Buick Centurion
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The Buick Centurion is a
full-size car Full-size car—also known as large car—is a vehicle size class which originated in the United States and is used for cars larger than mid-size cars. It is the largest size class for cars. In the United Kingdom, this class is referred to as ...
built from the 1971 through 1973 model years. Replacing the
Wildcat The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while th ...
as the sporty iteration of Buick's three full-size car lines, it was positioned between the LeSabre and
Electra Electra, also spelt Elektra (; ; ), is one of the most popular Greek mythology, mythological characters in tragedies.Evans (1970), p. 79 She is the main character in two Greek tragedies, ''Electra (Sophocles play), Electra'' by Sophocles and ''Ele ...
in the lineup. The Centurion name was inspired by a Buick
concept car A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle or show vehicle) is a car made to showcase new styling or new technology. Concept cars are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not ...
, the name coming from that of an officer in the Roman Army. The car's emblem was not the traditional Buick tri-shield, but a side profile of a
centurion In the Roman army during classical antiquity, a centurion (; , . ; , or ), was a commander, nominally of a century (), a military unit originally consisting of 100 legionaries. The size of the century changed over time; from the 1st century BC ...
. The Centurion shared a trim package implementation shared with the Chevrolet Caprice, Pontiac Grand Ville and the Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale as a hardtop coupe, sedan and convertible.


1956 GM Motorama showcar

The Centurion name was first used on a
Buick Buick () is a division (business), division of the Automotive industry in the United States, American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Started by automotive pioneer David Dunbar Buick in 1899, it was among the first American automobil ...
concept car A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle or show vehicle) is a car made to showcase new styling or new technology. Concept cars are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not ...
in the 1956
Motorama Motorama may refer to: * General Motors Motorama, an auto show from 1949 to 1961 * ''Motorama'' (film), a 1991 film * Motorama (band), a Russian post-punk band {{disambig ...
. It featured a red and white
fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a common type of fibre-reinforced plastic, fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened i ...
body, airplane-like interior design, a fully clear "bubble top" roof and the first backup camera in place of a
rear-view mirror A rear-view mirror (or rearview mirror) is a, usually plane mirror, flat, mirror in automobiles and other vehicles, designed to allow the driver to see rearward through the vehicle's rear window (rear windshield). In cars, the rear-view mirror ...
, although it was never shown to be functional. This car currently resides in the Sloan Museum at the
Flint Cultural Center The Flint Cultural Center (FCC) is a campus of cultural, scientific, and artistic institutes located in Flint, Michigan, United States. The institutions located on the grounds of the FCC are the Flint Institute of Arts, Flint Institute of Music, S ...
in
Flint, Michigan Flint is the largest city in Genesee County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. Located along the Flint River (Michigan), Flint River northwest of Detroit, it is a principal city within the Central Michigan, Mid Michigan region. Flin ...
.


1971–1973

First seen on a concept car, the Centurion was nearly identical to the contemporaneous Buick LeSabre, differing in badging and grillework, minimal chrome trim, and an absence of the VentiPorts found on other full-size Buicks. Body styles included two-door and four-door
hardtop A hardtop is a rigid form of automobile roof, typically metal, and integral to the vehicle's design, strength, and style. The term typically applies to a pillarless hardtop, a car body style without a B-pillar. The term "pillared hardtop" was ...
s and a
convertible A convertible or cabriolet () is a Car, passenger car that can be driven with or without a roof in place. The methods of retracting and storing the roof vary across eras and manufacturers. A convertible car's design allows an open-air drivin ...
. There were no pillared sedans. The two-door hardtop shared the handsome semi-fastback roofline with the LeSabre and other GM B-body cars (such as the Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe and the Olds Delta 88) along with a standard vinyl roof.


1971

Replacing the Wildcat as the mid-line full-sized Buick positioned between the lower-priced LeSabre and the larger and more luxurious C-body Electra 225, the Centurion was promoted more as a mid-level luxury car than the Wildcat, which was marketed as a sporty/luxury performance car. The Centurion was offered initially with only the big-block V8 in two power output ranges determined by the presence of either a single or dual exhaust. The 1971 Centurion produced at 4400 rpm and of torque at 2800 rpm with the base 455. The Centurion was also offered in the 455 Stage 1 and manual transmission configuration as well during the early portion of the 1971 model year, shared with the Buick GSX. This was known as the A9 and B6 Option when ordering the car. What also separated the car from the LeSabre was that when the car would be ordered or recognized as a Centurion it would be branded as a 4P Series as the first two letters of the
Vehicle Identification Number A vehicle identification number (VIN; also called a chassis number or frame number) is a unique code, including a serial number, used by the automotive industry to identify individual motor vehicles, towed vehicles, motorcycles, scooters a ...
. Interior trim was upgraded from LeSabres with a notchback bench seat including center armrest standard equipment along with more luxurious cloth-and-vinyl or all-vinyl upholstery. In March 1971, the three-speed Turbo Hydra-matic transmission became standard on all Centurions as well as the lower-priced LeSabres. Variable-ratio power steering and power front disc brakes were standard equipment during the entire model year. Total sales were 29,398, exceeding the Wildcat by nearly 25%.


1972

The 1972 Centurion featured minor appearance changes including a revised vertical bar grille and taillight lenses. Under the hood, the standard and only available 455 cubic-inch V8 was rated at 250 net horsepower, which represented an "on-paper" decrease from the 315 gross horsepower rating in 1971. This was due to an industry-wide change in horsepower measurements from the gross method by a dynamometer outside a vehicle with no accessories installed to a SAE net method in which horsepower was measured as installed in a vehicle with accessories and emission controls hooked up. Turbo Hydra-matic transmission, variable ratio power steering and power front disc brakes were again standard equipment. Sales climbed over 20%, to 36,165 for the model year.Flory, p.874.


1973

The 1973 Centurion featured a larger front bumper and new vertical grille shared with LeSabre models along with revised taillights. The two-door hardtop coupe no longer included a standard vinyl roof and the distinctive formal rear window was replaced by a backlight shared with LeSabre coupes. Under the hood, the standard engine was downgraded to a four-barrel 350 V8 rated at 175 net horsepower. The 250-horsepower 455 four-barrel was now optional. With the LeSabre convertible temporarily dropped after 1972 and the intermediate-sized Buick lineup (renamed from Skylark to Century for 1973) losing its droptop permanently after the 1972 model year, the Centurion was Buick's only convertible offering in 1973. This would also be the final year for the Centurion series, which was replaced for 1974 by the new LeSabre Luxus, which included the convertible reinstated to that line for another two model years. GM would not see another Buick convertible until the
Buick Riviera The Buick Riviera is a personal luxury car that was marketed by Buick from 1963 to 1999, with the exception of the 1994 model year. As General Motors' first entry into the personal luxury car market segment, the Riviera was highly praised by au ...
in 1982. Total Centurion production was 110,539 units, including 10,296 convertibles. With only three years of production, the Centurion had one of the shortest model runs in modern Buick history.


References


External links


Buick Centurion Registry
{{Sloan Museum
Centurion In the Roman army during classical antiquity, a centurion (; , . ; , or ), was a commander, nominally of a century (), a military unit originally consisting of 100 legionaries. The size of the century changed over time; from the 1st century BC ...
Full-size vehicles Rear-wheel-drive vehicles Convertibles Coupés Sedans Motor vehicles manufactured in the United States Cars introduced in 1971