When HOT ROD found a 1966 Buick Convertible Special in Arizona earlier this summer, we didn’t think much would come of the car. After all, it’s been parked and neglected for over three decades in what is pretty much a desert. But the fine gents gave the Buick vert some much-needed love — overhauling the old suspension, giving the car new disk brakes in place of the old drums, along with some new steering components, and rolling stock — and took it out for a good-ol thrashing.
The ’66 Special then saw what’s very likely its first autocross track, slalom run, and brake test. In fact, the car performed better than its looks would suggest, outrunning what looks to be a 2008 Mustang in the autoX (1.13.2 vs. the Stang’s 1.14), taking the slalom at 45 MPH (just a bit slower than a stock fifth-gen Camaro), and coming to a halt in 166 feet.
The guys at HOT ROD will now keep the car as a “reliable and fun daily driver” and don’t plan to make any changes to the body. But if it were our daily driver, we would invest a grand or two into fixing up some of those rusted, beat-up, and neglected body pieces as well as some of the interior components:
Hat tip to Vic.
Comments
I would fix up the body as well along with the interior
Why take away it’s chance to be a “survivor”?
I love the thought of doing this to an old car like that, only problem is these cars don’t exist in cold climates anymore, so project cars almost have to come from Arizona/California
I think this is the coolest thing since…. well, it may be the coolest thing ever done.