Photography by NotStock Photographyt’s the backstory. How many times have we all heard that? Oftentimes, the backstory gets us hooked on a particular hot rod, which is the case for this ’65 Buick Riviera. Butch Yamali of Long Island, New York, has a fascinating story about how his father had this Rivi and a ’59 Chevy Impala convertible parked in a New York garage when Hurricane Sandy hit, causing a staggering amount of damage that included these two cars.
Both cars were sent to Martin Bros. Customs in Johnson City, Texas, for a thorough overhaul. The staff in charge of this project includes Joe Martin, who, combined with shop manager Chad Glasshagel, handled the fabrication and assembly. Others include Zach Becken, who handled mechanical, wiring, and tuning; and Bryan Spencer, who was instrumental in painting, trimming, and assembly.
The ’65 Buick Riviera is one of the most beautiful looking fullsize luxury cars ever produced in Detroit. As such, when hot-rodding one of these iconic cars, it is always best to go slow, and changes should be made with a great deal of forethought. In this case, it sure looks like Martin Bros. took their time and did it right. Something that seems to work on virtually all cars of this period is the ability to tuck the front and rear bumpers, and here the Rivi looks good after this mod. Martin Bros. also added the quarter-panel louvers and trim located just behind the doors (nice touch) and enlarged the rear wheel openings by stretching them 1-1/2 inches. It should be noted that custom wheeltubs were also made at Martin Bros. to handle the massive rear wheel-and-tire combo. From this point, we are looking at ’60s Detroit styling at its best. The body- and paintwork were beautifully handled by Vastine’s Paint Garage, where Brian Vastine applied the Dark Teal Toyota blue via the Standox paint system offered through Axalta Coating Systems. Hiding behind the clamshell headlight doors is the latest from Holley in their RetroBright LED lighting.
However, to see some truly special “art,” take a look at the woodgrain effect used throughout the dash and center console area. Darren Wenzel of Gasoline Art harnessed his talents and applied the truly “rich” appearance of the woodgrain effect, which adds to the elegance and beauty of the interior. The factory dashboard is now covered in black leather, setting off the Dakota Digital RTX gauges. At the same time, the center console houses the Shiftworks shifter and the Vintage Air controls for the Gen IV air conditioning. Innovative Rides supervised the leather stitchwork over the Wise Guys Seats & Accessories bucket seats in front (note the three-point belts) and the narrowed factory bench in the rear. Innovative Rides also handled the line-dot headliner and door panels, as well as German square-weave carpeting. But before the carpeting was laid down, a DEI sound and heat-deadening material were applied. Availing oneself to some cool tunes, owner Butch had Retro Manufacturing with one of their retro sound head units installed along with Kicker speakers and amp. Bringing all the electrics together uses an American Autowire system wired by Becken from Martin Bros.
Butch’s ’65 Buick Riviera has truly kept the best of the ’60s styling and incorporated the best of modern rodding with its selection as a finalist for the Goodguys Custom Rod of the Year. We are very happy this is one hot rod that survived a hurricane.
