“On a lark” is a phrase that means “just for fun”, for those unfamiliar with it. I can think of few better ways to end a workweek than to drive one’s classic Buick to work and then out for a drive after leaving the office for the day. Last week was bookended by sightings of two vintage Buick Skylarks, with the newer car appearing on Monday and the classic droptop materializing on Friday afternoon. I can’t vouch for the model year of the X-Body, but from the taillamp lenses (if original), it’s either a first-year, front-wheel-drive ’80 or an ’81.
The newer car was the first such Skylark I’ve seen in traffic in what must be at least fifteen years… and it appeared to be in pristine condition. Even though this shot is somewhat blurry, one can clearly see a shiny finish, with a sidewalk scene nicely reflected on its passenger-side doors. Someone had actually preserved one of these. My money’s on the possibility that a grandparent (great-grandparent?) had gifted it to the current owner. The travel-sized-Electra styling really comes through, especially from this rear three-quarter angle.
The sight of the beautiful ’64 convertible made me gasp when I first spotted it as I walked toward the Red Line train station. Traffic tends to creep eastward toward Lake Shore Drive during rush hour, but I thought I had no chance of catching up to this car in time to get a few photos, after it had passed me several city blocks west. To my surprise, I was able to catch it at main thoroughfare State Street, in probably what must be one of the first and few times for which I’ve been thankful for the slowness and general, seeming confusion of out-of-town drivers in afternoon Loop traffic during summer.
I consider the Skylark to be the most attractive of the four, downsized X-Body variants, especially in four-door form. However, its starkly geometric forms stand in direct contrast to the sweeping, dynamic lines of the ’64, which was one of 10,225 Skylark convertibles produced for the model year. The older car seems to combine the restrained elegance that was then Buick’s calling card with a youthful, almost cosmic or Space-Age flair, especially in that shade of aqua, called “Teal Mist” from the factory. And check out that beautiful interior of white vinyl. Not counting the early and latter-day Oldsmobile Starfire as the only example that comes to mind at this writing, could two other cars that share the same make and model names be more different from each other than our two featured cars in image, concept and execution?
Downtown, The Loop, Chicago, Illinois.
Monday, 6/25/18 & Friday, 6/29/18.
“travel-sized Electra”… Priceless, Joseph.
I seem to recall the mention of the “My Cousin Vinny” car the other day when we were talking about GTO(s) and Tempests.
IIRC, one of these was the defendants’ car.
Prompted by the discussion the other day I looked it up on imcdb.org. Apart from the paint color, this is exactly the defendants’ car.
Haha – thanks, R-S Rick. That phrase came to me in a moment of inspiration. 🙂
Although I am squarely and unabashedly a Cutlass Guy for 1964, that Buick has probably the most dramatic rear end of any of the 1964 A body cars. But that overly wide piece of trim on the side undoes all that the back end does for me. This is one of the few instances where I prefer the lower-trim Special to the Skylark because of the narrow trim strip on the lower model. Still, an attractive car that would be made even more attractive by appropriate width whitewalls.
I remember a former co-worker who got a low mile Century of about the same vintage and condition from his mother in law – probably in the early 90s. He went to trade it in on something and the dealer would give him next to nothing, explaining that once he put the necessary tires on it all of his margin would go “poof”.
The wide, bodyside chrome strip doesn’t really bother me, but I agree with you on the whitewalls – especially combined with the white top and interior. Those tires really set off the overall look of the car for me.
I admit to liking the x car skylark a lot. But reliability and problems aside, each one has it’s own lovable traits. i happen to prefer the Citation X-11 hatchback. i like the 4 door Phoenix hatch and there is a lot to be said for the X omega. What can i say about that beautiful skyark convertible that hasnt been said already? Those whitewalls hit off that paint job beautifully and the lines on that car are stunning!!!
Great finds and photos! I’ve always had a soft spot for Buicks and these are two of my favorites. The Special/Skylark was generally my favorite of GM’s 1960s A bodies, as they were generally a cleaner design than the Pontiac and Olds equivalents and more nicely trimmed than the Chevelle. After the reprint of Jason Shafer’s article about the 4-door Tempest last week, I would have a hard time deciding between this convertible and a 4-door hardtop equivalent. On a June Friday in Chicago rush hour traffic, the convertible might just win!
The 1980-81 Skylark seemed to wear its “travel-size Electra” (love that phrase!) styling cues far better than Omega and Phoenix wore their downsized 98 Regency and Bonneville Brougham duds. There were lots of these Skylarks in my neighborhood growing up and indeed a few of them did in fact replace full-size Buicks, though typically a LeSabre rather than a Deuce-and-a-Quarter. The best feature was the plush interior, which was several steps up from the hard plastics found in lower line Pontiac and Olds versions and the Citation.
To answer the question of differences across generations of cars of the same make and model, just compare a 1958 Cadillac Sedan Deville with its 1985 counterpart. The exuberance of the older car clashes with the determined sobriety of the angular lines of the newer one.
William, I don’t believe the 4 door hardtops showed up until the 1966-67 “second half” of this generation. 4 door buyers were stuck with sedans in 1964-65. I agree with you though, those 4 door hardtops were lookers!
William, I’ll agree with you on the DeVille as an example of differences across generations.
I also remember seeing a fair amount of FWD, X-Body Skylarks out and about in the ’80s, but I realize that my own experience / perception of their popularity might be somewhat skewed, given that I grew up in Flint, Michigan – former home of Buick World Headquarters. I understand that the relative popularity of various Buicks was different in other parts of the U.S. than it was in Flint.
Excellent to see these cars!
The Skylark convertible is beautiful–the color combo with the top down in Chicago makes for a perfect picture. As an aside, my grandmother Wowo had a ’64 Skylark sedan with the reverse colors: hers was white outside and teal inside.
For the FWD X-Body variant, I love your description of the “travel-sized Electra”–that nails it! I think of these cars as under-appreciated examples of Bill Mitchell’s styling genius. He had a knack for taking familiar brand styling cues and repackaging them, and this Skylark is a prime case in point. Made for a great choice for a Buick owner looking for something smaller–or a small car buyer wanting to “step-up” to a Buick. Either way, it’s little wonder these cars sold so well initially, before their abysmal quality reputation caught up with them.
I did not really comment on the X Skylark, but I agree – I found this the nicest done of all the X cars, and Joe’s description is spot-on. These were quite successful in looking like little Buicks, especially inside. I recall quite a few elderly ladies tootling around in these for many years.
GN, I’ll agree with you that Buick’s stylists did a great job of distilling that Tri-Shield flavor into a small package – much more effectively with these FWD Skylarks than with either generation of Skyhawk.
Funny, just a few days ago I was reading an old interview with the guy whose job it is to find all the old cars used in The Americans. He mentioned how difficult it is to find appropriate cars, even more so because the producers specifically wanted nondescript cars, because — and this is exactly what he said — “Nobody saves a 1980 Buick Skylark.”
Ha! I guess at least one person did. Too bad no one introduced him to this car’s owner when the show was filming.
The edit button isn’t showing up for me, but here’s the actual interview. https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a28350/the-americans-prop-master-duke-scoppa/
The exact quote was: “The problem is, a lot of these cars are not collectors items, so nobody has these cars. Nobody cares about saving a 1980 Buick Skylark.”
Very nice! I’m glad somebody cared about saving this 1980 (or ’81) Skylark!
My favorite ’64 GM A-body and Skylark is the Sportwagon. Vistacruiser is the far better know name, but I much prefer Buick styling. My uncle owned one. I remember how premium everything looked. The grille was chromed cast metal, not stamped aluminum. The load area was carpeted with bright metal strips. Our Impala was just painted steel.
I am classic vehicle fan and collector. My latest buy is A body 72 Buick Skylark coupe emerald green exterior color with black vinyl bench interior 350 4B, Factory AMFM radio, Factory AC, rally wheels 1 owner since new has 55K original miles with all documentation window sticker and manuals. this is original seller AD before I bought it https://www.connorsmotorcar.com/vehicles/445/1972-buick-skylark
I’ve longed for Buicks ever since I was a kid, as Chevrolet was top notch in foreign car starved Uruguay in the mid-70s. When the typical family car was a Fiat 128, the economy car was a Fiat 600, the deluxe car was a Fiat 125, even though there were some Fords and Opels and Peugeots…a Buick was certainly something else. You could get a bow tie, though, as long as it was a Brazilian Chevette.
It might come as odd that I like better the X-body. That’s easy, we had a Nova and I remember reading Motort Trends, R&T, and C/D about the new Novas. I even remember a drawing showing the new X with a “Nova” decal. I guess that was around 1978.
But there is something even more meaningful than one or two great Buicks in the story. Chicago was the first American city I visited, 20 years back. I came back more than a dozen times. Coming from a seaside city, I can feel some likeness with Lake Shore Drive. Chicago is the place where I first entered big, 1st world museums, and also where I first rode in an Impala cab. It also was the first city where I took my wife and children as soon as I was able, and after more than 12 years or so and doubling their age then the Field Museum is imprinted on them. I probably haven’t travelled enough for current standards, but Chicago is one of THE places in the world I dream about.
Rafael, thank you so much for your great perspective – on both the Buicks and Chicago. I am so glad that your Windy City experiences were great ones. I hope you can make it back when you are able. I have yet to travel to South America – and it is on my list of places to go.
“Travel-sized Electra” is good, but I immediately thought “baby LeSabrey”.
“could two other cars that share the same make and model names be more different from each other than our two featured cars in image, concept and execution?”
How about the Mercury Capri? Early models were sporty RWD sport coupes from Germany with sharp styling, solid design, and great driving dynamics. The last models sold were FWD “sporty” convertibles from Australia with questionable styling, so-so design and very average driving dynamics.
For those who argue the German Capri was not a “real Mercury,” I’ll note the car appeared in several full line Mercury brochures back in the day. But if you stand by your argument, go ahead and substitute the fire breathing 5.0 Fox Body, which provides an equally strong contrast.
Finally, there’s the fifties era Lincoln Capri, but I think we can all agree Lincoln is a different make…
FoMoCo repurposed the Capri name many times:
v1.0-A 58-60 huge Lincoln
v2.0 2-door coupe version of the British Consul
v3.0 The Anglo-German coupe we know and love
v4.0 The Fox body
v5.0 The FWD Ozzie Roadster
As someone who believes the European Capri (some were built in England and Belgium, as well as West Germany) was not a Mercury, let me say that they were only featured in full-line “Lincoln-Mercury” sales brochures and they were only sold in “Lincoln-Mercury” dealers. There were a lot of Ford-Mercury dealers, as well as a handful of standalone Mercury dealers, and they did not sell the European Capri.
There was also the mid-sized 1967 Mercury Capri, available as a 2-door hardtop coupe or 4-door sedan. The Capri name in this context was first used in 1966 as a sub-series of the mid-sized Mercury Comet. Then in 1967 Mercury dropped the Comet name from their mid-sized cars, with the exception of the bottom-of-the-line Comet 202. The 1967 mid-sized Mercury lineup consisted of Cyclone, Caliente, Capri, and Comet 202, as well as the Villager and Voyager station wagons which appear to have been trimmed comparably to the Capri. In 1968 the Caliente was replaced by the Montego MX and the Capri by the plain Montego.
Dave, these are excellent examples. Thank you! I’ve been pondering my own question since I drafted this piece last weekend.
When I was young man back in 1968 I worked for a Buick dealer in Sayville, NY I bought a used 64 skylark coupe someone traded in. Had that car for four years and sold it
One of my many favorite cars o owned. Now retired and living in Southbury CT. I was delivering a part to a body shop and found a nother 64 skylark like I had as a young man. I bought it that day two years ago and been driving since. The car only has 53k miles on it and enjoy driving it around.
Great comparison Joe! That ’64 is absolutely stunning, especially in Teal Mist color. I can’t quite say the same regarding “beauty” of the ’80, but nonetheless it’s an incredible find!
GM’s major restyle of all its intermediates for 1964 was a big hit. Abandoning all pretense of cutting edge technology (rope drive Tempests, F-85 turbos, overhead cam sixes) GM merely produced slightly smaller versions of its full sizers and the public ate them up. Totally conventional, but beautifully styled at a time where Bill Mitchell was at the top of his game. This formula worked so well it was repeated with the ’68 restyle, again with great results. In ’64 I liked the Skylark the best, with those cool spinner wheel covers. There were everywhere at the time.
Chrysler Aspen v. Dodge Aspen comes to mind, as does the rebadged Mitsubishi sold as the Dodge Challenger v. the original Challenger, and the much derided ’86 Eldorado v. a ’74 Eldorado Convertible.
Travel size Electra is a perfect description.
Oh, and of course Chrysler slapped the New Yorker name on nearly everything, so New Yorker and LeBaron were well abused.
Ooooo… This is a great one. The Chrysler New Yorker. Score one for SavageATL!
Wow-that ’64 Skylark is beautiful; I really liked the ’64-67 Buick Skylarks, I think my favorite with the ’65; I especially liked the full width tail lights on them. Regarding the Buick version of the X-cars, the Limited had a really luxurious interior-easily the most attractive of all the GM X cars, unfortunately from a mechanical standpoint they were junk.
I definitely dig the full-width taillamps on the ’65 – that was a move forward. I liked that the taillights on the ’65 seemed to serve as the inspiration for those on the N-Body Somerset / Somerset Regal / Skylark.
For going wayward with a model name, Thunderbird and Town & Country come quickly to mind….
I liked the ’80 Skylark Limited when it was new – it really felt like a pint-size Electra for better or worse. The ’64 looks nice in the way all ’60s GM cars look good but it’s far from my favorite.
Exactly what’s the story of “Skylark” being moved from the mid-sized cars to the smaller X body that originally was called Apollo?
RE: the RWD X-Body Skylark’s name change, I’m thinking Buick dropped “Apollo” for “Skylark” for the same reason (and around the same time) that Plymouth changed the name of their intermediate from “Satellite” to “Fury” – the space-age connotations were probably seen as a passe throwback to the ’60s by the mid-’70s.
And I agree with your examples of T&C and to some extent, also Thunderbird. The T-Bird always seemed special to me until the 10th-generation was looking long-in-the-tooth toward the end. I did like the final two-seater.