Friday, August 2, 2013

1955 Buick Century Hardtop

Buick Century Custom Barrett and Jackson

Shortly after I bought my 1958 Buick, I took it to a conference in Victoria. What a thrill to hear the echoing growl of its engines as I drove it into the belly of the ferry.

If you get what you pay for, then I guess $175 was not enough. Soon after I purchased this car from the Buy and Sell Press (then a weekly newspaper), it became evident that the automatic transmission was going.

The power brakes had some issues too. Once as I drove down the steep hill of Arbutus Street, I nearly rolled across Cornwall Avenue. For a terrifying moment, I had visions of plunging right down into English Bay. Fortunately, though the power-assisted brakes were not working, I managed to wrestle the heavy monster to a stop just short of the intersection.

That was the last time I attempted to go to the beach in the Buick Century. Shortly after, I had to replace it with a more expensive model. As I recall, I got $100 for it, and obtained its replacement, a 1954 Austen Somerset A40, for the princely sum of $350.

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