All Cars » Buick http://www.allcarsvideo.com Automobile Videos Sun, 26 Sep 2010 00:00:00 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Buick Terraza http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-terraza/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-terraza/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=256 The Buick Terraza manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Buick Terraza is a minivan from General Motors’ Buick brand that was sold from the 2005 through 2007 model years. It filled the position of GM’s luxury minivan that was previously occupied by the Oldsmobile Silhouette until the division’s demise in 2004. The Terraza was built alongside its Chevrolet, Pontiac, and Saturn sisters; (Uplander, Montana SV6, and Relay) in Doraville, Georgia. Contrary to popular belief, the Terraza was not Buick’s first minivan. In 2000, Buick released the GL8 to China. It remains solely to the Chinese market, where it is still in production today.

The chrome-trimmed Terraza was the most luxurious and costliest of the GM minivans, starting at US$28,110 in 2005. The Buick debuted with one engine, a 3.5 L High Value V6 that generates 200 hp (149 kW) and 220 ft·lbf (298 N·m) of torque, going from 0-60 mph in the 9-second range. For 2006, a 3.9 L LZ9 V6, with 240 hp (179 kW) and 240 ft·lbf (332 Nm) torque, was added as an option, which delivered faster acceleration and better response.

For 2007, the 3.5 L V6 was dropped, leaving the 3.9 L as the base engine. Consequently, the optional AWD system was also dropped, since it could not handle the torque of the 3.9 L engine. A flex-fuel version of the 3.9 L V6 also became available for the Terraza’s third season. The 2007 Terraza equipped with side airbags scored a “good” in the frontal offset and an “acceptable” in the side impact IIHS crash tests. [1]

The fairly slow-selling Terraza (in Canada it enjoyed average sales, though it was not enough to let GM continue making it) was discontinued after the 2007 model year[2], and GM’s Doraville plant has been scheduled for closure in 2008. Because of low sales of minivans, GM has decided to exit the minivan business altogether in the United States. The Terraza, alongside the related Rendezvous crossover SUV and the truck-based Rainier SUV, have all been replaced by the 8-passenger Buick Enclave crossover for 2008.

]]> http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-terraza/feed/ 0 Buick Skylark http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-skylark/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-skylark/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=255 The Buick Skylark manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Buick Skylark was a passenger car produced by the Buick division of General Motors. The model was made in six production runs. In each run, the car design varied dramatically due to changing technology and tastes, as well as new standards implemented over the years.

Introduced to mark Buick’s 50th anniversary, the Skylark (a name previously used by short-lived Hupp for its sporty 1939 Cord 810-based Skylark) was one of three specialty convertibles produced in 1953 by General Motors; the other two were the Oldsmobile Fiesta and the Cadillac Eldorado. All three were limited-production vehicles promoting General Motors’ design leadership. Of the three, the Skylark had the most successful production run with 1,690 units. This was considered an amazing sales feat, since the car had a list price in 1953 of slightly in excess of US$5,000. However, many of these vehicles languished in dealer showrooms and were eventually sold at discount.

All 1,690 regular-production Skylarks built in 1953 (and all in 1954) were convertibles. The 1953s were based on the two-door Roadmaster convertible, having identical dimensions (except height), almost identical convenience and appearance equipment, and a Roadmaster drive train. In 1953, the model designation for the Skylark was 76X, while the model designation for the Roadmaster convertible was 76R. The few options available on the Roadmaster convertible were standard equipment on the Skylark, albeit the base price for the well-equipped Roadmaster convertible was only about US$3,200.

The 1953 Skylark featured V8 power and a 12-volt electrical system, both a first for Buick, as well as full-cutout wheel openings, a styling cue that would make its way to the main 1954 Buick line. Also making its way into the 1954 Buick line was the cut-down door at the base of the side window line that bounced back up to trace around the rear window (or convertible top). This styling stayed with Buick for many years and can be found on any number of automobile brands to this day.

The 1953 Buick Skylark was a handmade car in many respects. The stampings for the hood, trunk lid and a portion of the convertible tub were the same as the 1953 Roadmaster convertible (and Super convertible, model 56R). The stampings for the front fenders, rear fenders, outer doors, and a portion of the convertible tub were unique to the Skylark. All Skylark convertible tubs were finished with various amounts of lead filler, so it is not unusual to find a substantial amount of the substance just behind the doors near the bottom of the window line. The inner doors of the Skylark were made from the inner doors of the 2-door Roadmaster and Super by cutting the stamping in half approximately parallel with the ground and then welding the two pieces back together in a jig at an angle that produced the necessary door dip (see photos of finished car).

Although there were many unique design features of the 1953 Skylark, one that goes almost unnoticed today is that the top and seating of the car were lowered a few inches below the Roadmaster and Super convertibles. This was achieved not by changing the frame, body or suspension, but by cutting the windshield almost three inches shorter and lowering the side windows and convertible top frame. To accommodate people without bumping their heads with the top up, the seat frames and steering column were lowered.

]]> http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-skylark/feed/ 0 Buick Roadmaster http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-roadmaster/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-roadmaster/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=254 The Buick Roadmaster manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Roadmaster was an automobile built by the Buick division of General Motors. Buick first used the Roadmaster name between 1936 and 1958. In 1991, Buick again applied the Roadmaster name to its full-size rear-wheel drive sedan and station wagon models as a replacement for the Buick Estate.

The origins of the Roadmaster name date to 1936 when Buick renamed its entire model lineup to celebrate the engineering improvements and design advancements over their 1935 models. Buick’s Series 40 model range became the Special, the Buick Century took the place of the Series 60 and the Series 90 — Buick’s largest and most luxurious vehicles — became the Limited. Buick’s Series 80 became the Roadmaster.

Roadmasters produced between 1936 and 1958 were built on Buick’s longest wheelbase and shared its basic structure with senior Oldsmobiles. Between 1946 and 1957, the Roadmaster was Buick’s premium and best appointed model, and was offered in sedan, coupe, convertible and station wagon bodystyles between 1936 and 1948. In 1949 a hardtop coupe, designated “Riviera” joined the model line up; a four-door hardtop joined the model range in 1955.

The 1953 Buick Roadmaster station wagon, Model 79-R, was the last wood-bodied station wagon mass-produced in the United States. Its body was a product of Iona Manufacturing which built all Buick station wagon bodies between 1946 and 1964. Priced at US$4,031, the wagon was second in price to the Buick Skylark. Only 670 of these final woody wagons were produced for 1953.

In 1959, Buick again introduced a model range that represented a significant shift in its body design, and the Roadmaster was renamed the Electra.

]]> http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-roadmaster/feed/ 0 Buick Riviera http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-riviera/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-riviera/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=253 The Buick Riviera manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Buick Riviera is an automobile produced by Buick in the United States from the 1963 to 1999 model years, with 1,127,261 produced.[1]

A full-size coupé or personal luxury car, the early models of the Riviera in particular have been highly praised by automotive journalists and writers.

The Riviera name first entered the Buick line in 1949 as the designation for the new two-door pillarless hardtop, which was described in advertising as “stunningly smart.” The Roadmaster Riviera(along with the Cadillac Coupe de Ville) constituted the first mass production use of this body style, which was to become extremely popular over the next 30 years.

Australian 1950 Buick Riviera Site

In 1951 the “Riviera” designation was also used on a version of the Super 4-door sedan. The 1951 Buick Super Riviera 4-door sedan featured more plush interior trim and a wheelbase (and overall length) that was 4 inches (102 mm) longer than a regular Buick Super 4-door sedan. The Buick Super Riviera 4-door sedan was still an inch shorter in wheelbase and length than the larger Buick Roadmaster.

Starting in 1955 GM also offered a four-door pillarless hardtop body style, and the “Riviera” designation was also applied to these models. Riviera hardtop bodies were offered on all Buick lines in the next few years, including the Buick Roadmaster, Buick Super, Buick Century, and Buick Special. Since it was a body style designation and not a model, however, the Riviera name did not usually appear on the car. The last usage of the term “Riviera” to describe hardtops was 1963, as the formal designation of the #4829 Electra 225 Riviera four-door hardtop. Coincidentally, this was the same year the Riviera would become a separate model in its own right.

]]> http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-riviera/feed/ 0 Buick Rendezvous http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-rendezvous/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-rendezvous/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=252 The Buick Rendezvous manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Buick Rendezvous, introduced in the spring of 2001 as a 2002 model year vehicle, was a sport utility vehicle that was sold by the Buick division of General Motors.

Given the fact that the vast majority of SUVs were rarely taken off-pavement by their owners, much less driven under serious off-road conditions, a new type of car-based “crossover SUV” was developed that was hoped would provide all the elements that customers actually wanted from their SUVs such as cargo carrying capacity, elevated seating height and the suggestion of an active outdoor lifestyle with less of the negative attributes typically associated with traditional SUVs such as poor gas mileage, uncomfortable ride, high step-in height, propensity to roll over, etc. The formula of a car-based “soft-road” luxury SUV had proven marketable by the highly successful Lexus RX300 and was thought to be a promising new market category for Buick to exploit within this extremely profitable portion of the ever-expanding SUV category.

Buick’s first truck in its lineup since 1923, the Rendezvous was billed as a combination of the best attributes of a minivan (large cargo capacity, seating for up to seven), a luxury automobile (ride, handling, smoothness) and a sport utility vehicle (truck styling and available all wheel drive).

The Rendezvous was produced at General Motors’ Ramos Arizpe, Mexico assembly plant, where it shared an assembly line with the Pontiac Aztek.

In lieu of four-wheel drive, the Rendezvous offered Versatrak, a full-time, fully-automatic all-wheel drive system which provided sure-footed traction in the snow and wet, could handle moderate off-road surfaces, but was not meant for boulder-climbing Rubicon Trail-type activities.

]]> http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-rendezvous/feed/ 0 Buick Regal http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-regal/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-regal/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=251 The Buick Regal manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Buick Regal is a mid-size car produced by General Motors’ Buick division from 1973 through 2004, during which Buick also used the Century name on mid-size models; the two frequently shared bodies and powertrains.

Buick had been the first GM division to bring a personal luxury car to market with its full-size 1963 Riviera but was otherwise slow to react to the developing lower-priced mid-size personal luxury market, which Pontiac created with the 1969 Grand Prix and Chevrolet with the Monte Carlo the following year, 1970. At the same time Oldsmobile added a formal notchback coupe to its intermediate line, the Cutlass Supreme, in 1970 and that model soon became Olds’ best selling intermediate. Wanting a model that could be marketed to compete against the Olds Cutlass Supreme as well as the Grand Prix and Monte Carlo, Buick introduced the Regal for 1973, as a top line coupe in that division’s intermediate A-body line, the Century. The year 1973 also marked the introduction of the first major restyling of GM’s intermediate A-body design since 1968, as well as the first major restyling for the intermediate-based G-body used for the Monte Carlo and Grand Prix.

A highly-trimmed, notchback coupe, the first Regal shared its front and rear styling with its Century parent with distinctions amounting to differing grilles and taillight lenses. The Regal shared the same “Colonnade” pillared hardtop roofline (a hardtop with center pillar but frameless doors unlike a sedan body) and greenhouse (window area) with the Grand Prix, Monte Carlo and Cutlass Supreme as well as the lower-priced Buick Century Luxus coupe. Like its corporate cousins, the Regal (and Luxus) featured the newly fashionable opera windows, which were small fixed rear-side windows surrounded by sheetmetal, instead of the traditional roll-down windows. Only the Colonnade hardtop coupe was offered in the Regal line in 1973, but a new four-door Colonnade sedan (with six-window-greenhouse and frameless door windows) debuted in 1974 and continued through the 1977 model year.

Regal interiors were generally more luxurious than lesser Century models with woodgrain trim on dashboard and door panels, along with door-pull straps and notchback bench seats with center armrests with either cloth, velour or vinyl upholstery. Optionally available throughout the run was a 60/40 split bench seat with armrest. For 1976 and 1977, the Regal coupe was available with the S/R option that included reclining bucket seats with cordoroy upholstery. The model lasted five years with minimal changes, although there was a fairly substantial facelift in 1976 (for the coupe only – sedans stayed with original 1973 sheetmetal through 1977), which incorporated the recently legalized square headlights (horizontally-mounted on coupes, and vertically on sedans – much like the mid-1960s Pontiacs).

The Regal most commonly powered by Buick’s 350 in³ V8, which was standard equipment on all models in 1973 and 1974 and optional on coupes but remained standard on sedans from 1975 to 1977, and the larger 455 in³ V8 was optional in 1973 and 1974 only. Starting in 1975, Regal coupes came standard with Buick’s resurrected 231 cu in (3.8 L) V6 engine previously offered on the Skylark from 1964 to 1967; the engine’s tooling had been sold to Kaiser Motors for use in Jeep models (Kaiser was purchased by American Motors in 1970 and Jeep became an AMC division) and sold back to GM by AMC in 1974. In 1975 and 1976, the Century and Regal were the only mid-sized cars in America to offer V6 engines.

The Century designation was quietly dropped from the Regal in 1975.

]]> http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-regal/feed/ 0 Buick Rainier http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-rainier/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-rainier/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=250 The Buick Rainier manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Buick Rainier was a mid-size SUV sold by the Buick division of General Motors. Introduced for 2004 to replace the Oldsmobile Bravada[citation needed], the Rainier was the first truck sold under the Buick marque (the unibody Rendezvous might also qualify, as it is classified by the EPA as a light truck) since the 1920s, and was the first body-on-frame V8-powered Buick since the 1996 Roadmaster.The styling was designed by Rainier Rodriguez from Palmdale California. It is also the first rear-wheel drive Buick since the Roadmaster. The Rainier was only available in a 5-passenger configuration, yet was one of only four GMT360 SUVs to offer a V8 engine in this configuration along with the GMC Envoy Denali, Saab 9-7X 5.3i, and Chevrolet TrailBlazer SS. Both rear and all-wheel drive models were offered. An upscale CXL trim added a better Bose stereo and XM Satellite Radio.

Most of the Rainier’s body styling was a direct transfer from the Oldsmobile Bravada, with a new front fascia bearing a resemblance to other Buick models.

Buick also debuted the QuietTuning sound insulation on the Rainier. Buick’s QuietTuning involved designing a vehicle with sound dampening features like triple door seals, acoustic laminate glass, and thicker sound-absorbing pads on the hood and firewall.

The Rainier (as well as the Rendezvous crossover and Terraza minivan) were replaced by a new crossover SUV, the Enclave, on the GM Lambda platform for 2008, spelling the end for a rear-wheel drive Buick once again.

However, GM ended production of the Chevrolet TrailBlazer, GMC Envoy, and Saab 9-7X after the 2009 model year according to the GM Fleet website. The last of those three rolled off the line on December 23, 2008, because of the Moraine plant closing.

The IIHS gives the 2004 Rainer an overall Marginal score for front impacts while the 2005 and newer models are given an Acceptable score. In side impacts the Rainer was given an overall Marginal score with side airbags present.[1]

]]> http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-rainier/feed/ 0 Buick Park Avenue http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-park-avenue/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-park-avenue/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=249 The Buick Park Avenue manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Buick Park Avenue is a full-size car built by General Motors and sold by its Buick division. The nameplate was first used since 1975 as a top trim level of the Buick Electra, and the Park Avenue became a standalone model in 1991, replacing the Electra. Two generations of the Park Avenue were manufactured in the United States until 2005, while in 2007 the nameplate was revived on a large Buick sedan built by Shanghai-GM for the Chinese market.

The model’s name pays homage to the affluent New York City boulevard, Park Avenue.

The 1991 Park Avenue utilized GM’s GM C platform until the C-body was dropped in 1997. The Park Avenue was normally powered by the 3.8 L 3800 Series I V6, with a special Ultra model using a supercharged version starting in 1992 (a very limited number of 1991 Ultras had the supercharged engine as an option). Many consider the supercharged model to be a “sleeper” due to its exceptional acceleration, despite its large size.

Inspired in great part by the 1989 Park Avenue Essence show car, the Park Avenue’s silhouette was often compared to that of contemporary Jaguar Cars and many of its styling cues, including a large ‘dollar-grin’ grille mounted to the hood, rounded lines, and full-width tail lamps made their way to other Buick models restyled in the 1990s. While not the largest vehicle offered by Buick, as that distinction belonged to the Roadmaster, the Park Avenue was the most luxurious and considered the flagship of the marque.[citation needed]

The next generation Park Avenue debuted as a 1997 model, but many feel that the previous generation (1991-1996) had sleeker lines and when fitted with the optional Ultra package, looked like a much more expensive car than the 1997-2005 models. It is also felt that the interior of the 1991-1996 Park Avenues had a cleaner looking, and more upscale look than that of the second generation.

]]> http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-park-avenue/feed/ 0 Buick Lucerne http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-lucerne/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-lucerne/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=248 The Buick Lucerne manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Buick Lucerne is a full-size car sold by the Buick division of General Motors that replaced the Park Avenue and the LeSabre in 2006. Although the rear-wheel drive GM Zeta platform was considered, the production Lucerne introduced at the Chicago Auto Show on February 9, 2005 rides on the revised G-body platform of the late Pontiac Bonneville. Initial sales of the Lucerne have been strong, with the car claiming 24% of the full-size sedan market in the United States.

Like the similar 2005 Pontiac Bonneville, the Lucerne uses a Cadillac Northstar V8 engine in addition to the standard Buick 3800 V6. The Lucerne also became the first V8-powered Buick car (the Rainier SUV was available with a V8 from 2004–2007) since the demise of the Roadmaster in 1996. The Lucerne is also available with the Corvette’s Magnetic Ride Control, an active suspension technology.

The Lucerne’s base price is lower than that of the LeSabre, its predecessor, though the V8 option causes the price to reach price levels of the Park Avenue.

In keeping with Buick tradition, the Lucerne features “Ventiports” on the front fenders corresponding to the number of cylinders in the engine — three on each side for the V6 or four on each side for the V8 Northstar.

The Buick Lucerne is built at GM’s Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly Plant alongside the Cadillac DTS. The plant has won Initial Quality Awards from J.D. Power and Associates for the past three years. GM leads all other automakers in Strategic Vision’s Total Quality Index (TQI) [1]

]]> http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-lucerne/feed/ 0 Buick LeSabre http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-lesabre/ http://www.allcarsvideo.com/buick/buick-lesabre/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:59:57 +0000 admin http://www.allcarsvideo.com/?p=247 The Buick LeSabre manufacture by Buick automobile company. Read more to view more detail and video reviews. Please feel free to comments and give rating to help others


The Buick LeSabre was a full-size car made by the Buick division of General Motors from 1959-2005. For many years, the LeSabre was considered the entry level full-size Buick, carrying the lowest base price in the Buick lineup. Prior to 1959, that position had been held by the full-size Buick Special model; in 1959 the LeSabre replaced the Special, a nameplate that was reintroduced in 1961 for Buick’s line of compact cars.

The LeSabre nameplate made its first appearance on a Motorama show car in 1951 and on a production car in 1959 as the new moniker for what had previously been known as the Buick Special. The Buick LeSabre was offered in a full line of body styles except between 1965-1969 when its station wagon variant was dropped from Buick’s full-size offerings. In 1977, the LeSabre was downsized along with other GM full-size models, and was available only in pillared coupe, sedan and wagon body styles.

In addition to being Buick’s entry level vehicle, the LeSabre was consistently Buick’s best selling full-size car. Of the four nameplates introduced in 1959 (LeSabre, Invicta, Electra, Electra 225), the LeSabre nameplate lasted the longest.

From 1959 to 1961, the LeSabre was powered by a 364 cubic-inch V8, which was smaller than the 401 cubic-inch V8 used in the more expensive Invicta and Electra models. The 364, which was previously used in all Buicks in 1957 and 1958, was rated at 250 horsepower (190 kW) in standard form with an “economy” 235 horsepower (175 kW) version offered as a “no cost” option in 1960-61 and an optional power-pack version with four-barrel carburetor and dual exhausts that was rated at 300 horsepower (220 kW). For 1962-63, the LeSabre came standard with a two-barrel carbureted version of the 401 V8 rated at 280 horsepower (210 kW), or a no-cost “economy” low-compression version rated at 260 horsepower (190 kW). Starting in 1964, all LeSabre models except the Estate Wagon shared their drivetrains with the mid size Buick models by switching to those models’ smaller-displacement V8s.

For most years from 1959 to 1971, a three-speed manual transmission was standard equipment on all LeSabres but rarely ordered. Far more popular was the Turbine Drive automatic transmission (previously known as Dynaflow) along with power steering and power brakes. For 1961 and 1962, the automatic transmission was standard on the LeSabre and all other full-sized Buicks but in 1963 was moved back to the option list on LeSabres. For 1964, the Dynaflow-based Turbine Drive was replaced by two new automatic transmissions, the two-speed Super Turbine 300 and the three-speed Super Turbine 400. A four-speed manual transmission was offered as a LeSabre option from 1963 to 1965 but only a small number of cars were so equipped.

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