has a good feel to it. The oil was just changed and to my knowledge the car could be driven anywhere.As you can see from the photos the paint and body are overall in excellent condition. However there are some flaws as you would expect from a 39 year old vehicle. As far as I can tell the paint is still original with the exception of the fender skirts. There have been some scratches and chips that have been touched in but the paint match was very good. The car is amazingly free of door dings and the like but the top of the left front fender has some soft dents ("mechanics rash"?) and there are a few other dings in the top surfaces including one on the trunk where the CB antenna was clipped on. I tried to take some photos of the dings but they would not show up. Most of these could be removed by a "paintless dent removal" person but I never had the time to do so plus they are difficult to see in regular sunlight so it was never a priority for me. The vinyl Landau top was re-dyed since it was starting to discolor and had a few spots with small cracks. Most of the minor cracks were eliminated with the new dye. The tops of the bumpers especially the front bumper have some fine scratches/flaws on them and the plating is getting thin in a few spots. You can still see your reflection in the top surfaces and the side surfaces look great. The previous owner had mounted a Deflecto Bug Shield above the grille and I removed it and plugged the six 1/8" holes with white plugs. It would be easy to fill these holes and repaint that small area if you desired.The interior of the Limited is very nice and the seats have a neat unique pattern to them. There is one crack in the middle of the dash pad and the arm rests on the door panels have a patch panel on them to cover the normal wear area where your elbows rest. You have to look pretty closely to notice the repair. One cool feature of the door panels is the heavily scrolled walnut inserts on either side of the door pulls (see photo). The rest of the interior is excellent including the seats headliner carpets side panels and instrument cluster. Even the chrome plating on the gear shift and turn signal levers are like new and not peeling as so many times they do. The undercarriage of the car has never been detailed so it has the normal dirt and surface rust in areas (see photo) but it is all solid. In the engine compartment everything is correct and not tinkered with. I repainted the valve covers and air cleaner to bring them in line with the rest of the car but there are no modifications of any kind.I have tried my best to point out the "flaws" in the car and to be as honest as I can about the condition of it. As you can see from the photos the flaws are minor and are far outweighed by the positives. The car presents itself exceptionally well and I get compliments on it whenever I take her out. One really cool feature I wanted to mention was the back up lights. They function as normal white lights when you put the car in reverse but switch to red when you have the lights on at night. This along with the huge tail lights give the rear end a "spaceship" look at night (see photo).This Buick is a survivor. Unlike most older cars that have been abused and neglected and then had someone try to bring them back to life this one has always been cared for and it shows the pride of ownership it has had over its 39 year lifetime. Even the large doors shut easily on this car unlike most of the large 2 door cars of the era where you had to slam them to shut. This in my mind attests to the pampered life this Limited has had. I sincerely hope that the new owner will continue to give the car the care and respect it deserves. This is a chance to own a classic car that is appreciating in value without investing a lot of money and or time in restoring one. Besides as they say in the car hobby "you can restore a car many times but it is original only once" and for that reason unrestored cars are always worth more than restored ones.The Electra is located in Payson Arizona (85541) which is about 75 miles northeast of metro Phoenix. I will assist in any way I can in getting the car delivered to you. Please note that even though I do not have my Buick advertised anywhere else (in fact this is the first time I have advertised it) I do reserve the right to end the auction early if bidding is sluggish so please do not wait until the last minute to bid to avoid the disappointment of finding the auction closed. Finally although I have done my best to accurately describe the car it is of course sold as is without any warranty.Please feel free to email or call me (928-468-7070) with any questions you may have. I can usually be reached most afternoons and evenings.Thanks for looking!