The Gran Sport name was used by Buick from 1965 for its high-performance cars. Because Cadillac built no performance models, the Buick GS cars were the most opulently equipped sporting models General Motors made.
Buick Gran Sport at a glance
| Maker | Buick, General Motors |
|---|---|
| Introduced | 1965, as an option on the Skylark |
| Engine | 401 cu in (6.6 L) nailhead V8 |
| Power | 325 hp (242 kW), 445 lb·ft |
| Renamed | GS 400 in 1967 |
| Own model | from about 1967 |
| Stage 1 option | 1969, 340 hp, under 1,500 cars |
| Gran Sport name | replaced GS with the 1973 model |
| Special editions | California GS and Colorado GS |
Based on one source, the English Wikipedia article on the Gran Sport, which also covers the GSX nameplate.
History of the Buick Gran Sport
The Gran Sport began in 1965 as an option on the intermediate Skylark. A 300-cubic-inch V8 was already available, but the Gran Sport took the largest engine GM permitted in an intermediate body: the 401-cubic-inch Buick V8, called a 400 by Buick because that was the limit for the class. It produced 325 hp (242 kW) and 445 lb·ft, and it was known as the nailhead.
Buick sold more than 15,000 Skylarks with the Gran Sport option in that first year, and almost as many the next. For 1967 the car was renamed the GS 400 and the Gran Sport became a model in its own right, with a new 400 engine quite different from the reliable but ageing nailhead that had first appeared in 1953.
Sales slipped as rival muscle cars became quicker and more popular, among them the Pontiac GTO, Chevrolet Chevelle SS and Oldsmobile 442. Buick responded in 1969 with the Stage 1 option, a limited-production version of fewer than 1,500 cars that delivered 340 hp (253 kW) and 440 lb·ft.
The Gran Sport also tried to offer the look of a muscle car at a lower price. The California GS, sold from 1967 to 1969 and marketed only in California, was a thin-pillar Skylark coupe with vinyl roof, chrome mouldings, GS emblems and special California scripts, but a smaller engine. The 1967 car used a 340-cubic-inch V8 of 260 hp with a Super Turbine 300 transmission; Car Life recorded a 16.7-second quarter mile at 81 mph and a top speed of 105 mph.
For 1968 the California GS moved to Buick’s new 350 four-barrel engine, 280 hp and 375 lb·ft, with the same two-speed transmission and a 3.23:1 axle. The 1969 version, the last, kept the 350 but gained the three-speed Turbo 350; Tom McCahill timed 0–60 mph in 9.5 seconds and a top speed of 110 mph. A similar package was sold in Colorado under that name instead.
The GS name was replaced by Gran Sport for the 1973 model, and the badge was revived in the late 1980s on the front-wheel-drive Skylark with various performance options.
Design and features
- Biggest allowed engine: the 401 nailhead, sold as a «400» to fit the class rules.
- Luxury muscle: the best-equipped sporting cars GM built at the time.
- Stage 1: the 1969 option, fewer than 1,500 cars.
- California GS: the look without the biggest engine, sold only in California.
Buick Gran Sport versions
- Skylark Gran Sport (1965–66): the original option package.
- GS 400 (1967): the renamed car with the new 400 engine.
- Stage 1 (1969): the high-output limited edition.
- California GS (1967–69): the junior muscle car for the West Coast.
- Gran Sport (1973): the name used as a model designation.
The Gran Sport was built on the Skylark, and its 455 Stage 1 engine later appeared in the Centurion. More Buicks are in the Buick collection.
Sources
- Buick Gran Sport, English Wikipedia: origins, engines, Stage 1, California GS
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