Buick super

Buick Series 50 Buick Super Series 50
Production period:	1930-1958
Class :	Upper class
Body versions :	Touring car , roadster , sedan , station wagon , coupé , convertible
Previous model:	Buick Master Six
Successor:	Buick Wildcat

The Buick Super was a series of passenger cars manufactured by Buick in the model years 1930 to 1935 and from 1940 to 1958 as the successor to the 121 series in the USA.

Until 1935 the series was only called Series 50 . From 1940 the name Super was added.

Series

Series 50 (1930)

1st generation
Image does not exist
Production period:	1930
Body versions :	Limousine , coupe
Engines:	Otto engine : 5.4 liters (74 kW)
Length:
Width:
Height:
Wheelbase :	3150 mm
Empty weight :	1866-1918 kg

The new six-cylinder models for 1930 had a top-controlled engine having a displacement of 5431 cc and a power of 99 HP (74 kW) at 2800 min ^-1 . The wheelbase of the cars, only available as a 2-door coupé and 4-door sedan, was a uniform 3150 mm.

Compared to the previous model in the 121 series , the cars were 50 mm lower and more elegant.

That year 28,204 Buick 50 series were built.

Series 50 (1931–1935)

2nd generation
Buick 56 Business Coupe (1932)
Production period:	1931-1935
Body versions :	Touring car , roadster , sedan , coupé , cabriolet
Engines:	Gasoline engines : 3.6 to 3.9 liters (57 to 62 kW)
Length:
Width:
Height:
Wheelbase :	2896 to 3023 mm
Empty weight :	1330 to 1955 kg

From spring 1931 Buick offered the 50 series with little changed body, only the wheelbase had shrunk by 10 ″ to 2896 mm and the radiator grille had slightly rounded edges. New to the line eight-cylinder engine with 3617 cc displacement and an output of 57 kW at 3200 rpm was ^-1 .

After the entry-level model of the 40 series was discontinued, the 50 series offered seven different bodies with two or four doors as the new entry-level model.

In 1932 there was again a new radiator grille and new fenders, but above all a larger engine with 3776 cm³ and 62 kW.

In 1933 the appearance of the car was extensively redesigned. The radiator grille was given a slightly backward sloping V-shape, the fenders were given a more elegant curve, the bonnet had three large vertical ventilation flaps on each side and the car was a little lower. The wheelbase increased to 3,023 mm.

Buick 56C Cabriolet (1934)

The range of superstructures was significantly streamlined: there was only a four-door sedan, a two-door coupé and a two-door cabriolet. The engine output increased to 64 kW.

There were only cosmetic changes in 1934 (e.g. two horizontal ventilation slots instead of the ventilation flaps on the sides of the bonnet). A further enlarged eight-cylinder engine had a displacement of 3851 cc and developed 62 kW. This means that the 50 series was still less motorized than the entry-level 40 series with 69 kW, which was reintroduced in the same year.

In the 1935 model year, the previous year's models continued to be produced unchanged. The series 50 then ran out without replacement.

By autumn 1935, 127,416 series 50 vehicles were built in just under five years.

Super Series 50 (1940–1952)

3rd generation
Buick Super 56C Sports Coupe (1940)
Production period:	1940-1952
Body versions :	Touring car , limousine , coupé , convertible
Engines:	Otto engines : 4.05 to 4.3 liters (80 to 93 kW)
Length:	5182-5398 mm
Width:
Height:
Wheelbase :	3073-3150 mm
Empty weight :	1640-1889 kg

At the beginning of 1940, the 50 series cars appeared again, but this was a better equipped variant of the 40 series special and was given the nickname “Super”.

Like the “Special”, the Super had a wheelbase of 3,073 mm and new bodies without running boards and with headlights integrated into the front fenders. The radiator grille had horizontal chrome bars and a wide shape that was strongly raised in the middle.

In addition to a four-door touring sedan, a two-door coupé and a two-door convertible with an attached trunk, there was a four-door Phaeton and a five-door station wagon. As the Special the two models was cm³ of a series of eight-cylinder engine with 4064 and a power of 80 kW at 3400 min ^-1 driven.

In the 1941 model year, the headlight housings were completely integrated into the front fenders, which had increased in volume. The Phaeton was now available with two instead of four doors, whereby the station wagon was omitted. The engine output rose to 93 kW, 13 kW more than the Special.

In 1942, the last year of pre-war production, the Super got a new face. The flat, horseshoe-shaped grille was now back on vertical chrome bars. The wheelbase grew to the old size from 1930, 3150 mm. The engines performed slightly less than in the previous year (88 kW).

In 1946 automobile production began again with the last pre-war models, which were only slightly changed. The engine of the pre-war special with 82 kW was used; the wheelbase was a uniform 3073 mm.

In addition to a four-door sedan, there was a two-door sedanette (hatchback sedan), a two-door convertible and a five-door station wagon. Up to and including 1948 there were only minor external changes. In 1949 the wheelbase shrank again to 3,073 mm.

In 1950, the vertical chrome bars on the radiator grille extended into the front bumpers. A two-door hardtop coupé was added as a fifth body shape. The wheelbase grew slightly by ½ ″ to 3086 mm. There was again a one-piece windshield. Above all, there was a bigger engine. The new line eight-cylinder had a displacement of 4315 cc and provided 92 kW at 3600 rpm ^-1 .

In the following year there were only cosmetic changes. The radiator grille with narrower vertical chrome bars was framed by the front bumper lowered in the middle and a solid chrome clasp above the radiator grille.

In 1952, too, little was changed in the appearance of the vehicles. Only the coupé (with B-pillars) was dropped.

Before the end of World War II , 253,837 series 50 cars were built. After that, 1,170,204 units were produced by autumn 1952.

Buick Super 51 4-door Sedan (1946)
Buick Super Sedanette (1949)
Buick Super 52 4-door Sedan (1952)

Super Series 50 (1953–1958)

4th generation
Buick Super 51 Sedan (1953)
Production period:	1953-1958
Body versions :	Sedan , station wagon , coupé , convertible
Engines:	Petrol engines : 5.3–6.0 liters (122–224 kW)
Length:	5425-5565 mm
Width:
Height:
Wheelbase :	3226-3239 mm
Empty weight :	1741-2039 kg

1953 there was the new V8 engine of 5277 cc, a power output of 122 kW at 4000 min ^-1 scooped during the Special had to make do even with the old inline eight-cylinder engine. There were few changes to the bodywork.

In 1954 the Super appeared with a new pontoon body. All fenders were integrated into the body and there was a small swing of the hips in the area of the rear doors. The windshield was designed as a panoramic window . The wheelbase grew to 3226 mm. Since there was again a five-door station wagon for the Special from this model year, it was no longer available for the Super. The engine output increased to 132 kW.

1955 shows the Super with a large shark's mouth in front and small tail fins in the back. The engine output increased to 176 kW with the same displacement.

In the following year, the shark's mouth became wider and a four-door hardtop sedan was offered as an additional body shape. The engine output increased to 190 kW.

While the front remained almost the same in 1957, the tail fins and the swing of the hips were significantly enlarged. The V8 engine was also enlarged to a displacement of 5965 cm³. The power increased to 224 kW. The normal sedan (with B-pillars) was dropped and the other models had a wheelbase that was ½ ″ larger to 3239 mm.

The Buick Super was thoroughly revised for 1958. The shark's mouth had mutated into a grille over the entire width of the vehicle, over which double headlights were enthroned. The tail fins grew huge, and there were broad chrome strips on the sides of the rear doors and fenders.

Technically, nothing changed in the last year before the model was replaced, only the convertible was dropped, so that the series only consisted of two hardtop models. In the following year, the 50 series was no longer produced. It wasn't until four years later that the Wildcat replaced the Super.

By autumn 1958, 635,243 cars of the last series 50 were built.

Buick Super Estate Wagon (1953)
Buick Super 56R hardtop coupe (1955)
Buick Super Coupe (1958)

Web links

Commons : Buick Series 50 - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Commons : Buick Super - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

swell

Kimes, Beverly R., Clark, Henry A .: Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942. Krause Publications Inc., Iola 1985, ISBN 0-87341-045-9 .
Gunnell, John (Editor): Standard Catalog of American Cars 1946-1975. Krause Publications Inc., Iola 2002, ISBN 0-87349-461-X .