1957 Buick Series 50 Super

The entry-level Buick for 1957 was the Special and priced in the mid-$2,000 to $3,200 range. The Century was the performance line, resting on the short wheelbase and powered by the most potent engine, shared with the Super and Roadmaster. The Super was larger than the Special and Century bodies and wore new C-Body treatment for 1957. The Roadmaster was the top-of-the-line model, priced from $3,940 to $4,070.

The Buick Super Series 50 shared its 127.5-inch wheelbase with the Roadmaster, had a Dynaflow Drive transmission, four ventiports on each front fender, and equipped with foam rubber seat cushions and an automatic trunk lamp. Body styles included a hardtop coupe, priced at $3,540, a hardtop sedan at $3,680, and a convertible coupe listed at just under $4,000. The Hardtop Coupe was the most popular, with 41,665 examples produced. 26,529 were hardtop coupes and 2,056 were convertible coupes.

Power was from an overhead valve V8 with five main bearings, hydraulic valve lifters, a four-barrel carburetor, 10.0:1 compression, and delivered 300 horsepower at 4,600 RPM.

The Buick Super had series identification on each rear quarter or door, along with three Chevrons, and series identification on the deck emblems and within the grille. The closed body styles were upholstered in Nylon and Cordaveen combinations, and the convertible had an all-Cordaveen interior with power windows and seat controls.

Standard equipment included directional signals, dual sunshades, outside left-hand rearview mirror, trip mileage indicator, dual horns, Red Liner speedometer, and glovebox lamp.

The following year, only two body styles were offered on the Super as the convertible was no longer offered.

1957 and 1958 were part of the fifth generation of styling on the Buick Super. The name was retired in 1958, resurrected fifty years later, in 2008 as a performance trim level on LaCrosse and Lucerne models.

by Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2018