Buick Riviera

n8bachelor

n8bachelor

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Just wondering what you MK8 guys thought of the Riviera... I have always liked both cars but ended up in an LS. I love the look of a large coupe. Anyways, what are your thoughts?


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Not as good a car as a Mark VIII, in my opinion. I've never driven in one, but I've looked inside one. The only thing I liked about it was the fact that it had more space in the rear passenger compartment.

Things I don't like about those are:

* Ugly. (just my opinion)
* FWD.
* Pushrod V6 engine.
 
That's true.... I forgot they were FWD.

The supercharged v6 gave it a bit more power.... albeit to the front wheels.

I think they look pretty sweet on the outside. Never driven one though.
 
supercharged=fun n/a not so much. i would take one if it was cheap but rather a mk8 nothing like rear wheel drive amd the sound of a v8. to wake you up in the morning. plus i think the muscle car factor is what SOLD me on the mk8
 
The supercharged 3800 that comes in them are pretty strong and have good potential. I'm building up one of them to put into my Fiero.
 
It looks Jap IMO, I read a discussion somewhere else that compared a photo of a Riv to something Jap (Ultima? Acura?), and it was pretty convincing-looks Jap.

Plus, no matter what, it is powered by the wrong wheels, which is fatal. 3.8 is a relic, such old technology-GM would have been smarter to hang onto Pontiac and maybe even Oldsmobile, the 4.0 and 3.5 4-cam engines Olds made are great engines that were allowed to disappear, which if you know anything about them was a mistake.
 
n8bachelor said:
Just wondering what you MK8 guys thought of the Riviera... I have always liked both cars but ended up in an LS. I love the look of a large coupe. Anyways, what are your thoughts?


22714670008_large.jpg
Click to expand...

When I got rid of my GT and was looking for a new car it was between the Mark VIII and the Supercharged Riviera. I drove both cars, and both cars are very nice. My favorite Riviera is black on black...mmmm.. that is a sweet ride!

Anyway I think the Riv was faster in the bottom end and the Mark was faster in the upper rpms. The back seat in the Riv as mentioned by someone else is definitely huge...I wouldn't be surprised if you could fit a table back there and have dinner ;)

Honestly both cars are pretty equal if you pair them by pro's and con's.
 
mark viii > riviera

the 3.8L SC in stock form is less then strong they are ok but once you start modding...things start to break real fast, FWD and crummy transmissions...torque steer...and they are kind of ugly i could go on all day why there are better coupes..if i was gonna go id get me a mid 90's Cadlillac Eldorado if im gonna deal with torque steer, its gonna be with a Northstar V8
 
When I bought my first personal luxury coupe it was between the SC400, Riviera SC, Mark VIII, and Eldorado. I bought the best looking one, the Eldorado... :D then later on I wanted something with mod potential, so I bought a Mark VIII. The SC400 was out because it's Japanese and bland as hell, and the Rivi lost out because it was a toss up between a 3.8SC and a Northstar where exterior appearance tipped the balance to the Eldo. When it was time for one to mod, the Mark won out because it's RWD. I think I'd still take a Rivi over a SC400 though,
 
How about these things...
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Always kinda liked the lines of these things, didnt realize there was only a 4 door... though they were 2 door cars...
 
I looked at the Riviera and the Aurora before I bought my Mark (owned a Seville STS earlier, didn't care for the ride). I almost bought the Aurora (nice interior, drove well, good ergonomics for the driver) but they seemed to have a ton of electrical problems. And not of the easy fix kind, either.

I almost pulled the trigger on a Riv, but my kids thought they were ugly. I liked them, but didn't want to put up with the abuse.

I liked the amount of information that was available on the net on the Mark, loved the V8, gas was high and prices were low, and it was the best looking of the three.

But I wouldn't mind owning any of those three cars.:)
 
The Formula derived V-8 in the Aurora was a bad ass but has zero mod potential. Plus as mentioned they had some hinky electrical issues. Also the windshield is freakin rediculous to replace. Well they were anyway, used to be $2000 to swap. Now they are around $500.


I thought the Riviera was ok new but didnt like the torque steer. I think the Mark is a far superior car but back in the day the Olds won in all the mags. :(
 
I think they are pretty cool! I
have always liked these 4 cars and in this order. they all kind of resemble one another in my opinion.
When my car came up for purchase I was previously looking at a 96 SS and a 98 Aurora.
Glad I went with the Mark

1. 2nd Gen Mark VIII (own one!)
2. 1995-96 Impala SS (got one of those too,but its the Lingenfelter LT4 383)
3. 1998 Aurora
4. 1998 Riviera

Seems like we all kind of have the same insight on good lookin cars
 
the riv is ugly in and out...moreso the interiour.....my uncle had 1....yuck..
 
I owned a 95 riviera and it never did run right.It would die on the highway going 80 mph.After that i got an 03 bonneville SSEi with the series 2 supercharged 3.8.It was a great looking car but had so many problems and i took a HUGE loss on resale.
 
hmm I like all the cars mentioned here lol... odd huh? I really like the SC400 but havent driven one yet. Still a little too pricey for me.
 
well my opinion on the riv my parents still to this day own one its an ok car good low end road good they never had mayor problems with it so i guess they are lucky but i know for fact that i would kill it with my mark.
 
i have a mark viii my best friend has a rivi... he likes it cause of the supercharger but ill take my N/A RWD car any day but that is just my style....
 
shut any one ill borrow my buddys 93 its all stock who wants to be spank 240 riv 280 mark nahh just kidding guys who want to make a vid....
 
laserp viii said:
shut any one ill borrow my buddys 93 its all stock who wants to be spank 240 riv 280 mark nahh just kidding guys who want to make a vid....
Click to expand...

Were you meth'd out when you typed that? I about s h i t my pants in confusion trying to figure out what you are talking about. Either that or someone slipped crack in my cracker jacks....don't know the so are to tell me go to where it not so yeah. Ok? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA :lol:
 
I am just not fond of any GM FWD vehicle. New or old. To me they all handle like an ox wagon on a gravel road.
 
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