Many enthusiasts consider the 1964 GTO to be the very first true muscle car, but there were plenty of cars that got the movement headed in the right direction – cars like the 1963 Buick Riviera with its big Nail-Head V-8. This particular 1963 Buick Riviera comes to us via Car Buzz, and is a fresh take on an early 1960’s 2-door coupe that looks like it might send you to sleep with the fishes – we’d call it “Gangsta’ Futura”

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This sinister Riv’ is owned by Tony Diaz, co-founder of Ronin Syndicate, maker of power-sports radio controlled toys. The car was put together for Diaz by the team at Fesler, and rather than look forward to the muscle car era for their inspiration, the designers instead took a look back in time. The car evokes a mean yet business like 1930s gangster attitude, with plenty of modern touches to bring it up to date.  

We particularly like the way Fesler took the Riviera’s signature front corner points and used them to house the headlights. And how about those wheels? Flat faced 3-piece rollers in 20” all around evoke just the right amount of modern design without being too flashy for the sinister flat black paint. The interior is finished out in brushed aluminum, custom suede seats, and slick digital gauges. In the power department, long gone is the original Buick Nail-Head V-8, and a modern LS1 power plant now has the duty of motivating Diaz’s Riviera.