Buick is one of the pioneering brands of the GM conglomerate, founded in 1908 before General Motors even existed. Buick later served as the second-highest luxury tier in the General Motors catalog, falling only behind Cadillac in price and luxury. It would be an understatement to say that they produced some of the most important cars of the muscle era, including the Buick Electra, Buick Riviera, Buick LeSabre, Buick Skylark, Buick GSX, and Buick Regal.
Long known as one of the top muscle engines of all time, the Buick 455 V8 is still very popular in the 2020s. From the factory, the big-block V8 produced as much as 370 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of torque, and it was one of the fiercest competitors of the 1970s. Today, many enthusiasts still…
For collectors today, five of the best classic cheap muscle cars are the 1970 Ford Torino 429, 1968 Ford Thunderbird 429, 1971 Pontiac LeMans 455 HO, 1968 Mercury Cyclone 390, and 1968 Buick GS 350. These represent the ultimate of the muscle car era. They have long hoods, short decks, big-block V8 engines (except the…
The Buick 3.8L V6, otherwise known as the Buick 3800, was the result of the time from which it came. With efficiency and emissions compliance being a particularly dominant factor during the late 1970s, Buick wanted to prove that high-displacement V8 power could be achieved outside of the proven recipe. As a direct evolution from…
The Buick 455 is a big block 7.5L V8 that was produced from 1970-1976. It came at a time when big block V8’s were dominating the muscle car world. The 455 cubic inch motor made 350-370 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of torque in its early days. However, changes with gas & emissions laws – as…
Riviera History 1963-1975 Introduction: The Buick Riviera was not a muscle car, per se, but it had a tremendous impact on the American automotive scene. The Riviera represented one of the most successful American attempts at capturing European styling and performance in a large automobile. Positioned at the top of Buick’s coupe line up, the…
The Buick Wildcat started production in an interesting way. Like many other muscle cars of the time, it wasn’t originally its own model. Instead, it was a subseries of the full-size Buick Invicta which was in itself a conglomeration of the Buick Century and Buick LeSabre. Not even its name was unique to the model,…
The Buick Skylark was born out of celebration for Buick’s already storied history in 1953. At that point, the General Motors’ cornerstone company was celebrating their 50th anniversary and wanted to create something special as a result. That’s exactly what they did. Initially introduced alongside other GM specialty convertibles like the Oldsmobile 98 Fiesta and…
Though it might not have the name recognition as some of its competitors, the Buick Gran Sport — or GS — was one of the best luxury muscle cars of the 1960s and early-1970s. It started life as an option package on the Buick Skylark and Buick Riviera from 1965–1966, before becoming a stand alone…
The following chart identifies the block, crankshaft, and cylinder head casting numbers for Buick’s made between 1962 and 1979. Keep in mind this is information has come from many different automotive resources, and may have some misprinted numbers as well as omissions. All these numbers are trademarks of the manufacturing car company. These are able…
