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No Reserve 1970 Buick GS 455 4-Speed

If a classic car with power to burn is on your radar, then maybe this 1970 Buick GS 455 is the car for you. It is a tidy survivor that has no urgent needs. The buyer could choose to drive this vehicle as it currently stands. Alternatively, a bit of light restoration work would take this beast to the next level. If that sounds like a tempting proposition, you will find the Buick located in Elk Mound, Wisconsin, and listed for sale here on eBay. The listing has been set to open at $15,000, but there have been no bids at this stage. Seventy-two people are watching the listing, and you have to wonder if one of those individuals will be the first to blink. After all, the car is being offered with No Reserve. That makes it possible that a single bid could secure this classic for some lucky person.

The owner has had the GS professionally assessed, and it is the assessor’s opinion that all of the steel in the car is original. The Buick is finished in Glacier White and features a Black vinyl top. The owner believes that the paint is mostly original, and she openly admits that it is getting thin. She also states that there is evidence of some touch-up work, but this isn’t visible in the supplied photos. It still holds a good shine, so a repaint is certainly not required urgently. The top appears to be in good condition and needs nothing. Rust could potentially be an issue with classics from this era, but the news seems to be reasonably good with this car. The trunk pan has been repaired in a couple of spots, but the rest of the vehicle’s underside is free from dramas. The panels look clean, with no signs of rust in the lower extremities. Some of the chrome pieces are lightly pitted, so these might require a trip to the platers if the Buick is to present at its very best.

The interior of the Buick is a bit of a mixed bag. It is mostly original, although someone has treated the seats to velour inserts. I can’t say that I am a fan of these, and given that some of the vinyl is ripped, I would probably invest in a set of new covers. Finding a full set of covers in the correct color and material is possible for around $600, which would address this issue. The wheel’s rim is cracked, and the buyer will have a couple of options available to them. Repairing the cracks would not be difficult and could be completed in a home workshop. Alternatively, reproduction wheels start at $250, with the price dictated by the item’s quality. I’d probably attempt a repair first. After all, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Beyond those couple of things, the interior would seem to need nothing.

Lurking under the hood of the Buick is the original 455ci V8. The owner has checked, and she believes that the distributor and carburetor are also original. Bolted to the back of this V8 is a 4-speed manual transmission, which feeds the engine’s 350hp to a Posi rear end. The owner openly admits that the original transmission has gone and that this one is of 1968-vintage. Things had the potential to get serious pretty quickly in the GS 455. A ¼ mile ET of 14.5 seconds wasn’t hanging around, while the car has the potential to nudge 120mph. The owner notes that the GS has recently been fitted with a stainless steel exhaust and is driveable. She says that the brakes are soft, so I would be attending to this issue before I considered the car to be roadworthy.

Total Buick GS production for 1970 amounted to 20,096 cars. Of these, a mere 510 featured the 455-4V/4-speed combination. When you consider that total Buick production for that year was 666,501 vehicles, that figure of 510 represents a tiny production percentage. This one is a largely original survivor that needs very little work to return it to its best. You have to wonder how soon it will be before someone chooses to submit that first bid. Could that person potentially be you?

Comments

  1. Avatar Moparman Member

    Buy this, attend to the needs and drive/cruise while working on the wants!!
    GLWTA!! :-)

    Like 12
  2. Avatar Cattoo Member

    Had I the money I’d be on my way to WI to bring it back home. It’s a keeper and a fair weather driver in my world. Aww. Soon to be gone.

    Like 7
  3. Avatar Chas358

    455 Ram-Air, 4 speed, Buford. Too cool.

    Chas

    Like 11
    • Avatar Buck Burns

      “Ram air” is a Pontiac trademark. Buick to my knowledge had no official name for the “snorkel” design. Largely because they didn’t want people to know it wasn’t helpful. The position of the openings is a negative pressure point aerodynamically speaking. The stage II had hoses to vents below the front bumper, those were worth a few horses.

      Like 0
  4. Avatar Chas358

    Can’t be many of those around.

    Like 8
  5. Avatar Troy s

    Nice looking machine, there’s been a lot of muscle here lately and this Buick is right in the thick of it. Seems to me I remember the automatic was actually quicker than the 4 speed set up on these big inch Buicks but who really cares. So, what else is hiding in their yard under a tarp?

    Like 11
  6. Avatar Steve R

    Compared to the 65 4 door Chevy Impala featured here yesterday, which was endlessly swooned over, this car is a steal. This one would actually be fun to drive and attract attention based on its own merits, beyond just existing.

    Nice car, hopefully it stands up to an in person inspection and finds a good home.

    Steve R

    Like 11
  7. Avatar BA

    All I have to say is the buick 455 won the hotrod magazine horsepower war against all big blocks (except the hemi which is a head scratcher right? since the 440 was the Mopar entry) but still it easily dusted the 454,460,455 from Pontiac & Oldsmobile with all engines just getting the same bolt on improvements. The Buick is a top dog from the horsepower wars of the 70s (except for that pesky hemi)

    Like 7
    • Avatar Vince H

      The Stage 1 was a hemi killer. The hemi had a hard time with them.

      Like 7
  8. Avatar phil1

    I saw this and almost passed out!!! Numero uno on the bucket list but funding is no bueno…🤬

    Like 10
  9. Avatar Steve Petty

    This car’s claim to fame was not horsepower but rather it’s torque at 510 ft/Lbs.

    Like 0
  10. Avatar Troy s

    No power steering on this I like, but the more I look at the steering wheel the more I expect an air bag to explode in my face. That’s my only knock on it, majorly trivial at best compared to the rest of the screamin’ Buick.

    Like 1
  11. Avatar Richard Wendel Member

    If you want your appraisal business to be taken seriously, you would think that you would use spell check on your appraisals. The car could be really nice with just a little work and money.

    Like 0
  12. Avatar Johnmloghry

    Love the car, but it’s to far north for me.
    God bless America

    Like 0
  13. Avatar Keith

    I had 68 Ram air GTO and raced one of these only it was a Stage one 4-sp . I had the closest race of my life with that car but only pulled him by a fender. The Ram Air GTO’s of 67 and 68 had a steep 4:33 gear so not to many cars could beat them back then.

    Like 3
  14. Avatar Tooyoung4heyday Member

    A very tempting entry indeed being only 3 hours away. I prefer the flashier GSX but would have no issues with this GS. This combo of 455 and 4 speed is not easy to come by and would be lots of fun to drive. I say fix the interior, put in the sport steering wheel and enjoy it as is.

    Like 3

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