A Bittersweet Finish for this Wicked Fabrication Built Custom ’65 Buick Riviera
It’s bittersweet to see Guy Hall’s smooth and slick ’65 Buick Riviera as a finalist for Vintage Air Custom Rod of the Year. Sweet for the accolade and the amazing build the team at Wicked Fabrication completed, yet incredibly bitter as Guy passed away in May, just as his Riv was finished.
Guy bought the car as a cruiser back in 2010 and drove it for many years, hauling his family around to car shows and on road trips. About three years ago, he decided to take the car to the next level with the help of Craig Wick and Wicked Fab, but he insisted on retaining its “drive anywhere and everywhere” capabilities.
The first major part of the rebuild was to channel the body over a state-of-art Art Morrison chassis with rack-and-pinion steering, a 9-inch rearend, and Wilwood brakes capped by custom Buick-inspired 19-inch Evod wheels. The channeling of the body required all new floors, trunk, and firewall, plus substantial fabrication of the tunnel and console to retain the classic Buick interior styling.
To achieve Guy’s mantra of “drive anywhere and everywhere,” the Riviera uses a 6.2-liter LS based engine from Chevrolet Performance. Guy insisted that the LS be finished as a well-dressed Nailhead, so a Holley 2×4 intake was installed and topped with a custom air cleaner flanked by finned Buick valve and coil covers while the rest of the engine compartment was smoothed and detailed in satin black.
Riviera interiors, especially the first generation, are so well arranged and comfortable that Craig and Guy agreed there wasn’t much to improve upon. In that regard, they rebuilt the original front buckets while crafting custom rear seats to match. Tony Miller at nearby Stitches Custom Upholstery handled the brown leather and sewing chores while Wicked whipped up some one-off trim on the console and elsewhere. Dakota Digital instruments, Vintage Air, and careful details throughout create a comfortable and classic interior.
While Guy wanted the upgraded chassis and drivetrain to live up to contemporary expectations, he didn’t want to mess with classic lines of the first generation Buick Riviera. Wicked made sure not to restore the body, but rather refined the Buick form. There are a host of modifications such as the smoothed cowl, the narrowed bumpers, custom stainless steel grille, and billet aluminum clamshells hiding the headlights. Once the metalwork was complete, the body was turned over to Jon Byers to apply and finish the PPG Blue Heaven paint.
Guy did get to see his ’65 Buick Riviera completed and was pleased with the outcome as it checked off all his boxes – topped off with a nod as a finalist for Vintage Air Custom Rod of the Year.
Photos by Damon Lee
