1969 Buick Wildcat

The Buick Wildcat, named after a fiberglass-bodied concept car of 1953, was produced from 1962 to 1970. It was given a major restyling in 1965 that would continue through 1970, gaining a styling cue from the 1963 Buick Riviera, where the beltline arched up over the rear wheels, similar to the previous 'Sweepspear' styling, with later vehicles receiving a rub strip along the body side that tapered down as it neared the rear bumper. It continued to be the company's medium-priced, a full-size model with a performance persona, wearing the LeSabre's new 1965 body. Distinguishable features on the Wildcat included a die-cast grille with a large center emblem, Wildcat script on the deck and quarter panels, and Wildcat emblems on the full wheel covers and on the inside door panels.

A Gran Sport Performance Group package was a one-year-only offering in 1966 with two engine options available including a single carburetor 425 CID V8 with 340 horsepower or the dual-carburetor version with 360 horsepower. The latter version was initially a dealer-installed carburetor-intake modification attached to stock MT-code engines but later became available direct from the factory with MZ-coded engines. Along with the engine upgrades, the Gran Sport package added updated rear quarter-panel 'GS' badging, dual exhaust, positraction, and heavy-duty suspension. A mere 1,244 examples of the GS were built, including 242 convertibles.

A 430 cubic-inch V8 with four-barrel carburetion and 360 horsepower joined the Wildcat line for 1967 and continued through 1969. It was replaced in 1970 by a 455 CID engine that was essentially an enlarged version of the 430 CID and rated at 370 horsepower and over 500 ft-lbs of torque.

The 1969 Buick Wildcat was offered as a sedan, hardtop coupe, and hardtop sedan with prices that ranged from $3,450 to $3,600. The wildcat Custom was a hardtop coupe priced at $3,815, a hardtop sedan at $3,870, and a convertible listed at $3,950. The Custom trim level added vinyl or all-vinyl interiors, and notchback front seats.

The base Wildcat continued to wear LeSabre sheet metal with a unique grille with vertical texturing. There were five vertical bars on each front fender and Wildcat nameplates. Standard equipment included door-operated interior lights, rear seat ashtray, armrests, full carpeting, smoking set, glove compartment light, bucket seats, all-vinyl upholstery on the Sport Coupe, and cloth and vinyl or all-vinyl on the other body styles. Other standard features included a Deluxe steering wheel, and a 430 CID V8 with five main bearings, hydraulic valve lifters, and a Rochester four-barrel carburetor. A three-speed manual with column shift controls as standard and a Turbo Hydra-Matic 400 automatic was optional. Other options included power windows, air conditioning, map light on the rearview mirror, center console, a four-way power seat, and a six-way power seat.

The base Wildcat body styles had very similar production figures, with 13,126 of the sedan, 13,805 of the hardtop sedan, and 12,416 of the hardtop coupe. The Wildcat Custom had similar production figures, although only 2,375 examples were convertibles. 13,596 were hardtop sedans and 12,136 were hardtop coupes. The total Wildcat production accounted for approximately ten percent of Buick's 1969 production.

For its final year of production, the Wildcat was offered only in Custom trim. It was superseded by the Buick Centurion for 1971. The name would re-appear in 1985 for a mid-engine, all-wheel-drive concept car, and again in 1997 on the Riviera Wildcat concept car. Buick used the Wildcat for a total of five of its concept cars, three were in the early 1950s.

by Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2020