1978 Buick Electra 225 Coupe Blue landau coupe

Vehicle Description

Amazing survivor. Low mileage, totally original, locally owned and maintained three owner car. Purchased from the nephew of the original owner.

Vehicle Details

Buick Electra 225 Landau Coupe.

Only 54000 original miles, locally owned and maintained. Highly original and amazing condition for the year. No rust, rot or cancer.

Mechanically perfect. Oldsmobile 403 V8 paired with a TH400 transmission.

Starts, runs, drives, shifts, and brakes like a new car. All lights and gauges work. No leaks. No funny noises. As with all smog era V8’s with a Quadrajet carburetor it’s a little cold-blooded when it’s cold or hasn’t been driven for a while, but once it’s warmed up it drives and accelerates perfectly. The car only has two mechanical issues; the AC is still set up for R12 refrigerant and is currently not working, but all the AC plumbing and components are still there. The cruise control functions but the speed varies up and down +/- 5 miles per hour. I believe it’s a vacuum leak, but I haven’t had the chance to diagnose it in depth yet. No other issues mechanically.

The interior is extremely clean. I shampooed the carpet after I bought it and aside from a couple spots on the passenger side footwell that look like tar or oil, the carpet is excellent. Same for the seat upholstery. It could use a more in depth shampooing but presents very well as is. There is a small spot about the size of a dime on the driver seat that looks like a cigarette burn that was repaired and there is a repair to the drivers side arm rest that was done with gaff tape or something similar. I never removed the tape to assess the condition of the armrest underneath. There are two small cracks on the dash pad, and a few hairline cracks to the speaker grills, but overall, the dash and gauge cluster are excellent. Headliner is perfect. No bad smells. Fan and heater work perfectly as well as all interior accessories and lights. 8 track player sounds and works great, but the program select button does not work. Includes a giant box of 8 track tapes for your listening enjoyment.

The exterior is overall very good condition. The car sat outside for many years before I bought it and the paint had some pretty heavy oxidization on it. I buffed out the oxidization and brought around some nice shine, but it really needs a full four stage paint restoration to look its best. There are a couple thin spots in the paint along the leading edge of the A pillars, above the windshield and along the top edge of the front driver side and rear passenger side fenders where some surface rust has started, but it is stable and hasn’t affected the metal. There is a spot on the rear decklid where it was in a fender bender many years ago and was repainted, but not very well. Looks better than bare metal but its not amazing. From ten feet away the car looks amazing, but up close or at a low angle in bright light you can see surface imperfections and contaminants. A good cut and buff would work wonders, but that’s not my area of expertise. Bumper extensions are presentable but weathered and if the paint is going to be restored the rear two extensions should also be replaced. The landau top is solid, but has some small cracks and splits on the top. No water entry luckily. The chrome trim around the rear windows disappeared, but the metal retainers are still present. All stainless and chrome trim is excellent. Tires are good.

I recently gave the car a total tune-up with new fuel, oil, and air filters. I also replaced several sections of damaged vacuum hose and some wiring. Has brand new ceramic brakes on the front and a brand-new battery. I purchased the car from the nephew of the original owner (three owners total) also have original documentation from the first owner and factory warranty and owners manual.

As it sits, it’s a perfect daily driver. I’ve been driving it to work a couple times a week and have taken a few trips up to Canada and to some neighboring towns and I’ve put maybe 1000 miles on it. Amazing cruiser. The Olds 403 has a lot of lower end torque, and this beast can cruise at 75mph and still gets 16-17mpg. Overall a truly excellent and rare survivor. Only reason I’m selling is I’m putting together money for a 1st generation Oldsmobile Toronado project and I need the space. If the car doesn’t sell by winter I’ll put it in storage and have the paint and landau roof redone, along with the AC. This will reflect in the price when I relist it.