Vehicle 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!
