3 DIRT Cheap Modern Classics To Buy Right NOW : Buy or Bust Ep.1 

I actually love this new series. You guys prove that you don't have to pay big money for a cool vehicle. Keep it going guys.

FYI, As a prior owner, the radio volume has the "tactile' feel because it's a motorized knob. When you use the steering wheel radio controls the volume knob actually moves. The headlight adj is for how long the lights stay on after you shut the car off not the sensitivity..on most GM cars it was called Twilight Sentinal

My Mom had a 96 Riviera my son bought from her in 2012 when he was working the oil fields in west Texas. He drove that car back and forth from San Antonio to Midland Texas which is 323 miles oneway for 5 years oil changes and shocks several times (west Texas roads rough to say the least) I'm sure that car had 350,000 very rough miles before it gave up the ghost

Rivera = 2-door Oldsmobile Aurora, which is not damning with faint praise. The Olds' 4.0L V8 was smoother, but the blown 3.8 is more reliable. $3,000 is not a terrible price, and maybe another $1000 to get it perfect. Not a bad deal at all.

The G body is the Riviera,Aurora,Seville and Park Ave.The Monte Carlo is a W body.

I prefer Ford Thunderbirds and Lincoln Mark 7 and 8. They are rear wheel drive. Actually Mercury Cougars are kind of cool too.

That car is way cool. Amazing design inside and out. The Riviera and the Oldsmobile Aurora were designs ahead of their time.

These Buick Rivieras have NOTHING to do with the W body Monte Carlo at all. The G body was all-new in 95, and was shared with the then new Oldsmobile Aurora. Just setting the record straight. This is a great choice. I’d drive it in a minute. At the right speed, that supercharger whine will charm you over.

I had a customer with one with a burgundy exterior and tan interior. I loved that car, I tried to buy it seriously times. The 3800 was one of the best V6's GM ever made. I had several.

Owned a 95 Riv. Good highway cruiser. 30 mpg hiway. Huge trunk.

My mom had a 95 Supercharged Riv that I took my license test in. I LOVE that car. It was just fast enough with just enough of a supercharger whine but it was also as comfortable as anything. And you're right those gauges are killer!

I bought a 1995 Riviera from the orignal owner. It had every option available. The color was Adriatic Blue which is the color of the one you are auctioning . The build date was August 4, 1994. There was no 1994 Riviera as it was introduced for 1995. It was one of the best cars i have ever owned.

Lincoln mk8 has a 4v cobra engine, with rear wheel drive. Irs rear suspension. Sleepers with comfort

IT CAN'T TOUCH LEXUS, YOU BUFFOON👺👺👺

Had a 98 riviera with the ol m90. Did a pulley drop, better plugs, downpipe, intake for some loud whine. It moved pretty well. I got it at 130k miles, died at 300k. And yes the original 4t65hd

My grandpa bought a year old 96 Riviera in that same interior and exterior color. He had just bought an electroplating machine and went crazy gold plating all the exterior trim bits. He had a stroke in 1999 and after recovering, decided to buy a VW New Beetle, so my parents got the Riv. I took that car to my Senior Prom. It was a torque monster and I loves driving that big, floaty SOB. Thanks for bring back some good memories!

I'd love to know how many 8th gen Rivieras are left. I doubt it's much more than 5000 and most will be used up as poor people daily drivers over the next few years. It's going to end up being a very rare car.

The 90s were the best time for car enthusiasts. You had the choice between everything you can dream of. Every car company offered nearly every type of car

I miss the 90s cars. I love love this series guys, great work!

I had a 98 Riv with 38k miles, most comfortable car I have ever owned. When I sold it in the Rocky Mountain news want ads, remember those, I had 24 voicemails in the first 3 hours.

I think the rivera is a stunning personal luxury car thats both reliable and inexpensive to maintain. Smart buy that looks like a concept show-car for the street,

I had a 96 bought in 98 it ran low 15s at Pomona traded it in 2016. The Riv had 206k miles and still kicked ass. They were fast for the time and almost 40k new.

Living through the 90s...and recalling the GM product lines....Lumina and Monte Carlo were based on the GM10/W body platform. The Monte Carlo replaced the Lumina coupe in 1995. This G body isn't related to the A/G body that underpinned the 1978 to 1988 rear drivers which included the Monte Carlo. This new G Body that underpinned the Riviera was related to the Olds Aurora and more distantly to the Cadillac Seville. I looked at one that was for sale that was in perfect condition and would have been worth preserving...but opted not to get it since I needed to get a car that would be practical for the younger driver.

i have a 2003 bonneville SSEi, it has a few basic mods... for a big car she can move along. running a 3.6" pulley and supporting mods. there arent many left anymore. i like the car so much i refuse to drive in the winter

How about a 2005 Buick Ultra Park Ave. With with port holes and V6 super charger? It's a very comfortable riding car.🤔

This Riviera was originally a GM showcar concept put into production with most of the vision intact. I agree this will be a classic. Even though materials, fit and finish of all American cars between 1973 and 2000 are suspect, those that can say : I remember " will show interest.

Great format. Brendan is a good addition to the team.

Beware of what's underneath the car! Depending on what state there's a thing called rust! Check your chackles and springs and frame!

That Buick had Michelin tires on it. Somebody really loved their old car and took care of it. Michelin tires are a very good indicator the oil was always changed on time and the owner spent the $$$ to fix things when they broke/wore out. Also I like the weird styling, especially that knife edge detail on the front and rear fenders.

I had a 96, my absolute favorite car !!! Seats were like butter!!

That car shared its platform with the olds aurora not the Monte Carlo.

The 90's Buick and Pontiac had great engines..my dad had a 95 regal and a 95 GRAND AM GT..I think they both had the same engine..btw I like how u guys started adding more channels like the classics channel

90s cars really are the best. yeah they had all the crappy plastic but they had style and comfort before all the tech was jammed into cars that we don't need or want but have to buy that drives the car prices thru the roof. I bet 25 years from now 2022 models will not hold up so well because all the tech crap broke and no replacement parts.

Worked for Enterprise from 97-98. The Riviera was so much fun to drive

Nothing sluggish about how these Rivera’s performed or handled, their styling is timeless!

They missed some of the best features on the Riviera. The two driver feature. Driver one presses the key fob the seat drops all the way down and back when you close the door the seat goes to your setting. Same for a driver two And an exit button on the armrest making the seat go all the way back for easy exit. Built in programmable three garage door opener function. My 96 had the upgraded sound system and it was really good. Metal flake red with tan leather interior.

I had a 1998 Park ave. And I absolutely loved it! My only complaint is the speed limiter cut in like getting kicked in the face at a whole whapping 105 mph, while still strongly accelerating 🤣

those rivieras were great looking cars.

Love the new series . . . . . . didn't TFL have an ML for an off-road series that hmmmm seized up? Transfer case, Bingo! Tommy remembers!

My brother had an 82' Riviera in the 90s. Buick Rivieras n Oldsmobile Tornado's ...I remember lots of em on the road yrs ago

Those Rivs were awesome in their day. Still nice looking honestly. That Supercharged 3.8 was a legit monster back then too.

Love this series idea! I find myself wanting to be a part of your conversations. Brendan is an amazing addition to the channel.

Really enjoyed this episode! And as a previous ‘05 ML500 owner, I agree with the recommendation of the W163, if you can find one that’s been properly maintained!

The Lincoln Mark VIII had a 270 hp engine in “regular “ trim and 290 in LSC trim. Plus it had at the time the most expensive HID headlamps and super bright rear lights / rear light bar.

Good find! Loving these videos. Another good one is the 90s Lumina Z34 with the 3.4 DOHC. My dad had one that had a cell phone in it. Took it to the drag strip when I was in high school.

The Mark VIii had the 32v 4.6L V8. It was 280hp and far superior to the competition of the day

I think the Aurora would be a good choice as well as a supercharged t-bird/Cougar.... Especially if it is a 5 speed. First gen Taurus SHO.

I have a 96 Riviera. It needed some TLC when I bought it. Everytime I think I should sell it, I drive it and I want to keep it! Luv the car.

The Riviera looks like a catfish from the front. Lexus SC all day every day for me.

Absolutely agree. You made me appreciate the Buck.

Love the series, definitely dont see the appeal in the merc tho. My friend has one. It overheated smelled like crayons and was always getting into troubles (not to mention the switches were basically falling out of the door) Definitely not my choice, but the rivera was cool!

I love those Rivieras from that period.

*Alabama Dumpster* and they got that name because they was extremely unreliable.. especially after 100k miles. 🤣

Of these three cars, the Mercedes is a hard pass. I don’t care how good it might be, I just flat out don’t want it. The Mazda Speed 3 is really cool and a very fun little rocket with one of the better interiors of the period. In my opinion, these were much better than they were given credit for. This car easily earned the ‘Zoom Zoom’ advertising moniker from the time. But this one was over priced. But still a very nice car. But it’s the Buick Riviera for me going away. It looks good, has a very good interior, has a good supercharged motor under the hood, and you could easily bump the hp by 25 to 35 with just a pulley change. These cars were the blue hair hot rods. And I have always liked the style and look of this generation of Riviera. This is a real Buick in every sense on the brand. It’s just a flat out cool car. Buick for the win.

What's a Buick Riv ? Lexus made a SC 400 AND a SC 300 Spanky ! Not the best looking coupe ever made. Add to that the GM expertise for cheap and I would keep looking !!

Had a Civic that had to go in for warranty work in 97. I got a Riviera as a rental cause out of compact cars. After 2 weeks in Riviera I didn't wanna go back to the civic.

I had two rivieras a 98 sc and a 97 na definitely need to get a supercharged one mine lasted 350k before the engine blew due to dex-kill related problems but those cars are dead reliable and i would absolutely buy one for 3k again, also a couple of extra quirks about the car, the battery is underneath the rear seats if you buy one of these CHECK IT theres a small vent tube that HAS to be connected to the battery otherwise you risk poisoning yourself and dying from the battery fumes, the water pumps especially on the older ones go out occasionally you have to loosen the motor mounts to get them off, the superchargers on these are very desirable as they can be modded to make a pretty decent boost number, the rear seats dont fold down but there is (sometimes) a microscopic pass through that you can barely fit your arm through, theres a couple other things but for the most part these are great cars overall especially if you want a nice sound system) thanks for checking out these cool cars guys

Three great options; two points on the Riv', seats were designed by orthopaedic doctors and on a ride and drive, I was on when she was introduced, the Riv' holds its own against a rwd Mark vi and Lexus on a stadium test track. Wish they could be found over here in the rusty belt. Those rides were clean. Thanks for your knowledge on the Benz & Mazda.

I had a 1992 Olds Touring Sedan with the supercharged 3800. Loved that car but rust got the best of it. On 93 octane, that big old car got 34 mpg! It also had air ride suspension which floated you down the highway. Only 1800 Touring Sedans made that year but I don't know how many were 'blown.' The Park Avenue also had a supercharged model.

Another great deal out there now is the C4 Corvette, especially the 1994-1996 models.

90's man: Build a better bean. 2010's man: Build a better rubicks cube.

This is NOT based on the Monte Carlo! The monte was on the W platform with the Lumina

Great series!!! Keep it coming!

Nice, but not quite competition with the mentioned Mark VIII 1993-98. Rear wheel drive. Independent front & rear suspension. 32 valve Dual Over Head Cam “Intech” 4.6 L V-8. 290hp ( the engine that would soon be powering the Mustang Cobra.)

The Mazdaspeed is a cool car, but that one at the auction was one to run away from. Aside from the issues you found, it had an obvious repaint on the passenger side suggesting a past accident.

Love that Buick,that is one of the best engines gm made its bulletproof.

4:30...that adjustment is for how long your headlights stay on after you shut the car off...not darkness it comes on or anything else...typical mid-90's GM twilight sentinel I believe...FYI

I have a 97 park Avenue 4 door, just turned 580,000 last week. hauls me butt to work everyday. just wont die.

How about a Lincoln Mark Vii LSC, an Oldsmobile Aurora, and lets say a Dodge Intrepid ES.

I recently just got rid of my 2003 Buick LeSabre and let me tell you, even without the supercharger the 3800's drive like an absolute dream. I wish there were more modern vehicles like the Rivera and LeSabre without spending a ton of money because they really were the best to cruise around in and enjoy the trip.

I ended up with a dirt cheap 2001 regal( non supercharged) for 100$.......they had used it as a dog pen for a few months, so the interior was completely eaten. Even the leather on the steering wheel was gone. But I put a battery in it, and it fired instantly. I still have the 3.8 and automatic.

My uncle Frankie had both a '89 and a '95 Riv and he loved them to pieces.

Eek!. No one can say Mercedes Benz ML series AND use the word "reliable ". They were junk.

fun video and nice way to show people options not thought about

Love the looks of the Riviera

So we're just gonna ignore the red c4 corvette literally 10 feet away? 🤦‍♂️

I like it. It's funny when these cars came out I did not like them, typical GM 90's garbage quality interiors but now a days I like them.

Modern classic? Seriously? Go back to school. What a disappointment

I've had two '98 Rivieras with the supercharged 3800 engines. Love the body design. The chassis and suspension . . . not so much. They never made me feel like I was sitting in a fighter jet, and I do have a basis for comparison w/ 20 years flying supersonic jets. With the Riviera, you feel like you are sitting in a high-end, but somewhat overweight, sport coupe.

In the 1990s, I worked with someone who bought a brand new Riviera and a new house in the same year. When he got his first outrageous property tax bill (in DuPage County, Illinois), he traded the Riviera for a Geo Tracker!

I had a 97 Riv in that exact color, but I had a cammed L32 with a bunch of other mods that made it to about 400HP. Miss that car.

i dont mind paying 3grand for that riviera, body is beautiful

Buick Riviera is always had that really unique center console cool dash looking. always unique.

They make performance parts for the 3800 series engines.

Tommy knows the market and the industry well. 5 years ago you were just thinking about being in videos, now dominating most channels. Amazing. Keep it up Tommy.

Pully and a tune that Riviera will hurt a lot of feelings

Now that the Buick-induced dry heaves have subsided I have to say I am surprised by a lot in this video. First, that 'good' cars can be bought so cheaply, at least at auction (save for the Mazda). The Riviera is a very nice example of that car, I just get hives looking at that mid-90s interior and all the horrible design decisions it represents. The ML430 is the coolest car there, and for 3 G's, that's the buy of the video. Put some good ATs on that sucker, rip out the back seats and you have a cheap off-roader you can sleep in to boot! Anyway, keep up the good work fellas, I like the vids.

kool series, def. keep it going ... makes me relive my youth days lmao ... I had one of these for a bit and honestly it was a fun sleeper, not much by todays standards but back in the 90's this thing was a pretty quick n soft which is what I loved about old Buicks lol

MS3 was never an sti competitor. It was always a wrx or gti competitor. Would be a good purchase though

my teacher has one of these it was cool a 96 Riviera its cool

The ML is a money pit. Any Mercedes is. After the warranty expires, BOOM they fall apart, which is a total gift to the dealers as thats how they really make their money, on repairs. Frequent repairs. The Rivera was an improvement over the last model but that interior looks like it was designed by Rubber Maid. A trash can has more detail and opulence. This was the last version of what was once ( long ago ) a fine cutting edge concept. The Mazda Speed 3… those got beat to death. I’d not trust it knowing how they got rode hard and proverbially put away wet.

The rarest version is the " Silver Arrow" Edition these the ones to get.

Collectibles? It takes more than just being old to be collectable.

I woulda payed 3k....been looking for a car for months. 😩

Not sure if it’s true in all regions but around here there’s an age requirement for owning a Buick. Usually well into retirement. In fact if you see a younger person driving one all bets are they inherited the car 😂 Generally speaking, again in this area, Buicks are driven well under the speed limit and not far from home, which speaks to the good condition of most Buicks. Seriously tho this is a nice Riv. Very well cared for Are you guys going to actually buy some of these and road trip them ?🤔

Rented a 2000 Buick Century years ago and enjoyed how smooth the ride was. Would be a great family car if it was 2 or 3 kids.

Great new series! I'll definitely keep watching! Go Brendan!

Super charged Rivera! Now that is a rare collectable!

I see your Mercedes ML and raise you a loaded Lexus RX300.

The car bubble has has burst and I hear a lot of those cars are not catching a bid. Like that Mazda that didn’t sell. The Banks will be unloading a lot of cars in coming months a lot cheaper than these unrealistic prices . Great series and Brendan has it going on with that Viking beard lol.