1957 Buick Series 60 Century

Riding on a six-inch shorter wheelbase, the Century was a sportier version of Buick's range-topping Roadmaster. It shared its 122-inch wheelbase with the Series 40 Special and was equipped with the same engine found in the Super Series 50 and the Series 70 Roadmaster. It was an overhead valve V8 with a 364 cubic-inch displacement, five main bearings, hydraulic valve lifters, a four-barrel carburetor, and 10.0:1 compression. (It was similar to the engine used in the Special, except the Special had a 9.5:1 compression and a two-barrel carburetor). The engine in the Century produced 300 horsepower at 4,600 or 330 horsepower with the optional high-performance kit. A Dynaflow transmission was standard.

The styling was similar to the Special, except for a fourth ventiport on each front fender and series designation located on the rear quarters or doors and within the front and rear emblems. Body styles included a sedan, hardtop coupe, hardtop sedan, convertible coupe, and station wagon known as the 'Caballero'. Prices ranged from $3,300 to $3,830. The hardtop sedan was the most popular with 26,589 examples produced, followed by 17,029 of the hardtop coupe. 10,186 were station wagons, and 8,075 were the sedan. The Caballero wagon was both unpopular and expensive to manufacturer, with 14,642 examples produced between 1957 and 1958, so GM did not continue it after 1958.

The interiors were more comfortable than the Special, with Rivieras upholstered in Cordaveen and nylon combinations. The convertibles were done in leather and Cordaveen, and power seats and power windows were standard on this body style.

Standard equipment included foam rubber seat cushions, glovebox lamp, dual horns, trip mileage indicator, dual sunshades, directional signals, a Red Liner speedometer, and an automatic trunk lamp. Optional equipment included power steering, air conditioning, spotlight, DorGard, rear seat speaker, Selectronic radio, electric antenna, tissue dispenser, and seat belts.

The 1957 Buick Century was part of the second generation of styling, introduced in 1954 and continuing through 1958. In 1959, the Buick Century was renamed the Invicta.

by Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2019