September 2019 Newsletter
Director’s Thoughts, SEPTEMBER, 2019
Happy Birthday to You,
Happy Birthday to You,
Happy Birthday “Free Spirit” Chapter,
Happy Birthday to You!
May you celebrate many more!!!!!!!!!!
This month we celebrate the Birthday of the “Free Spirit” Chapter, Buick Club of America! This chapter was created & born 42 years ago. Of the founding members: Charles Arnold, David Brady, Jim Gordon, Ken Hartman, William Keller, Jim Rosetti, Jan Rosetti, Jack Steitler, Carter Taylor, John Ball, & Bob Williams; Charles Arnold, David Brady, Jan Rosetti &, possibly, Carter Taylor are the only living founders anymore. Here it is 42 years later & this chapter is still going strong!! Thank You & Happy Birthday, once again!!
I hope that everyone had an enjoyable summer hiatus & drove those beautiful Buicks to some car or family events. As you all know, BUICKS WERE MADE TO BE DRIVEN, right? Even though it is September already, there still are some car events continuing to be held through the fall season of the year. The Lehighton Car show is 1 of those car events. REMEMBER, this is the same show that has been held @ Kempton, but only the location has changed: Phifer’s ice Dam, 880 Main Road, Lehighton, Pa 18235, Sunday, October 27, 2019. So be sure to keep this date on your calendar & tell your BUICK friends of the location change.
Besides the location change, as always, this event is hosted by “YOU”, the “Free Spirit” Chapter! So what this means is you need to volunteer some of your time to assist in hosting this event. During the September meeting, a sign-up sheet will be passed around so members can sign-up for helping out in the necessary areas for this event to be a success. So be sure to attend this meeting to sign-up, or contact Sally @ 610-377-6130, csgetz@ptd.net, to offer your time. Hope to hear from you soon! Thank you!
Your Elected Director, Sally
“Free Spirit”, August Chapter Meeting Minutes
Summer vacation! See you all back at the September meeting.
WELCOME, NEW MEMBER
Let’s “Welcome” new member, Steven Chappelear & Lisa into the Buick family in the valley! They reside in Orefield, PA. steven.chappelear@outlook.com. Steven owns his grandfathers Buick, a 1954 Buick Century 4-door. “WELCOME!”
Das Awkscht Fescht, August 4, 2019
Many “THANKS” to those faithful members for being up & ready to park BUICKS on Sunday, August 4th during Das Awkscht Fescht by 0700! We have guaranteed & secured our wonderful parking area for 2020! For those faithful parking volunteers, “KUDOS” to you. Your time to volunteer to perform this task is much APPRECIATIVE!
Every year on that Sunday during the Fescht, the “Free Spirit” chapter presents 2 awards: Buick Club of America (Pre-War), & J. C. Taylor (Post-War). This year, the BCA award was presented & accepted by David/Deborah Brady of Emmaus for their 1937 Buick Century Convertible coupe
As in the past, the weather was very very warm & sunny. For those who have ventured into the flea market areas, this year, again, the fields were pretty empty. Not quite sure what’s happening in those areas, but ………. As always, too, in the past, the fireworks display held Saturday evening were spectacular.
As far as Ways-n-Mean sales during DAF, 1 item was bought on that Sunday. Despite Sally having had the items for sale @ her area in the flea market, nothing sold this year. Renewals were accepted during this event.
Until next year at this time, BUICKS were made to be DRIVEN!!
Ten Forgotten Classic Buick Models That Probably Deserved Better: Old Buick Models That Should Have Been Given More Credit (Part 1)
GM’s upscale division – second only to Cadillac – has given us some rather conservative cars over the years. Yet, they still managed to surprise us every once in a while by jumping out of their comfort zone & delivering extraordinary powerful models that rivaled some of the fastest cars of their time. The oldest active American automaker division thus proved it can build pretty much anything provided with opportunity to do so. Many a classic Buick models prove so. While some old Buick models like the Buick Century, Buick Skylark (& Skylark convertible) & Buick Regal served the brand for decades & became eponymous with it, others have often failed to leave a lasting impression. What’s more, some have managed to leave a bitter taste in Buick aficionado’s mouths. Yes, Apollo, we’re looking at you. And, finally, there are those forgotten Buicks that very few of us will likely remember. These often appeared abruptly and left the stage in corresponding fashion, failing to draw attention to themselves. That’s exactly what we’re looking for in here. Obscured and forgotten Buick models that probably deserved a little bit more than they got in the end. Check Out These Often Forgotten Classic Buick Cars!
1971-1973
Centurion was Buick’s replacement for the rather successful & invigorating Wildcat which was derived from otherworldly mid-50’s fiberglass concept cars. Like the Buick Wildcat, Centurion too had its roots in mid-50’s concept car. This time, it was the 1956 Centurion concept which foresaw the future by offering the very first rearview camera in a car. But Buick Centurion didn’t remain for long. It was discontinued in favor of LeSabre with whom it competed as slightly more upscale offering. While everyone will agree LeSabre was one of the most important Buicks in history, Centurion definitely deserved more. Its sales figures should serve as a proof. Centurion’s 1971 sales exceeded those of previous year Wildcat by almost 25%. Then they rose by another 20% for 1972, & finally soared in 1973, almost doubling the first two years’ tally. And it was still not enough.
Main problem – besides cannibalizing LeSabre’s sales – was that it actually looked like one. It was practically the same car with different front fascia & interior. And, minus the tri-shield badge. Instead, Centurion had a badge depicting a Roman centurion from a profile. Now you know where Centurion’s got its name. Unlike the sporty Wildcat, Centurion was marketed simply as a more premium full-sizer. Still, only 455 cu in V8 powered the car for the first 2 years. It delivered 315 ponies in 1971 (330 hp w/ dual exhausts) & 250 ponies in 1972. Result of gross to net horsepower rating switch. Finally, new regulations took their toll in 1973 too, when 175-horsepower 350 cu in V8 became a standard engine. 455 big-block was still available as an option, though.
All Centurions, apart from convertible, were hardtops. Both 2-door & 4-door versions were available. For a mid-luxury price of a Centurion, buyers received standard power steering & power front disc brakes, standard cloth & vinyl or optional all-vinyl upholstery, & standard 3-speed Turbo-Hydramatic auto trans. Very rare Stage 1 option in early 1971 was the only way to get the stick in a Centurion. Did this plushy full-size Buick deserve better? You be the judge. I believe it had.
1979-1980 Century Turbo Coupe
As was a custom among the U.S. automakers back then, Buick downsized its intermediate lineup in 1978. They also downsized the engines, hence big-block disappeared completely. But unlike the Regal, which immediately got a turbocharged V6 version of the 231 cu in V6 mill, Century needed to wait another year. 3.8L turbocharged V6 finally arrived in 1979, but didn’t last for long. Century Turbo Coupe wasn’t nearly as popular as corresponding turbo Regal, & less than 3,000 units were produced during the following 2 years. Yet, Century Coupe’s turbocharger had managed to compensate on what Buick’s mid-size car lacked in displacement. It boosted the total output to 175 horsepower and 275 lb-ft of torque. Quite a bump over conventional model’s 105 ponies & 160 ft-lbs. Maybe that doesn’t sound like much, but consider this: the same year Chevrolet Corvette with a V8 only had 20 hp & 10 ft-lbs more. That wasn’t all. Buick Century Turbo Coupe also came w/ standard dual exhausts, power brakes, stylish turbine wheels & other aggressive styling cues like the hawk fender decals or a decklid spoiler.
Although Century Turbo Coupe ended up being a flop for Buick – sales wise – actual truth is somewhat different. Buick needed the car regardless of its sales figures total. You’ll remember that Buick spearheaded the second wave of American muscle cars with GNX a few years later. Guess where GNX got inspiration for its turbocharged V6 engine. You guessed it. Right here in the late seventies, where Century Turbo Coupe sported a similar powertrain.
1977 Skyhawk Nighthawk and 1979-1980 Skyhawk Roadhawk
1st generation Skyhawk was nothing other than badge-engineered Chevrolet Monza – itself based on rather infamous Chevy Vega. But, while Chevrolet sold around 700,000 Monza’s, & Pontiac sold around 400,000 Sunbirds, Oldsmobile & Buick only managed to sell around 125,000 Starfires & Skyhawks each, respectively. So, in order to boost sales of their subcompacts, both division resorted to special edition models. Oldsmobile Starfire hence received Firenza package, while Buick Skyhawk got 2 special editions. 1st one appeared in 1977 & disappeared after only 1,383 units were produced. Skyhawk Nighthawk, sadly, didn’t offer that much in terms of performance. In fact, it was pretty much the same as the regular Skyhawk in that respect. It was fitted with 110-horsepower 3.8L V6 & standard Saginaw 4-speed stick or optional 3-speed Turbo-Hydramatic 350 auto trans. There was also the optional 5-speed Borg-Warner manual. What Nighthawk did offer, though, was some flashy pizzazz reflected in unique pinstriping, logos & gold-painted wheels. But above all else, it offered reflective side tape striping. The kind which would radiate a golden glow when illuminated by another car’s headlights.
Like the Nighthawk, Roadhawk too didn’t offer much improvement in terms of performance. For 2 model years, it offered the same 3.8L V6 engine, albeit with 115 horsepower & 190 lb-ft of torque this time. Result of new cylinder heads & a new camshaft treatment. Still, for 1979 only, $675 Roadhawk package was the only ticket to performance handling package which consisted of Goodyear BR70-13 radial tires, stiffer suspension, quicker steering ratio and larger sway bars. Moreover, Skyhawk Roadhawk came with special silver interior done by a 3rd party supplier – Robin Products Company Inc. from Farmington Hills, Michigan.
But even unique interior treatment & revised exterior with rear spoiler, front air dam & fiberglass quarter panel extensions wasn’t enough for Buick’s H-body subcompact. Only 2,037 were ordered before Buick axed the car in late December 1979. Pity how they failed to offer a turbocharged version of the Skyhawk. Especially since they already possessed the technology as illustrated in previous example.
1970 Estate Wagon
Buick’s full-size wagons disappeared completely after 1964 & wouldn’t appear again before 1970. For 1 year only, Buick Estate Wagon was offered on Wildcats & LeSabres, sharing their B-body frame, 124-inch wheelbase & 220-inch total length. They would move on to the larger C-body Electra line the following year where they’d receive 127-inch wheelbase & maximum overall length of 232 inches for 1975 & 1976. Yet, despite being B-body cars, 1970 Estate Wagons all came w/ engine usually reserved for C-bodies. Largest ever Buick engine, the 455 cu in V8 raised a hefty 375 HP & 510 lb-ft of torque. Much needed power for a car weighing as much as 4,762 pounds. Moreover, 1970 was probably the last good year for wagons in terms of power to weight ratio. Especially considering how wagons grew in size the following years, yet became depraved of power thanks to new regulations & OPEC oil embargo. Add to that the fact that 1970 Buick Estate Wagon came packed w/ plethora of features, either as standard or optional. Disk brakes, power steering, seats & windows, woodgrain exterior trim, & all vinyl interior were all part of the package. Even front fender VentiPorts were there. Despite being offered for 1 year only, 1970 Buick Estate Wagon had managed to find 28,306 buyers. A healthy figure considering Buick Electra -based wagons sold less in 1971 before gaining momentum in 1972. Still, considering the malaise era’s imminent onset, Estate Wagon likely should have remained slightly smaller in size.1985-1987 Somerset
Somerset first appeared as a model of its own in 1985. During 1980 & 1981 model years, however, Buick used the moniker as a special edition package under the Regal badge. As if that wasn’t confusing enough, Somerset actually started out as Somerset Regal in 1985. Buick quickly saw the error of their way & subsequently renamed the compact front-wheel drive car to plain & simple Somerset. Sometimes GM gives me headaches with their ridiculous naming strategy. Anyway, Buick Somerset was much different than larger rear-wheel drive Buick Regal. Apart from size, platform & drivetrain layout, they also differed in the number of available cylinders in their respective engines. Somerset was powered by the good old 92-HP Iron Duke 4 mated to mandatory 5-speed manual transmission sourced from Isuzu. There was an optional 3.0L V6 engine which developed 125 HP but required 3-speed Turbo-Hydramatic 125 auto trans to be ordered as well. Buick V6 hit the spot, although Iron Duke was more efficient. Thing is, most people deemed it way too underpowered & noisy as well.
One of Somerset’s pivotal features was its all-digital dash. That & awkward radio pod which couldn’t be replaced with an aftermarket upgrade. Despite its shortcomings (& there were more), Somerset was a fine car. Maybe not really in line with what Buick customers were accustomed to, but that’s exactly what was so good about it. It showcased Buick’s desire to experiment & reinvent their image. Something they would had to do 3 decades later in order to survive.
Calendar of Events
SEPTEMBER 2019 HAPPY LABOR DAY!
- 3 – Monthly chapter meeting, Atarlite Diner & Lounge, Allentown, Pa Dinner @ 6 pm, business meeting @ 7:30 pm.
- 7 – Root’s Fall car Show, Root’s Market
- 8 – Strausstown Lions Club Car Show
- 15 – Red Hill Fire Co. Car Show & Pig Roast
- 21 – Bethlehem AVTS Car/Bike Show, Bethlehem, Pa
- 21 – Coatsville Vintage Grand Prix, Coatsville, Pa
- 22 – 20th Annual GTO Association of PA Show, Star Dealership, Easton, Pa
- 28 – Indian Valley YMCA 3rd annual Car Show, Harleysville Wal-Mart
OCTOBER 2019 HAPPY HOLLOWEEN!
- 1 – Monthly chapter meeting, Starlite diner & Lounge, dinner @ 6 pm, business meeting 7:30 pm. Guest speaker may be a gentleman to talk about the “Lockheed SR 71 Blackbird”. This will be a program you won’t want to miss.
- 2-4 – Fall Carlisle Show
- 8 – ASCA Library Yard Sale, Hershey, PA (Before the big move!)
- 9-12 – Hershey Region AACA Fall Meet, Hershey, Pa
- 19 – Chariots of Fire Indoor/Outdoor Car show, Classic auto Mall, Morgantown, Pa
- 25-27 – Berkshire Mall Fall Indoor Car Show, Wyomissing, Pa
- 27 – 43 rd Annual Old Car Show, Phifer’s Ice Dams, Lehighton, Pa
NOVEMBER
- 5 – Monthly chapter dinner meeting, starlite Diner & Lounge, Allentown, Pa. Dinner @ 6 pm, business meeting @ 7:30 pm. Presentation will be given on the “Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird”. Please join us for an intriguing evening!
CARS/PARTS “FOR SALE”
1967 Buick Skylark 4 Dr Sedan 340 2-barrel, ST 300 Switch Pitch, PS, manual brakes, cassette player, no air. 70,100 original miles. Maroon color ext., cloth maroon/int. Was repainted. Interior still original! Garage kept! $10,000. 610-377-6130
1967 Buick Skylark Special Deluxe Sport Coupe 2 dr, 300 2-barrel. Spruce Green exterior w/ vinyl top, black interior. 68,305 original miles. Power steering, manual brakes. RH mirror, AM/FM radio. Spinner wire wheel covers. UNRESTORED. Garage kept! $8,500. 610-377-6130
1991 Chevy Suburban, 2500, Big block, 454 engine, 111,530 original miles. 2×2. Turbo 400 transmission. Black w/ gray interior, 3rd seat, AC (front/rear), AM/FM radio, tow package, cassette player, power door locks/windows, vent shades, tailgate window, in GREAT condition. Garage kept! Very powerful! $8,000. 610-377-6130
In Search Of
1967 Buick Electra Conv. 610-730-4599, dwebster80@gmail.com
1976 Caddy Eldo 500 ci – Pete Stoki, 609-915-9948