1966 Buick Skylark GS

Description

If you're under 40 years old, forget everything you know about Buicks, everything you saw growing up, and every Buick sedan you've ever seen. In the mid 60's, horsepower was king, and not even Buick was immune to putting big V8s in their mid-sized cars. With a handsome cream paint job and the believed-original 401 CI Nailhead under the hood, this 1966 Skylark GS is a right-sized car that will make you smile every time you slide behind the wheel.

The body is a little more curvaceous than your garden-variety Chevelle and the cream finish compliments the upscale image that Buick was trying to cultivate. Bodywork and paint are solid driver quality and is very good overall shape, with original sheetmetal and what appears to be an older paint job (this car was originally Code V Shell Beige, which is a little different than what's on it today), and it's obvious that this car hasn't lived a rough life. More evidence of its charmed existence can be found in how nicely the big hood and deck lid fit, and you know there are no replacement panels for these cars, so that's all General Motors steel on there. Buick was pretty much done with gratuitous chrome on their cars by the mid-60s, resulting in handsome, sporty looking cars decked out in the kind of brightwork you see here – with just bright, shiny bumpers and a few pieces of profile trim contrasting with the paint, and it's all nicely very nicely presented. A cool ribbed tail panel fits between the taillights, proudly showing off its Grand Sport emblems, and the blacked-out grille up front hints at the performance living behind it.

The interior has been nicely restored and preserved in original style black vinyl, and there's stretch-out room for five with benches fore and aft. Original door panels with correct badges like these are probably difficult to find so good job that these are still in place, and the same goes for that cool-looking bright, machined trim that runs the length of the dashboard and adds a bit of bling inside. The billet steering wheel looks like a piece of modern art and it's joined on the tilt column by an aftermarket tachometer that minds the revs. The factory gauges are still in place just ahead of the driver, but they've also been augmented by four auxiliary units installed in a custom panel just below the dash. Other options include a Kenwood AM/FM/CD/AUX head unit that augments the original AM unit in the dash, and factory air conditioning that's still blowing cold! Open the trunk and you'll find that it's not only solid and original, but also nicely detailed with a correct plaid mat and full-size spare tire.

Under the hood you'll find a believed-original 401 Nailhead V8 engine that was very recently gone through and then repainted before it was restored back into the engine bay. An interesting marketing approach, these engines actually displace 401 cubic inches, were topped by a 4-barrel carburetor and make 325 horsepower and, obviously, 445 pounds of torque. 445 is a lot more impressive than 325, don't you agree? Whatever the name, the smooth-running V8 moves the relatively lightweight Skylark easily, and you'll enjoy the throaty V8 soundtrack from the dual Borla mufflers and twin tailpipes out back. It's backed by a TH400 3-speed automatic feeding the stock 10-bolt rear and sports one of the most solid chassis we've seen on a Buick in years. Handsome American Racing "Old-Style" Torque Thrust wheels wear 265/50/15 Hankook radials finish the "Gentleman's Hotrod' look.

It would be a mistake to overlook Buicks if you're the sort of person who doesn't like driving a cookie cutter car. It's hard to get into a V8-powered car in this condition for less money, so give us a call today!