1971 Buick Estate Wagon

The Buick Estate station wagon was introduced in 1940 riding on the GM C platform with a 121-inch wheelbase and wearing a wooden body. This was not the first station wagon built by Buick, as they had built a two-door station on the Series 50 (upon special request) in 1934. 1940 was the same year that Packard introduced its wooden-body station wagon One-Ten. Buick built 495 examples of its Series 50 Estate Wagon in 1940 with a base price of $1,240 compared to the approximately 358 examples of the Packard Station Wagon (on the models One-Ten ($1200) and One-Twenty ($1400)).

Buick's station wagon would serve a myriad of purposes throughout its existence, from a utilitarian workhorse to family transportation and even as a status symbol. It was a part of Buick's list of available body styles through the 1940s and 1950s, retired briefly in 1958 before it was revived in mid-1959 for the 1960 model year. The LeSabre Estate was built atop the B platform through 1965 when it was replaced by a smaller A platform Buick Sport Wagon.

When the Estate Wagon was re-introduced in 1970, it represented Buick's first full-size station wagon since 1964. It was given the B-Body platform of the LeSabre chassis with a generous 124-inch wheelbase and positioned as GM's most upscale full-sized wagon. It was designed as a multi-purpose vehicle capable of serving various load duties, with a second-row bench seat that had a 60/40 split for additional passengers and cargo, all in top-of-the-line style and luxury. It was motivated by Buick's 455 V8 paired with a three-speed TH-400 automatic transmission and had a retail price of just over $5,000. During 1970, Buick built 28,306 examples.

1971 Buick Estate Wagon
For 1971, Buick gave its Estate Wagons an even larger platform, with a 127-inch wheelbase. This C-body platform was shared with the Electra 225 and was the largest chassis since the Roadmaster Estates of 1947 through 1953. The interior and exterior styling of the 1971 to 1974 Estate was shared with the Electra 225.

Its engine was a 455 cubic-inch V8 with overhead valves, a cast-iron block, hydraulic valve lifters, a Rochester four-barrel carburetor, five main bearings, 8.5:1 compression, and 315 brake horsepower at 4,600 RPM. This engine, the same used in the Buick GSX, would continue to power the Estate through 1976. In 1974, Buick offered the Stage One high-performance option which added enlarged ports, enlarged valves, a high lift camshaft, and a dual exhaust. The transmission was a three-speed Turbo-Hydramatic TH-400.

The list of standard equipment included Full-Flo ventilation with louvers in the tailgate, four ventiports on each front fender, a Glide-Away tailgate, Custom-grade all-vinyl interior, bright rocker panel and wheelhouse moldings, Deluxe steering wheel, power brakes, variable-ratio power steering, plush pile carpeting, and a heater and defroster. They had a fully-padded instrument panel, remote control outside rearview mirror, and a windshield radio antenna. Woodgrain sides were available, along with a chrome luggage race, power door locks, a power Glide-Away tailgate, and a child safety seat.

The Estate Wagon with two rows of seating had a factory base price of $4,640, and most of the customers selected the three rows of seating with a factory base price of $4,790. A total of 15,335 had the extra row compared to 8,899 with the two rows.

by Daniel Vaughan | May 2022