1968 Buick LeSabre

Convertible Convertible

8 - Cyl.

Automatic

Gasoline

1968 Buick LeSabre Convertible It is a sad experience to have to sell this Classic 1968 Buick LeSabre Convertible. I first saw this car at the back of a body shop near where I was working at the time and was surprised to see it still there a few months later in early 2001. It turned out that the owner, from Quebec, had been unable to proceed with the body restoration and had signed it over to the shop. I had, much earlier, owned a 1968 Buick Electra Convertible and had enjoyed it immensely. After some thought, I made an offer to the shop early in March of 2001, and bought the car from them. I had the car transported on a flat-bed carrier to my home some 20 miles away and planned to begin restoration when Spring arrived. Unfortunately, after only a few weeks, I was rear-ended on Highway 401 north of Toronto while driving another Buick, a little 1980 Buick Skylark. The car that hit us was much bigger and the Skylark and I both lost. The Skylark went to the wreckers and I was condemned to cope with a herniated spinal disk and a calamitous reduction in physical ability. Restoration of the convertible was put on hold. A year or so later, a friend of mine, who does some welding, offered to help out and to weld in a new floor pan in the passenger compartment and to weld in new metal on the floor of the trunk. He was also going to weld in new metal that came with car for the rear quarters and wheel wells. Unfortunately, I do not have a garage and it seemed every time my friend had a day to spare to work on the Buick, it would rain. He was able only to do some welding on the trunk floor. Then I moved to another house with a larger lot and, having got a temporary permit and arranged for insurance, drove the convertible some ten miles or so to the new place. It was a joy to drive and I was sorry when I got here and had to park it again. Well, time marches on and the car has just been sitting for several years since. Remarkably, it still starts with ease and a touch of the gas pedal shows that it is still “rarin’ to go.” I have enjoyed driving it around my rather large back lot over the last few days. It rolls over the ruts and hillocks with great aplomb. The engine is the classic 350 CID. I was able to verify this thanks to a helpful eBayer who advised that the Rocker Coves on the 350 have six hold-down bolts, and that is what this car has. The odometer shows a reading of 75,052 miles. I still think that this car is worth restoring and if I had the money and time et cetera to do it, I would. However, I don’t, and it is time to sell the car to some enthusiast who can bring this remarkable old car back to its former glory. Here is a brief summary of what is needed: Passenger compartment floor pan. Trunk floor. Extensive additional welding to attach new metal to the rear fenders fore and aft of the wheel wells. Metal cut for this is included. New hinge pins in driver’s door. Some, relatively minor, bodywork on the front fenders and trunk lid. Repair or replace trunk lid locking mechanism. Most chrome mouldings are in good shape. Some are still attached to the car, those that are not are in the trunk. The sill plates do show some deterioration. The seats are in good condition but will need re-upholstering. Three Interior trim panels were removed from the rear compartment and are in the trunk. As can been seen in the accompanying pictures, the car still has excellent stance. It sits square on the ground and there is no sagging front or back. It comes with four Michelin X tires which are in almost new condition. The original Buick wheel covers are included. Also, the original AM radio is still in the dash. It does not work and I have no idea why. I have not bothered to check this because if I had put the car into use for myself, I would have switched to an FM or AM/FM radio. The convertible top mechanism works fine, the hydraulics and electric motor do their job and top will go fully up and down. However, the relay seems to be a little weak, and it is sometimes necessary to interrupt lifting or lowering until the relay has reset. The top fabric, the original material, is totally shot, and the rear glass window was MIA when I bought the car. This will all need to be replaced. The car does have power windows but they are currently inoperative. I have no idea if this is just a matter of relays or whether the window motors are defunct. Either way, replacements are readily available. The gas tank, or a replacement, is sitting in the trunk. The fuel is fed from a plastic jerry can inside the car through a length of conventional fuel line directly to the fuel pump. Mechanically, the car is overall surprisingly good. The power steering works normally and the alternator seems to be putting out the appropriate voltage. The brakes do work but currently the pedal is low and the brake warning light comes on when the pedal is depressed. The fluid is low or even absent in the rear section of the master cylinder reservoir, which might indicate a leaking wheel cylinder(s) at the back of the car or a leaking brake line. I have not topped up the fluid because it is probably best to identify the problem before adding fluid. The brakes were normal when I drove the car up here three years ago. I can think of nothing else to say, except to reaffirm my hope that this fine old machine can be given a new lease on life, by an enthusiast. To make it easier for all sizes of wallet to bid on this car, I am starting the bidding at a mere $500.00. You would pay this much for a set of Michelin tires like those on the car now. The winning bidder will be responsible for transporting the vehicle from my location, about 60 miles from the U.S. border, and will be entirely responsible for the shipping costs. I would advise the buyer to rent a flatbed if they do not already have access to one.