The Electra was Buick’s top-of-the-line automobile from 1959 to 1990. And the 225 was the cream of the crop, measuring in at so many inches (just shy of 19 feet). The second generation was in production from 1961 to 1964, which includes the seller’s 1962 4-door hardtop sedan. This looks like a beautiful survivor-quality vehicle with an unbelievable 17,000 miles (how does this happen?). With no known ills, this big Buick is in Olympia, Washington, and is available here on craigslist for $12,800, for less than the used price back in the day adjusted for inflation. Another Left Coast tip from Curvette!
These big cars were powered by Buick’s 401 cubic inch “Nailhead” V8, which was rated at 325 horsepower. That engine was in the mix from 1959 to 1966, powering many of Buick’s full-size automobiles. The styling of the 2nd gen Electras differed some from year to year, and I found the ‘62s to be the most attractive of the lot. The GM division produced nearly 62,500 copies of the Electra that year, with 27% of them being the same body style as the seller’s survivor.
Surely there’s a story behind this 64-year-old luxury cruiser, but we don’t know what it is. How does a fancy car like this only see 265 miles per year on average? That adds up to nice white paint (that’s a repaint) and factory upholstery that looks like it has hardly been used. The seller rattles off a long list of everything that works as it should on this large ride. It’s well-equipped but was not ordered with power windows or factory air conditioning.
We do get out of the seller that the engine is numbers matching, so we assume the same applies to the 3-speed automatic transmission. The car pilots down the road smoothly and without a care in the world. If this auto needs anything, it’s not apparent why it may be. If you’re looking for a big vintage car to carry folks around in style, could this deuce-and-a-quarter be the one?
Curvette for the win. Very nice find.
Wonder how much it would cost to add a/c to this gorgeous ride?
@larry darrell… with all that glass and volume, it would take the highest capacity one avail… dunno if any such is avail from the retro air suppliers. Part of the problem is getting enough vents under the dash…. Factory air was designed with enough vents to reach the back seat. Freeze you out…
My friends parents ordered the same car in Teal Mist… light turquoise with silver grey upholstery in the same weave. Very pretty car… we were 12…. Things were good… It was a very different time…
this deuce looks clean as pin. would be nice to see proof of miles other than an odometer pic. i know 1 thing 45 yrs as a repair tech and have never heard of Arizonian tires. i like it. price seems fair for what’s presented.
VERY well-preserved. But a huge 4-door hdtp Electra w/ crank windows?
Very nice car for what you get. The reason the mileage might be so low is that maybe this car was parked at someone’s summer home. Back when I was a boy, a lot of the upper middle class folks could actually afford a summer home if they played their
cards right. Right after the kids got out of school, a lot of these folks would either take a train or a plane to the town their home was located, take a taxi to the local gas station and pick up their
summer driver that was stored and well maintained by the owner
of the station or one of his helpers. Then, you stay there for
the entire summer. That was usually from late May to just after
Labor Day. And if all went well, you beat the rat race for oh, just about 3 months I’d say. And when summer was over, you took
your summer driver back to the local gas station where it was stored and maintained till next year. Sadly though, those times are gone now, but not all of the cars are. Every once in a while,
you’ll see one pop up here or on
E bay. Got to spend a summer with a buddy of mine at his parent’s summer place with them. It was like you went off to
summer camp for 3 months. And
that’s what they did. My buddy’s
family would fly up to Wisconsin
in a DC 3 they bought off my uncle John, land at the airport where their ’60 Mercury Monterey
was waiting for them. Talk about
fun?!! Hunting, fishing, hiking, camping, you name it and it was there for you to do. They even had a dance in town to celebrate
all the summer visitors that came
there. Got my share of boating,
swimming, hiking and fishing that
summer too. I was 12, maybe 13
then and that summer is one I’ll
never forget. As for this car, I’d love to have it. Until I see documents that this was someone’s summer driver, I’m gonna say that it’s a very nice 112
K car that’s been well treated and
well preserved. And yes, I’d really
rather have a Buick–especlally this one!
… a DC3 ? WOW… the fuel would pay for renting a new car all summer !… Anyway, glad your friends’ father did well… sounds like they did it right…
good for all of you… Who flew the plane… the dad or a pilot ? Please elaborate without revealing anything personal… It’s fun to hear about people like that…
We are the same age and I had a friend like that too…. it was great !
In thinking about it, JFK was president then and there were lots of pictures of him at Hyannis Port or elsewhere. If you looked in the background, often there was a new Olds or Buick station wagon.. and it makes sense… hauling guests and their stuff out to the place.
Choice ride – BUY IT …
Three speed automatic? Unless it was changed, this would have the two speed Dynaflow through 1963.
My friend’s dad owned his own
electrical company and was a master electrician and he used the DC 3 like my uncle did to take
him to many high paying jobs in
other states. My friend’s Dad’s
company did the wiring work for a lot of big time shopping malls in the Midwest. The guy even had a Beech Bonanza that he would fly just for fun. He took me
up in the Bonanza AND the DC3
with my friend and one or two other guys and teach them how to fly. He let me try flying the Bonanza once. He got us up to
Altitude and then let me take the
controls while he watched to make sure I did it right. What fun
we had learning to fly and be decent young people. And it was easy too. We had mentors nearly
every step of the way.
…And yeah, it cost him a lot of cash to keep that bird flying, but he got it back come tax time. He
was, aside from my uncle, the richest person I ever knew.
Thanks… the first upvotes was me…
Sounds like Chicago…. was the dad a WWll pilot? most people don’t consider DC3’s for a business aircraft.. even back then. The Bonanza was a few mph faster and burned about 12 gph. very nice airplanes…
Too bad we can’t communicate directly… it would be fun… your last couple of sentences about the mentoring and being decent young people.. and the more decent you got the more the good adults wanted to mentor the young kids… happy for you…
Regards…
Am I wrong or does this seem like a great value? I expected a much higher price.
Really beautiful car; I’ve always admired the styling of the 62 Buick. A friend of mine had one many years ago and I remember how incredibly smooth and quiet it ran, and with the Dynaflow transmission, there was no noticeable shift – just smooth and steady acceleration. I sure hope it gets a good home.
@Chuck: Yes he was. Like my uncle John, he flew C-47s during the war. After the war, he studied
to become a master electrician.
He would go on to open his electrician business in 1955 in the town of Normal, Illinois. And when I met my friend in 1960, his
Dad had a few big jobs under his belt and the business he opened
5 years earlier was booming. As I
said, he bought the DC 3 off my uncle so that he could carry nearly all he needed to wherever
the job site was. My uncle bought it to bring fresh veggies up from Florida to Illinois during
the winter months. Unc’ bought
2 of them to double his carrying
power and had my Uncle Frank fly
the other plane. So by the time my friend’s Dad bought the plane,
my uncle’s were already out of the produce delivery business. And yeah, the Armstrongs had enough cash by then to buy a really nice summer home in Wisconsin up by the Wisconsin Dells (I think). But any way you
sliced it, my friend and his family
were very well to do and unlike other rich people, they were really
nice folks too. Mr. Armstrong would often tell me that if I worked hard at what I did, was honest, and did the job right the
first time, that good things would
come to you. And he was right.
I retired from 2 different professions and went back to one of them part time to keep myself sharp and active. One thing I found out: it you don’t find
something to do after you retire,
you’ll be dead within a few years if you don’t keep moving and keep your mind sharp. Hope that
answers your questions Chuck!
That’s why I mentor the kids I work with today. If I don’t do it, it
won’t get done.
I love this car! Too bad that it’s out on the left coast! And I am in the northeast. The 1959 Buick was one of the ugliest cars on the planet, as bad as the 1959 Chevrolet, and the 1960 wasn’t much better. 1961 brought sanity back to Buick styling, and the 1962 facelift on the ’61 added true beauty to that sanity! How I wish I could own and drive this one! The crank windows do not trouble me (one less thing to go bad and need attention). I would prefer factory air-conditioning, but you can’t have everything. The only drawback here would be the guzzling gas-mileage, a thing we didn’t care much about when gasoline could be had for 18.9 cents a gallon. But elsewhere you have a 1951 Nash Airflyte which got 25 m.p.h.. But I DO wish I could have this Buick! I would like it a bit more with light blue or green metallic paint — but then that would not match the spectacular interior! And I most especially LOVE that this car has FOUR DOORS!!!
Trivia: Our 62 225 convertible had a signal seeking Delco radio, and an interesting tidbit is that on the floor close to the dimmer switch was another floor button that activated the radio to scan to the next station!
Hi Steve. My family had a 60 Olds Super 88 with the same signal seeking, aka “wonder bar” radio. The foot switch was a great idea for changing stations without taking your eyes from the road.