It all began in Autumn of 2000 when I saw the 59 Electra, brought by a fellow club member to a
Fall-Meeting of our BUICK CLUB OF GERMANY. Back then I was the first President of our BCG
since its foundation in 1996. I was there with our 1991 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon,
because I recently had sold my 1958 Buick Special and was looking then for a "new" old Buick.
We talked about this '59 Buick and I learned that he had recently bought it from
Sweden, and that it might be for sale, because the owner was looking for a 59 Buick Convertible
and needed the money. The B59 had already a German historic license and federal technical
inspection and was in good shape, but his suggested price was too high so we couldn't agree.
A few phone calls later the price dropped slowly and suddenly I got a phone call from him and
he offered me the B59 for a price I could not refuse... his wife was forcing him to divorce and
he now needed the money. One man´s bad luck often is other man´s good luck! I agreed
and since then I've had a lot of good times with this 59 Buick. I've enjoyed many weekend cruises and
meetings, and trips from Northwestern Germany where we are living, to Buick-Meetings in Southern
Germany and Switzerland.
During the last two years I've only had to replace the worn out front aluminum
brake drums & wheel bearings - otherwise the B59 was a very dependable car. I replaced two
mouldings at the right rear fin, the license plate light lens, the right
front turnlight lens, the spare tire and did some detailing where it was needed. I also added
the original AC Fuel Filter Glass Bowl to the engine bay and an AIRGUIDE Compass to the dash.
Otherwise (due to an exterior restoration back in 1988-89 done by the son of the second US owner)
my 59 Electra was, and still is, in very presentable condition.
the first owner of this Buick. Finally, I got this valuable information from him,
together with the original Minnesota Buick Dealer Sales Folder, the B59 Owners Guide and a bunch
of restoration photos. Originally the B59 was Copper Glow , but during the restoration it was
painted in Lido Lavender, also a 1959 Buick color, matching the still original grey interior.
I got in contact with him and found him very friendly. He put in a lot of effort to help me find
kms on the clock. There is no problem in sight with this dependable motor. Only the Dynaflow´s
Drive Gear is a little weak when taking off from at the traffic lights. The Low Gear has all
the power left and I used to shift up manually to prevent early transmission wear. Maybe
its only a pressure problem due to a closed filter or valve, or the brake bands might just
in need to be tightened a little bit. It doesn´t take away the fun and pride I have as the
owner of such a headturning peace of automobile history.
The 1959 Electra has the first 401 cui V8 engine with 325 bhp and this one has about 130,000
B59 owners are welcome day & night to get in contact with me ! Please send your email and
B59-pictures to: buickray@yahoo.com
Best Regards from Germany
Rainer.
I have a soft spot for the larger Buicks too and this is one of the largest of them all.
Styling in 1959 was (for all makes and models) unarguably outrageous. What were the designers thinking?
I don't know but I'm glad for it. Thanks for allowing us all to see your fantastic 59 Rainer.
Bill
