1978 Buick Electra Limited Sedan 4-door 6.6l on 2040-cars

I reserve the right to end this auction early because the car is also advertised for sale locally.

Great original survivor. 1978 Buick Electra Limited 4 door sedan. White with burgundy vinyl top and beautiful red interior. All original.

I would not be afraid to get in this car and drive it hundreds of miles. Have had it on a number of 2 hour trips this past year.

106,000 miles. Big 403 Cubic Inch engine runs great. Automatic transmission. All lights interior and exterior, horn, and dash gages etc. work.

Power steering, brakes, windows, seats, door locks, trunk release ALL work great. Has 4 original hub caps.  Spare tire has different (non original) style wheel.

Air conditioning converted to newer refrigerant and works great. Cruise control works great. AM/FM radio works fine. Even analog clock works great.

Was rustproofed when new(?) so it's very clean underneath, no rust.  A couple of tiny scratches in paint that show some surface rust (too small to see in pictures)

 I bought it one year ago in Lexington, OH from a guy who restores and resells older cars for a living. It was his wife's grandparent's car. Car sat in garage for 10 or 12

years when the grandfather died (I think) and my title has the widow's name as previous owner so I am the second owner (officially third if you count both grandparents).

The guy I bought it from in 2012 cleaned it up, put in a new battery and converted the AC. When I first drove it home, the AC compressor clutch failed, so I put in a new

AC compressor and clutch. (still have old compressor which you can keep as a spare).  I also put on matched set of four radial tires I picked up at a junkyard (which have

a lot of tread, but I'm not convinced they are perfectly balanced, but they are not too bad.)   Put in a new master cylinder (likely didn't need it) and heater control valve.

Also had to replace those plastic pieces at each rear corner under tail lamps in front of rear bumper ends.  Put in new exhaust from the catalytic converter back.

The bad: The paint isn't perfect but looks good at about 10 feet away. The red headliner looks perfect  but was sagging so I "fixed" it with those little spiral fancy thumb tack

type things (avail at Sears or K-mart online) which looks fine and do a decent job. The transmission has a slow leak (every old Buick I've had that sat for a while has leaked

transmission fluid), so put a mat on garage floor to avoid stains and check levels regularly. It needs a new brake system pressure warning sending unit (the pressure switch with the

1/8 inch pipe thread that fits on the proportioning valve.) The red brake light is always on.  There is nothing wrong with the brakes other than that warning sending unit, which does

not seem to be available at new parts stores and I never got around to checking for it with classic car parts dealers. Could just put tape over the warming light!

Has a new master cylinder and all the wheel cylinders and brake lines are fine. A lot of lining left on the front pads and read shoes. Car stops quick and straight.   

Rear door on driver's side doesn't seem quite flush when closed, perhaps an adjustment to latch is needed. Has no signs of collision damage anywhere. Also I had to

glue the side trim back on on that same door and some of the glue ran down a little below the trim as can be seen. Rear seat on driver's side has small stain (looks like

glue or something) but otherwise the interior looks so plush and nice.   Gets only about 15 mpg on freeway.

Windshield washer pump (which is supposed to squirt fluid) does not work (likely just needs a new $20 washer pump) and this is about the only thing that doesn't work.

Also, if you leave it sit for a few days, you have to prime it with starting fluid (or gas?) and it starts right up.  It's as if the gas evaporates from the carburetor.  If you drive

it every day, it starts right up, but if you let it sit, it needs a 2 second squirt of starting fluid.  Perhaps a carburetor rebuild would have a new accelerator pump (that little

plunger that squirts gas in when you step on the pedal) and that would fix.  I've also heard that looking for a pin hole in the gas line between the gas tank and the carburetor

can be the remedy for this type of problem.  I haven't detected any leaks, but haven't really had time to look into it much as it hasn't really been a problem and it runs so good.

The good. The car is so original and almost everything works. Interior is so nice and soft and plush. Everyone comments on a beautiful red interior (not boring gray) and perfect

dash with working analog clock. Car floats over bumps like you are riding on a cloud. It's just a big fun car with a giant motor and rear wheel drive.

Why am I selling it? Our two stall garage will only fit one "big" car and I need to get my 1960 Buick back from 5 years of storage at my sister's. This 1978 Buick is a few inches

too long to fit on the shorter side of our garage and I don't want to leave it sitting outside. We also need the money to buy another older smaller car we hope to get. I have mixed

feelings about selling this car, but if I have to sell it I hope it will go to someone to can care for it. Feel free to call me with questions. Jim 614-915-7210 in Columbus, OH.