Associate editor David Conwill reconnects the fuel line on the 1961 Buick Invicta.
Hosting regular Garage Nights amongst us Hemmings editors has been a frequent point of discussion over the last 10 years, although the idea has been met by only limited success due to other domestic demands. Editors Lentinello, Strohl, McGean and yours truly have – at one time or another – used our garages to facilitate several attempts at the concept. Work was accomplished, but the regularity has fallen short. Last Tuesday night, David Conwill and myself took our first steps at reviving the idea, beginning with my family’s 1961 Buick Invicta four-door hardtop; a truly unrestored original car inside and out.
Not long ago – it seems, anyway – a pleasure cruise to work turned south when the generator lamp mysteriously illuminated against the car’s Mirror-Magic instrument panel. After a hurried ride back diagnostic work began with the fast removal of the Buick’s original generator (as a point of interest, the Flint assembly line didn’t start installing alternators until ’62), which was then carefully disassembled. Low and behold, one of the brushes had somehow been twisted into an unnatural direction and was moments away from crumbling into dozens of fragments. Two trips to one of the local autoparts store finally yielded correct replacements and, with high hopes, the generator was reinstalled. However the electrical problem persisted via the red warning lamp. Voltage regulator? Yup – replaced that as well. Still not resolved. Out came the generator again; delivered to a local facility that had the ability to thoroughly check its guts and give it a clean bill of health. That’s the backstory.
Flash-forward to last night, where Dave and I finally put our Garage Nights plan into action. The generator was returned to the chassis; “excited” via the service manual; battery fully charged. Should be simple from here out, right? Not so.
The Buick cranked, but no fire belched from its piston bores. Fuel wasn’t even getting into the filter bowl. Quick-thinking Dave considered a fuel line issue and, with the aid of a screwdriver and compressed air, had successfully cleared any minute blockages and had fuel flowing in copious doses. Except that upon cranking once again it was clear that the carburetor floats were stuck, which required some subtle coaxing to finally bring the Invicta back to life. The success was only tempered by the pesky generator warning lamp that would not extinguish. Complicating matters was the fact that as soon as I applied the brakes the 55-year old main line blew, sending the entire reservoir of hydraulic fluid all over the floor.
Today I consult the service manual with coffee and a clear mind; after I order a new brake line kit.
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