My mom had one of these. I could swear it was a Roadmaster not a Special, but I'm certain it was this model. It was baby blue on the body and white on the top. It was a rolling tank and my dad could tune it by ear. So happy to see you restore this. Thank you!
When the interior is addressed, a repaint with a red and white scheme would look fantastic. All red doesn't look classy. Gotta find a set of four original wheel covers too.@@StateFun
Great fun to watch! Thank you. The read roof line on this car is beautiful. Cadillac and Oldsmobile had similar rear roof lines. Great design year for GM.
THANK YOU SIR MY SON MAX AND I LIKE YOU CAME BACK!!! YA! YA!!!!! LET'S SEE THE VIDEO!!! LIKE THIS BUICK , WE HAVE A 1978 BUICK SKYLARK ,,RACER DRAG STRIPPPPP.. GREAT BUICK ,, PART 3 THANK'S...
Just watched your video on the nice ole red Buick. Great job on getting her up and moving again. I hope you keep and make her hole again. I love Buicks I drive a 1992 Buick Roadmaster and shes still solid no rust or rott.anf runs great.
This is a great old Buick! Having had experience with several of this vintage,('54,'55, '56) I can make a few suggestions and observations. Fixing the fuel pump is a great idea, but installing an electric fuel pump can save you a lot of problems. These were really prone to vapor lock, and an electric will prevent that. Also, you don't have to overuse the starter to pump gas up to the carb. Be sure to flush the radiator, as overheating due to corrosion and just getting crud in the radiator is very common. Unless you have an entire rebuild on the dynaflow, you can count on it leaking significantly. Put brake fluid in with the transmission fluid and that will soften the seals and help somewhat. Don't worry about the tranny shifting, because it won't! Dynaflows were made to change ratios with no shift at all. If you want to use the lo range on starting, you will get away a little quicker...shift up at 10-15 mph. In drive these were notoriously slow on getaway. By the sound of the engine you have a winner! Just looking at it, I can ascertain that someone did a cleanup and paint job a few years back...judging from the whitewalls and the remains of the clearcoat. I agree with those who recommend staying with the original color code, and from what I know about senior series Buicks from this period, they were not very often two toned, maybe a different color on the top. Try to stay as close to original on the interior, too, as the value of the car will plummet if it is changed radically. Get it in a garage asap, and have fun with this gorgeous example of a middle fifties big Buick!
It's good to know the leaking dynaflow is normal! Definitely will add some brake fluid then. Still learning about these things... Thanks for the comment and information
A Roadmaster suppose to have a Stromberg 4 Barrel. The intake was probably changed. For future reference, submerge in lemon juice and boil for at least 20. Add lemon juice as necessary to keep it submerged. Only boil brass, copper, aluminum. No plastic or rubber. OUTSTANDING! Nothing like the old Buick motors. I love the car, I grew up with a Roadmaster just like that one in my neighborhood. Those Buicks have what’s called a spline seal to keep the transmission fluid from going into the rear end because it has a closed drive line. Bobs Automobilia in California for all the parts you’ll need The 55 Buick had a vertical pitch transmission. It was the first year for a passing gear. One of my Brothers had a 55 Buick Super 2Dr Riviera
I have a 54 Super 2 dr. Riviera that I've been working on on and off for 4 years now. Completely redone my brakes including replacing all the lines with stainless steel lines, new cylinders, springs , shoes, etc. Sandblasted the interior and am ready to weld in some new panels. I sanded and painted the roof but plan on leaving the rest of the patina for now. It's more important to get it running now. The engine in it was blown and it came with another disassembled 322. Originally was going to rebuild one but that is 2 grand (3-7000 for a complete rebuild) just for parts. Bought a low mileage 73 455 and C10 trailing arms and some other pieces to swap that in instead. Problem is I'm 67 and this stuff is getting harder to to do and friends are dropping like flies when you get my age. I either need to sell everything or pay someone to finish or help finish it. Like to be driving this thing or one like it before I die.
Had a '55 Special in '68 for a few years, nailhead v8, such a nice running car, and it had rear passenger floor heat, in Minnesota, that was awesome! But the trans eventually developed a shifting problem, and sold it. It was a baby blue, really sweet 👍👍.
I have a 56 Buick Special I have owned for 37 years. It gets driven every summer. It uses the'56 version of the same 322 nailhead V8 that is in your car.
@@zekecorder8226 1955 was the first year that the 322 was used across all models. The Special has a lower compression ratio and uses a two barrel carburetor. The others all use a 4 barrel and slighly higher compression.
Thanks! It was a busy year moving into a house. I've been working on the floor pan replacements as I have time between house projects, but it's been quite slow moving. I hope to get back into the roll sometime this year!
Forget the "patina" craze. Find out from the body tag the original colors for this car and have it repainted the original colors. The info is available on the internet on a number of old Buick sites. It may have been a two-tone or maybe even a three-tone paint job. It would look stunning!
Knock the surface rust off, clear coat it, and work on the interior. Love the aged look. And one of your statements sounds like you may be considering passing it on to the next guy for any major exterior work. I'd never let it go if I were you. Replace the blue truck theme with a red(ish) Buick sedan theme.
Great job my friend! Sounds smooth. I always thought the super had a 4bbl.Was the engine changed? Please keep it original, paint, upholstery etc. You'll have a winner for sure. GOD BLESS YOU. HE HAS a beautiful plan for your life!!!
Good evening. The transmission in the 1955 Buick was a Dynaflow, with a variable pitch achieved by pressing the accelerator pedal all the way. This would activate the variable pitch feature (of which I cannot explain anything, I am referring to my memory with a 1955 Super that my parents had, identical to the one in your video, different color). You will not experience shifts in your Buick (like in a modern car first, second, third etc). This was purely automatic with no shifts. Our 1962 LeSabre was like this also. No shifts, variable pitch for additional acceleration upon pressing the accelaretor pedal all the way. I look forward to your next vdeo on this Buick.
That's a beautiful Buick! I have a '51 Roadmaster in about the same condition. I'm going the patina route on my car as there is no way I can afford to have her repainted! I was totally surprised how much better she looked just by doing a thorough clean up of the paint and chrome! My Buick has the big straight Eight and it runs like a Swiss watch, but the Dynaflow leaks tranny fluid pretty good so I have to keep a pan under it. Needs a new torque ball seal, which I have, but am not looking forward to replacing it!! Good luck with your car, hope to see more of it!
That Buick Dynaflow will leak. They almost always do. The good news is that they are tough. Fill it full of fluid and it should work fine. However a Dynaflow does not shift. It does have a low gear, but it will only shift out of low when you put it in drive. Instead of a series of clutches a Dynaflow uses a variable vane torque converter.
Back in the early 70's my dad had an old Buick like that 2 toned white on blue I was just a child but I remember that car mainly because a group of flower children showed up one summer day and made a deal with him for the rear end of the car the car was just sitting at that time and my dad had no interest in it anymore but I thought it was a good looking car myself but who listens to kids under the age of 10 . But anyway I hope you get it all fixed up because it would be one nice classic.
Blue would be awesome, but I think changing the color is outside my wheelhouse! That would require door jambs, interior paint, etc that I don't have the skill to prep properly!
I wish our videos looked and sounded as nice as yours. What camera do you use? From the shadows it looks like a GoPro? Any mics? Or is it the built-in mic for sound? Thanks in advance!
Got a GoPro 9 for most of the audio. Some comes from a GoPro 8. No modifications as of now, but we may add the media mod and a dead cat to help with wind noise at times. Sometimes we have to brighten the footage in editing.
Ànd also check the if the radio works good and if it doesn't work it best to replace a radio valve or a vibrater and check capacitor (s ) and speaker transformer? Ok see ya .
Thanks man!! That car is a real gem!! It COULD be painted, but the patina look kinda shows she's been around 68 years and still kickin it.....Incredible find! So, ya got an Airstream in the deal?? Would love to see ya pullin that down the road in a 55!! Talk about Nostalgia!!!
@@StateFun I'll try to help you find out . If its a dynaflow , it will not shift at all . Its just a fluid coupling ! Like an old time CVT transmission. Great to see an old car that's not a Ford or Chevy coming back to life !
@@StateFun Well it looks like I answered my own question. It is a Dynaflo. They had a multistage converter and 2 fluid turbines . And there is a planetary inside that does give 2 speeds forward. When you get it running better and can actually drive it, you will see how unique it really is . 😊🌵
@@zonie1953 yeah, that's what I thought. It doesn't seem to shift when in drive, but I can definitely tell a difference when I throw it down to low. Seems to push harder against the brakes.
I'm honestly not a welder, which will be extremely obvious when I try welding the floor pans in. Thanks for the offer though, I'll keep you in mind when I'm ready to buy a welder!
@@arccaptain-weld I've been doing some research and think it might actually be a good time to upgrade to a better more user friendly unit. I sent you an email, hope to hear from you soon!
Thanks for the comment. I can't make up my mind! I'm thinking I'll do some shine juice to see what it's like now and then eventually end up painting it lol
