Curbsidelandia was hit by an ice storm last Wednesday, which has sent huge numbers of limbs and trees down, resulting in extensive power outages, which in some case will take weeks to restore. On Thursday morning we ventured out for a walk in the neighborhood to enjoy the amazing crystals that encased all the trees and bushes, and get a look at some of the damages. This 1977 or ’78 Riviera (I can’t readily tell them apart) was one of the casualties, although it looks like the damage is relatively minor. That’s not the case for the car across the street from it.
A neighbor with a chain saw had already cut the bulk of the tree, leaving just a little crown on the Riviera. These ’77-’78s have generally been considered not-quite-genuine Rivieras, as they’re really just a LeSabre with a very un-organic upswept rear hip and a padded top to create an opera window.
The sad reality is that the LeSabre coupe was much better looking, and one of the finest coupes of its time. Not too surprising, given its Pininfarina-influenced roof line.
I’ve shot this car before, as it’s been in the ‘hood for some years now, but have never gotten to writing it up. One of these days it will get a proper presentation here, without a limb on its head.
And here’s the lower part of the tree, resting on a Camry. Which is definitely a bit worse for wear. Timburrrr…
Jeff Nelson did take a closer look at the ’77-’78 semi-Riviera here: A Short Life In Hard Times
Isn’t that a 75th Anniversary Edition Riviera?
If so, it’s a ’78.
But then, I don’t see any “75th Anniversary” badges.
There is a little LXXV badge on the fender. Neat cars you never see and might never have seen new. Kind of blended in with the other B bodies. I’d take one!
The 1977-78 Riviera was a better looking car than the late ’80s model that copied the Pontiac Grand Am.
Late 80’s Pontiac Grand Am
Mark
The 86-88 Riviera did have hiccups. But the longer extended version for 1989-1993 was a beauty. Cars have to evolve man.
The 77-78, and 79-85 models where nice, but they are dinosaurs now. Plus the newer Rivs drove and handle many times better than the old model. Briniging in new safety measures and performance.
Wasn’t really an evolution so much as a clean break, of which I do in fact question. Is it a better car or is it a better Riviera? There is a difference. Think Porsche 911 vs Porsche 928. The 928 was supposed to replace the ancient 911 and in most measurable ways it was “better” but was it worthy of having the torch passed to it? No. And it wasn’t. The Riviera of course went downhill before the 86 but the 86 and it’s long overhanged refresh did nothing to pay proper homage to the brand.
XR7Matt
I see your point.
You also have to put some of the blame on the “inconsistant” American consumer at the time. American consumers in the early 80’s demanded more performance geared cars. Especially since brands like BMW, Audi, Benz etc were becoming the “It” thing.
So there is no way out the gate that GM would come out swinging by implementing small upgrades to the old top shelf 1979-85 Riviera’s, Eldorado’s, Seville etc. So GM was forced to do a drastic move with their down sizing projects. I personally loved the Riviera’s technology with the “CTR” screen in the dash board (to bring in young people). It was revolutionary for it’s time and brought the car into the future. Sure the exterior design failed originally out the gate (bland/cheap looking). So you are right it was an overall failure initially.
But like anything, the car got better over time. The 3800 SFI V6 was a very smooth refined engine that moved the Riv with authority (for the era). Handling improved by leaps and bounds, the suspension payed homage to the traditional Riviera ride. There were small design cue’s that paid homage to the old Riv. Like the casket style interior/exterior pull door handles, tons of faux wood grain trim, wire wheel covers. Sure it looks slopped and badly executed today, but at the time it was a leap forward that they had to try to compete with the Euro sedans, especially in T-Type trim..
The heavily revised 1989 Riviera, that added about 10 inches to the wheelbase. Was a beautiful car. The rear end flowed and slopped downward like the 79-85 model-with classic Riv tail lights. The front end was more tidy with composite lights, and a more regal “Rivera” like front grill, classic pin strips that curved with the contour of the body. Quality was up drastically They even replaced the troubled “CRT” screen with traditional buttons (I drove an 89 Riviera to my H.S. Prom). Sales also showed that Americans loved the 89-93 Riviera, I believe sales jumped by 3x.
If only GM had the insight to design the 1989-1993 Riv and release it right out the gate in 1986. The car would have been deemed a wild success.
We can all agree that the 1986-1993 Generation Riviera overall was a flop when you look at the entire picture. However, we cannot just disregard the car as a total failure because of what I typed above. We have to give 80’s GM credit where it’s due. The drastic and often “unattractive” GM down sizing in the 80’s had to be done, the fuel crisis and consumer demanded GM to take such drastic measures. People wanted performance / better fuel, electronics (80’s digital tech age) over homage paid to a successor model at the time!
Did this generation Riv have the same dash as the LeSabre?
Buddy of mine had a ’77 LeSabre two door while we were in college in the mid-late 80s. White vinyl roof over navy blue. I really liked that car — powerful, comfortable, really attractive.
Jim Grey
My beef with these U.S. 70’s models cars like this is that hated the “Casket” style door pull handles, and yards of super bogus fake looking wood trim plastered every where.
Comes off to gaudy and unrestrained and sloppy. Compare how U.S. cars of the time used wood trim versus the Euro sedans.
Yes they did, since 1968, the instrument panels were quite similar to those of other full size Buick models. The exceptions were the 1969-70 which continued to display the 1968 full size Buick dashboard (with a slightly different dashpad) and the 1971-72 Boattails that shared their instrument clusters with other Buick full size cars but they had a different dashpad on the passenger side. By 1973, they were more or less the same as other fullsize Buick models and that was until they switched to FWD in 1979. I always liked the dashboards on the 1977-78 Riv and other full size Buicks from the 1970s and early1980s.
The LXXV model didn’t have the woodgrain trim on the instrument panel.
I loved the stainless steel brush Trim.
Shows the value of an older car, a few more scratches isn’t going to keep it off the road. Then again, maybe the Camry is covered and will get repaired. More likely it will be scrapped and the value used on a new one.
You’d be surprised. There is a mid 90’s Civic sedan in my neighborhood that took a direct hit from a huge tree limb in a severe windstorm we had in June. Right down the center of the roof, dented it in very severely and broke several pieces of glass. The limb was heavy enough that the suspension was sitting all the way down on the stops with the limb resting on the roof. The car was kind of beater-y already so I thought it was done for. Nope–they beat the dent out of the roof, replaced the glass, and while it looks somewhat worse for the wear, that Civic is still in service.
When I was a little kid in the early 1960s there was an old 1950s pickup truck driving around our town with the top of the roof flattened. The story that was told about it was that the person who bought it found out that the truck was too tall to would not fit under his garage door, so he had his kids get their hammers and pound it down a couple of inches until it fit.
A purely logical and practical decision.
What a shame ~ this Buick looked to be in pretty good shape .
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I was hoping you’d post some ice storm photos ~ I left snow country 45 years ago and I still remember walking around after every ice storm marveling and the incredible natural beauty .
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-Nate
I had one experience with a ’77-’78 Riviera, and that car seemed to have 9 lives. I hope this once does too.
In the late 1990s, a friend of mine had one of these — white vinyl roof over bright red, with a white interior. Very distinctive car. He had moved from Chicago with that car, so it was heavily rusted by that time, but still, it got up and ran every morning.
At some point, he got a job overseas and had to sell the Riviera quickly. Unable to find a buyer, he took it to a junkyard one morning and got a few hundred bucks for it. I assumed that was the end of the Riv… not quite. A few months later, I saw that car driving around town. I’ve never known a car to be rescued from the junkyard, but that one sure was.
The junkyards in my area put at least some of the still running, serviceable cars on a small used car lot by the entry door to the yard. If they can get enough for them vs what they would expect to make in parts sales they try to sell them before putting them in the parts cars area. It’s possible that’s how your friends car was rescued.
That’s exactly how I rescued my ’66 Biscayne, my ’72 Pontiac Ventura, and my ’71 GMC Sprint. My past health issues, bad back, and aging parents haven’t done the cars any favors, but I’m still determined to bring them all back to thier former glory.
While this may not be considered a real Riviera since it is probably the closest to a badge engineered car the Riviera ever was, I’d still argue that this was a better car than the 1976 Riviera or the 1979 Riviera. I know if I had to own a Riv from the mid to late 70’s there’d be no doubt I’d choose a 77’78 with an Olds 403. I do agree that the 1977 Lesabre is a more attractive car, especially since I have always been a fan of cleaner designs with little gingerbread. I’d definitely take a LeSabre over a Riv, again I’ll skip the 301 Pontiac and 350 Buick for the 403 Olds though.
The 1979 Riviera was a great car, especially with the 350 V-8. The 4-wheel independent suspension alone made it a great handler, and the ride was tops as well. IMO far better than the dated 1978 version.
How was the 1978 dated, when it was based on the revolutionary 1977 B-body? Further, the B-body chassis lived until 1996, unlike the E-body which was dead after 1985. And it went on to live under the 1994-96 Impala SS, which was a great handling car for it’s size.
A 1977 Riviera with the Rally Ride and Handling package would have been a great handler for it’s day. I’d be very surprised if the nose heavy 1979 Riv would be able to out handle it. At the very least, I know I’d much prefer the more neutral handling of the RWD chassis. I am not saying the 1979 was a bad car, but in my opinion, the 1977-78 car based on the B-body chassis was a better overall car in terms of driving enjoyment. That said, it probably didn’t meet the ideals of what most customers expected the Riviera to be as well as the 1979 E-body did.
Having driven a 1978 LeSabre with a Buick 350, a 1979 Electra with an Olds 403, a 1980 Riviera S/Type Turbo and a 1984 convertible with the 4.1 V6, I have to say I much prefer how the earlier RWD cars handle to the FWD…
A friend of mine used to have a 1980 Riviera with the Olds 350 (the Buick 350 was still available on Buick full size models for the last time that year but wasn’t available on 1979-80 FWD Rivieras) and he really liked it.
He got rid of it when the 3 speed TH-325 started to slip.
The 77-78 is my second favorite Riviera after the ’68. I love the 63-65s as art objects but would feel like I was driving the Batmobile to own one.
To Bill’s point it’s a B-body 2-door from the first year. Yes the front is generic GM for the time but what a face! To diss it for that would be like dissing a Mercedes 280E for looking too much like an S-Class. The profile is the best looking of all the 2-doors save maybe the bent-window Caprice. I love the kicked up rear fender and well proportioned opera window. The rear with those inboard taillamps looks the most tapered, and attractive, of all the B-bodies.
I was not a fan of GM interiors after about ’68, except for the ’70 Camaro/Firebird and mid-70s Grand Prix. But what Buick did with their B- and C-bodies was tremendous. I loved the brushed metal, round gauges and precise markings.
Then there were the powertrains and chassis which like Bill says made this probably the best driving Riviera ever made. Add it all up and you have one hell of a car. I would love to own one.
We can agree to disagree, Bill. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. Dated in regards to the old rear wheel drive and conventional suspension setup. There was nothing like the ’79 E-bodies when they came out. They were very much ahead of their time. The Riviera even won MT COTY in 1979. GM had the tooling for so long that continuing making the B-body was more than likely very cost effective to them. Plus, I would imagine the popularity of the B-bodies as service vehicles made them keep them around too. I remember reading that GM thought customers would be looking for a more trim model with the looming increase in gas prices which never happened. The downsized E-bodies were a failure as a result. GM could have sold the existing E-bodies for many more years with a tweak here or there. Like I said, just my opinion.
John I fully agree that we have separate opinions and I am glad that you shared yours as I enjoy these discussions. I tend to have a strong bias towards RWD cars and to this day I still have a strong preference for the dynamics of a RWD vehicle. There is nothing on an 1979-85 E-body that would make me desire that car over any 77-90 B-body.
The independent suspension on an E-body isn’t going to make up for it’s poor weight distribution when it has a heavy V8 engine out front. IMO the B-body has superior chassis dynamics. I don’t think the E-body was “that” ahead of their time. I mean, realistically, a 1978 Toronado had a similar chassis design, engine and drive train packaging, front suspension design, the 1979 E-body was just a smaller version. The only real update was moving to independent rear suspension, which was hardly cutting edge for 1979 and quite frankly should have been their in 1966. Again, I am not saying these were bad cars, they were great for their time and purpose.., I just think the B-body was a better platform.
Sorry Tom I wrote John above it was a typo.
A 75th Anniversary Riviera vs. a nickel-a-dozen (inflation, you know!) Camry?
The ice storm gods chose well which one to squash.
On the other hand, in 1974 or so, I saw a Plymouth Gold Duster in a dealer’s used car lot. I recognized it as the same car that had a caved-in roof a few weeks earlier. Cars that have suffered from front or rear end crashes could still have intact roofs that could be salvaged, though I would think precise alignment with the doors could be tricky. At least the Duster had frameless windows and only two doors.
This exemplifies the problem of the brougham era. Had this used the Lesabre roof treatment sans diaper top it would probably be the best looking Riviera in a decade. The front is inoffensive enough, while the rear is a clear homage to the 63 treatment, and with the Lesabre roofline it would have had a similar roofline. But in this period, those puffy opera windowed landau tops connoted “luxury” and god forbid the flagship Buick doesn’t follow!
I feel bad for the owner of the Camry and hope they’re covered, so I feel bad my first reaction to seeing a Camry under the heavy end was a sigh of relief/mild chuckle.
The Riviera was a high-style car from 1962 to 1973, despite the cowcatcher front bumper fitted to the latter year. After that, they were nothing until 1995’s bold design, which was perhaps too curvaceous for tastes deadened by years of European and Japanese boxiness.
I’M GLAD THAT I OWN ONE.
i HOPE THAT MY RIV WILL HAVE A LONG LIFE TO GO…..
I doubt there will be a scratch on that Riviera. I’ve had bigger Christmas trees on the top of my cars and the vinyl roof will protect from any paint or body damage. The Ice Gods were not as kind to the ’97 Camry. It’s almost like they were trying to kill it and decided to drop a little branch on the Riv to make the whole thing look like an accident.
My memory of Oregon ice storms comes from when I lived in Corvallis in 1962. There was an ice storm in December that took out a great many trees that had been weakened by the famous October 12 windstorm. Between those two events I’d guess that a quarter of the trees in Corvallis bit it that winter.
Looking at that maroon Camry, it looks to me that the tree had almost come to a stop by the time it rested on the Camry. I don’t see any roof damage, and I’d say any damage to the hood and left front fender will be minor. If the tree had really hit the Camry the top would be smashed down to the beltline and the suspension would be completely bottomed out.
I was seven years old, living in SE Portland when the Columbus storm hit. The teachers sent us home early as the winds really began to blow strongly. No bus, just told to walk straight home and stay away from downed power lines. My older sister was in the 6th grade and we walked the 5 or 6 blocks together. I could hardly stand up, and well remember watching birds being blown backwards, their wings flapping like crazy. There were indeed power lines down, the trees were swaying and branches were all over the place.
Shortly after I got home, I watched a garage door fly and bounce down the street through our picture window. My brother said to stay away from the windows and closed the drapes. Later parts of the next door neighbors roof blew through the side picture window, shingles flew across the living room into the kitchen and flew into the wall, putting holes in the drywall.
By this time Dad had made it home from work, and told Mom the wind blew his stopped ’59 Cadillac into a gas pump as he tried to get gas. We went into the basement after that, and the power soon went out. There were french doors downstairs with a couch in front of them, they flew open and pushed the couch out of the way. Dad and brother got the doors shut and nailed, and we spent the night in front of the fireplace to stay warm.
The next day the neighborhood looked like a war zone. Our house got power back later in the day, the only house on the block to do so. Our neighbors were all using our kitchen and stove to cook, they had to wait 3 or more days for their power to come back on. We lost our roof in the storm, in addition to the window and door damage.
I got through the storm fine, but walked into the middle of a “shingle fight” between the older kids a couple of days later and got hit in the head with a shingle, blood was everywhere and my parents drove me the hospital to get my head stitched up.
I’ll never forget that storm.
I was 11 when the storm hit and your recollections almost mirror mine, except no broken windows. Only we had a wood stove in the basement that had come out of my grandparent’s farm house. The power went out when my mom was coking dinner, we spent the night in the basement but at least we had hot food because she fired up the wood stove and finished dinner.
The big ice storms of the late 70’s were bad ones also.
Missed out on the ice storms as parents moved to SoCal in ’67. But have heard the stories of how bad they were.
Having offended John C in the earlier Sunbird thread, perhaps I’ll make amends by saying that I really liked those Rivieras… they were the kind of car that GM did very well, and hopefully are headed towards making again. I feel bad when I see that tree on it.
The Camry? While I admire their mechanical reliability (and durability), seeing it smashed by a tree evokes the same emotional response as when a microwave oven burns out:
“Too bad; how much does another one cost to replace it? Any color will do.”
It’s funny you say that because my daily driver is a 2001 Camry (that I bought as a transportation appliance) but after a few years of ownership, I can say I now enjoy it as it’s very dependable and it does everything fine.
Maybe that’s because it doesn’t take much to entertain me and have to admit I also enjoy and collect vintage appliances (and I have quite a few vintage microwave ovens!). Here’s one you don’t see often but I also have a few Amana Radarange and GM Frigidaire Amana clones
I used to have a late 1970s Kenmore microwave (that proudly proclaimed it was “Solid State”). It was quite a conversation piece — folks who came to my home would often ask if it worked, and then wanted a demonstration. I figured it would last forever, however…
There was one problem with it. It was huge. I think you could microwave a turkey in there, if you had the urge to. Anyway, at one point, I moved into an apartment where it wouldn’t fit on the kitchen counter, so I had to give it away. I still appreciate old microwaves though — glad to see you’ve got a few.
The first microwave my parents had was a Kenmore “Solid State” made by Sanyo from 1984.
The first microwaves with solid state controls and a touch-sensitive glass control panel were Amana Touchmatics from the 1970s. I have a 1977 Touchmatic II and similar ones that were labeled as GM Frigidaire. I also have an early Amana Radarange from 1969 and the Tappan I posted above is from 1971. The 1969 Radarange doesn’t even have a glass in it’s door. Just a perforated grille. You can hear things cooking through the door! Unlike some kids who tried that, I wouldn’t be tempted to defeat the safety switch and put my head in that oven while it’s cooking even if it has low power by today’s standards!
Here I heated the same quantity of water in the 1969 Amana and the 1978 Frigidaire to see if the slightly more powerful magnetron in the 1978 made a difference. As you can see, it doesn’t take much to entertain me when I’m bored!
https://youtu.be/LtMSgURrXW0
Hi Phil, I Love collecting Vintage Microwaves myself. I have a 1977 Sharp browning microwave and an Amanda RR-10A Radarange. Do you by chance have a 1978 Sharp Carousel R9400? I would love to get my hands on one and pay for it.
I love vintage microwaves too! I have a RR10A 1979 Radarang and a 1976 Sharp Carousel stainless steel interior. I’d love to get my hands on the R-9400, as seen in my picture here
Todd
I have one! I just bought it for $10. Do by chance have a manual for it?
I completely forgot all of these Rivieras came with a landau roof treatment. I hope this one keeps on going.
Wonder why Eugene got an ice storm while Portland mainly got snow? I wish y’all a speedy and fast recovery. Surprised the Riviera did not suffer any broken windows or dents.
Because it was colder up in Portland. It was exactly 32 degrees here, so it rained all day but it froze on the trees and bushes. But the ground/pavement wasn’t cold enough for it to freeze there, so the roads mostly weren’t icy. Surreal.
I always forget about these. I am having a hard time trying to decide which one I like better. The LeSabre 2 door is very nicely done, but the Riv is not bad either. Actually, I think that the Riviera has a much nicer butt than the LeSabre does, which I always considered the LeSabre’s weakest angle.
I would really like to see the Riv “naked”, without the vinyl roof. I am curious how much change was made to the C pillar – was it an entirely different stamping under the vinyl? Or did they mate a new lower quarter to the LeSabre C pillar and cover it with padding and vinyl? Given GM’s resources at the time, I would guess the former.
This 1978 riviera LXXV (resides in the netherlands) doesn’t have the vinyl roof and never had told the owner when I ask about it.
The vinyl roof was an option; two different types were available, one more expensive than the other. So does that mean the “opera window” really isn’t?
My opinion on “opera windows” is that they should be porthole shaped or oval, and not contribute to the drivers visibility.
I think that the Electra coupe is best looking of the three big Buick coupes.
A long padded vinyl top was used on LXXV with oval “”R””badge (no coach lamp), and offered only in black.
On other rivieras a long vinyl top was available without the frenched backlight (no chrome molding surround).
At last a padded vinyl landou top with frenched backlight and coach lamp was the most expensive option.The coach lamp has a bulb ,So not a electroluminicent type.
I think I like the one you have pictured without a vinyl roof.
It has a sort of clean look without a vinyl roof, but personally I like them with a vinyl roof.
As you can see it doesn’t have the large side window of a LeSabre coupe. That would be nice I think……
Always interesting to see a first-gen B-Body with the two-tone revival GM really went in for in the late 70s. Those shade on shade colors with the magic delineation tape that blended one into the other were very common when I was growing up, but really seemed to die once the 80s rolled along. AMC and Chrysler also played along, but aside from Lincoln, Ford seemed to resist the trend, as far as I can remember.
I’m not sure for how long, but old school two-toning was definitely available into the 70s -one of my neighbors had a ’75 Chevelle sedan with white painted roof over a light green body. I believe that style was once popular in the pre-air conditioned South.
My grandma had a 69 Catalina, silver with a black painted roof. It was an oddball in 1969. I know that I have seen a handful of cars with contrasting painted roofs from the 70s, but certainly very few of them.
I liked these Rivs and always thought they were pretty nice, and much nicer than the donor LeSabre coupe. I liked their styling, and they did come with 4-wheel disc brakes. Consumer Guide New Cars ’78 magazine gave a very positive review. It’s a pity they’ve been mostly forgotten nowadays.
Be careful with the ax, Eugene.
Am I right in saying that an example of the earlier ‘boat tail’ Riviera makes an appearance in the film ‘The Ice Storm’?
Surely no coincidence…
One less Camry clogging up the roads. I call that a win.
I once had a 77 Riviera as a daily driver. One of the best cars that I’ve ever had. Reliable, quiet, comfortable and well equipped. Buick 350 smooth, but with 155 hp, no racer actually. My 67 Riviera has a lot more power.
Mine has the V8 6.6L 403, 185 HP, from Oldsmobile.
smooth, and enough power to haul a 1900 kg car.
I guess that would have been a better choice. But the engine never struggled, and with 2:41 (?) in the rear axle it was like having OverDrive. Very quiet and comfortable.
If needed the 403 is very responsif in case when accelleration is needed in some cases.The infrastructure and highways subways townships and all in the Netherlands( where I live is much more different as in the USA.
The quality of the roads is very good however.
This riviera is certainly build for cruising and relaxing in comfort ….but If needed it can be driving sharp and fast due the stiffer suspension and torsionbars and stabilizers.
My riv has 2 front disc brakes ,but their are with 4 disc brakes .But it will stop very good with the 2 disc 2 drums.