Jeff GoldsteinWarwick, Rhode Island'64 Buick RivieraJeff Goldstein has always liked GM's offerings from the '60s, the '64 Riviera in particular, so when he found a 54,000-mile California car he bought it sight-unseen. Turns out it had a little more rust underneath than he'd bargained for, and he contemplated sending it back, as the seller had offered that option. But he couldn't resist taking it for a short test run first. "I'd never driven a Riviera and I was expecting the cushy ride that I remembered from my '63 Cadillac some years ago," Jeff said. "I was pleasantly surprised when I found that the car actually handled quite well and the 425 had plenty of power."
Jeff contemplated putting a little work into the car. "I was already thinking of setting my sights lower. I'd have a nice driver and so what if it had some minor rust under it!" Then from out of nowhere Jeff hit a deer, and fairly hard too. The driver-side front fender was wrinkled, the hood was folded down, and the headlight and grille were broken. The car was not going back, but at least it now had a name: Deer Hunter! So Jeff had it repaired and painted his favorite stock Riv color, Midnight Aqua, before adding the few options his car didn't leave the factory with. Then he went to work, lowering the car a couple of inches, adding Astro Supremes and narrow white band tires, and fitting smooth taillight lenses. Some minor alterations to the interior and dressing the engine, plus adding twin carbs, all contribute to the '60s theme. Jeff wanted the car to look as if it had been modified in that decade. "You see, I was always the kid who built his model cars as the custom version, never stock or drag."
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