Buick Builds Tanks

[nissangirl74]

".... there was a time when Buick actually built a tank– and was one of the fastest tanks of its day.....Harley Earl, one of America’s most influential car designers (Earl brought us the tail-fin), was commissioned to design a tank to meet these requirements. Earl would also develop camouflage for the U.S. Military.....despite weighing 20 tons, could move at speeds up to 60 mph...To this day, the Hellcat is still one of the fastest tanks ever built. Even modern battle tanks like the M1 Abrams are limited to a top speed of 60 mph. So while road going Buicks might not be considered speed demons, when they build tanks– it’s a whole different story.

Thought this was pretty awesome. Who would have thought?


https://autos.yahoo.com/news/one-world- ... 50126.html

[Bubba1]

Well, maybe not a WHOLE different story. Any time I've sat in an old Buick built during Earl's era, one of the first thoughts I had was, was "wow, what a tank"...

Interesting article.

[float_6969]

Damnit, Bubba beat me to it, LOL

[MinisterofDOOM]

There's a reason '90s Centurys are now one of the predominant teenager cars. They're unkillable. Not really very good, but unkillable. Might as well be a tank. About as sporty and just as durable.

[Bubba1]

There's a reason '90s Centurys are now one of the predominant teenager cars. They're unkillable. Not really very good, but unkillable. Might as well be a tank. About as sporty and just as durable.

I'm guessing teens are seen with them more because old Centuries tend to be already in the family (as in grandma/grandpa hand-me-downs), and in many cases, free.

[Dattebayo]

No such thing as a "free" car. Not to the DMV, anyway.

[Looneybomber]

I was gonna make a joke about old people, buicks, and driving 60mph, but...

[Jesda]

I'm a fan of used Buicks. They're smooth, safe, and have good heat and AC. A Park Avenue, Lesabre, or Regal/Century with the 3.8 is hard to kill (though you might replace a LIM gasket along the way).

The Park Avenue Ultra with the Supercharged 3800 and touring suspension is a genuinely nice highway car.

[elwesso]

I'm a fan of used Buicks. They're smooth, safe, and have good heat and AC. A Park Avenue, Lesabre, or Regal/Century with the 3.8 is hard to kill (though you might replace a LIM gasket along the way).

The Park Avenue Ultra with the Supercharged 3800 and touring suspension is a genuinely nice highway car.

I agree with this. My brother has a 97 regal and it's a great car for what it is, even with the regular 3.8 it's not a slug. Unfortunately he's had quite a few minor problems that have been somewhat expensive and the car has left him stranded a couple times (idler pulley failed and shredded the belt, and the gas tank imploded itself due to a bad evap solenoid, killing the fuel pump).

IF those cars had a little tighter suspension, an LSD, and a 5-speed auto, that car would have really competed with euro cars, even with FWD.