Jump to content
Model Cars Magazine Forum

'64 Riviera winner


Recommended Posts

The custom car world is all about building your vision. This guy certainly built his but, what controlled substance brought about that vision? A common question asked of critics of such cars is "How would you have done it?" I don't know how I would have restyled a 64 Riviera but I do know that THAT isn't it! No way, no how would that set of modifications have come to my mind; I've never done those particular mind-altering substances.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I saw that in the Hemmings email this morning...'Rivulsion' would have been a good name, a hideous pile, IMO. (I'll admit I generally have no interest in customs, but the '63-65 Riviera and the '71-73 boattails are some of my favorite GM designs--I like to see them stock original or restored).

Edited by Rob Hall
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I saw that in the Hemmings email this morning...'Rivulsion' would have been a good name, a hideous pile, IMO.

I have to agree. Not sure anyone could improve the original styling. Not impressed with the electric yellow color and the red calipers showing through the 20's. Just not my style I guess.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sorry guys but this is a very nice car. Just because WE do not like everything on the car does not make it bad.

I don't think anybody is knocking the execution or build quality or the car, to win the Riddler Award that has to be out of this world....................it's the design that kills it for many of us, myself included. Now had it been an A-Body Buick instead of a Riviera that had recieved this level of work (except for the Boat Tail Riv roof portion, that would have been a bad idea there too!), it would have been awesome......just on a classic, already well thought out design like that generation of Riviera, doing anything more that cleaning up the original design or accentuating it ruins the look of the car, especially when you throw Stingray fender scoops, GT40 cooling scoops to the hood, that chin spoiler that just doesn't fit the car, those big bronze wheels just don't look right (I personally just couldn't go more than 18" and even that would only be to fit bigger brakes on it), and in all honesty, I don't even like the Chrome Yellow paint. Just kinda ruined the classy nature of the car by doing that to it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't much care for it either... I'm sure the craftsmanship is excellent, but the boattail roofline doesn't work with the "razor edge" first-gen styling at all. It looks alright from some angles but is a hot mess from others. The details are fussy as well... I especially don't like the chrome rear brake vents or the big chrome whatever between the tallights. The interior is interesting- I see a lot of Pagani influence in there. I'm sure it has more presence in person, and I respect the owner for his determination to actually drive it after the show circuit, To each his own, I guess, but that's not how I would have built it!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's such a Frankenstein of styles that none of it works for me. It's like custom meets tuner meets pro-touring. I'm sure the quality is fantastic, but it just seems such a mess. What is that plumbing from the engine through the center of the cab to the trunk? Is there a big turbo in the trunk or something?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I do not care for the car, but it was done perfectly and the engineering in it is way beyond me. You need to google it to find out everything of why the plumbing is so weird on it. For starters, the turbos are where the back seat should be. So the exhaust runs back there, up into the turbo and then sends the boosted air back forward to the engine. From there I am at a loss at all of the plumbing the guy had throughout the car. I have to admit that I did not like the overall appearance of the car or the color, but from a perfection stand point the guy nailed it. The car was widened as well for all of this stuff, so the amount of work was phenomenal.

Now as for the rest of the great 8, I think this was a very weak year. I really do not know what the judge’s look for when selecting. There was a 68 or 9 Camaro, nice car, but across from it was a 68 or 9 Firebird that I thought was nicer. Definitely trending toward the newer cars, the Riv, the Camaro, a first generation Nova, and a 57 Chevy were among the top 8, all nice cars, some just did not seem to be all that much to say they were on of the best out of the show. The Nova, the Camaro, and the 57 for sure were all nice customs, but either had a lot of the work so subtle not to notice, or where just 'nice' custom cars, Had nowhere near the work of the Riv, and really, from a body and custom stand point, not as much work as the other Great 8 cars.

I guess that is why a lot of us are not judges at these kinds of shows! Beautiful to look at and we all know those are the kind of cars none of us will ever own, and may not want to. I will stick to my old cars that I can drive, park anywhere I want, and enjoy!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have nothing against the car, it appears to be a masterpiece of engineering and quality. But to me the Ridler Award goes to cars I would typically describe as "amazing grace." I see no grace in this presentation. I see the same conspicuous audacity that every corner of our culture seems to reward more and more.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sorry guys but this is a very nice car. Just because WE do not like everything on the car does not make it bad.

It won the Ridler! The build quality and execution must be above reproach; that's a given. In my opinion they did a great job ... of building a truly horrendous mess. It is, in my opinion, U G L Y! If we take the 20,000 hours as truth and calculate it at a cheap $80 an hour, it becomes 1.6 million dollars worth of UGLY (and that's only labor). Engineering, execution and quality? It won the Ridler; A+! Styling and taste? Errmm ... D- at best. There is no styling. It looks as though they started with a checklist; "What do contest judges look for?" and then went down the list and checked EVERYTHING on the list. Change for the sake of change; not usually a good idea.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You guys are killing me with this. It is OK to butcher a classic Mercury or a classic 30's Ford but touch a 64 Riv and the gloves come off? This is the best looking car that ever came from GM so that must be what all the fuss is about. I keep hearing all the time it take a man to cut a car apart , well he did and listen to yourselves . I do not like the restyle but it is his car not mine.

The biggest problem I see with this we will start to see more of this over the top crazy styles in the future at Autorama.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You guys are killing me with this. It is OK to butcher a classic Mercury or a classic 30's Ford but touch a 64 Riv and the gloves come off? This is the best looking car that ever came from GM so that must be what all the fuss is about. I keep hearing all the time it take a man to cut a car apart , well he did and listen to yourselves . I do not like the restyle but it is his car not mine.

The biggest problem I see with this we will start to see more of this over the top crazy styles in the future at Autorama.

I guess it depends on your definition of "butcher". Restyling a 64 Riv (or 49 Merc or 32 Ford) is a very subjective thing. I, personally, am in to TASTEFUL restylings. A tasteful restyling can be anything from a very mild custom out to a total reworking of every panel on the car; so can a total "butchering".

Ken Fenical (Posies) once said that "Anyone can restore a car, it takes a real man to cut one up." I propose that it takes a real artist and craftsman to put those pieces back together in an eye-pleasing fashion. Was the builder of this Riv a "Real Man"? Well, he certainly cut that car up, didn't he? Was he a "Craftsman"? He won the Ridler, so he definitely has, as my son would say, "Skills". Did he put the pieces together in an eye-pleasing fashion? That is subjective, but I would say NO! And I would say that if he had started with a 49 Merc or a 32 Ford or a 2013 Honda. His "Artistic Vision" seems to be compromised.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...