(first posted 12/12/2013) “The last of its kind”. “An end of an era”. “The final chapter”. These may be clichés, but are nevertheless appropriate when describing the 1996 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon. As American as apple pie, the traditional full-size station wagon as we know it graced the driveways of millions of American homes from the end of the WWII through the early 1990s. But like sands through the hourglass, so are the cars of our lives. After years of steadily declining popularity, the great American station wagon quietly faded away. The 1996 Buick Roadmaster Estate and Chevrolet Caprice twins were the last American full-size, V8, body-on-frame station wagons available to mankind.
The 1991-1996 Roadmaster Estate was the last in a long line of Buick Estate Wagons. Buick had been using the “Estate” name on their station wagons (or “estates”, as they are called elsewhere in the world) as early as the 1940s, but the iconic Di-Noc wood-paneled Buick Estate Wagon first hit the scene in 1970. As Cadillac did not produce any station wagons, the Estate Wagon was generally seen as General Motor’s most prestigious wagon, although price and equipment levels were often close to other GM brands’ most expensive wagons.
Arriving in the final year of the bodystyle released in 1965, the first generation Estate Wagon would last only one year. A fully redesigned “clamshell” Estate Wagon arrived in 1971. Tipping the scales at over 5,000 lbs, these Estates were likely the biggest station wagons of all time. In the midst of the Estate’s “fat years” came the first oil crisis. Sales of these 2 1/2 ton behemoths suffered greatly, signaling the big wagon’s vulnerability. As gas prices subsided, sales rebounded, though never to historic highs.
The Estate Wagon was downsized along with all other B-bodies for 1977. These were some of the best looking full-size station wagons ever, in my opinion. Their styling was clean, elegant–and dare I say, graceful.
Apart from a new front clip in 1980, this generation would continue largely unchanged for an unusually long 14 model years, surviving even the downsizing and switch to front-wheel drive of its Electra and LeSabre siblings. Lighter tone Di-Noc woodgrain seemed to enhance its premium intentions. Between 1980 and 1989, the Estate Wagon was also given “LeSabre” and “Electra” prefixes to differentiate trim levels.
The B-bodies were significantly overhauled for 1991, receiving all-new “aero” sheet metal. The resulting look drew lukewarm reception, with critics’ “beached whale” and “upside-down bathtub” nicknames evoking thoughts of late-’40s Packards and Hudsons.
I have to agree with these less-than admirable feelings towards the 1991 B-body wagons. While certainly elderly, in their 14th year wearing the same basic styling the 1990 wagons were at least tastefully styled, if not ultra-conservative. The ’91s were too aero for a car of their girth. Despite nearly identical dimensions, they somehow managed to look bigger and considerably more bloated.
Buick’s sole 1991 RWD offering was once again the Estate Wagon. However, in a nostalgic twist, the car’s official name was “Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon”, marking the first use of Buick’s historic flagship nameplate since 1958. A Roadmaster sedan would arrive the following year, though curiously wearing unique front sheet metal.
Among highlights of the new Roadmaster Estate Wagon was the fixed second-row “Vista Roof” (a feature shared with its Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser sibling), and a detuned version of the Corvette’s LT1 V8 from 1994-1996.
The final B-bodies weren’t renowned for their material quality, but I’m sure interiors offered everything traditional buyers were used to. Large analogue gauges, wide door-pull straps, acres of tacked-on fake wood and living room cushy bench seats (although more in the style of a Sharper Image massage chair than Nana’s button-tufted parlor chair).
As you can see, the state of the interior was rather messy. I chose not to photograph the rear seats, which were folded down and covered over by a tarp and other assorted junk.
I remember laughing to myself when I came across the steering wheel club while I was photographing this car. I photographed it in the commuter rail parking lot in Hingham, MA–a very low-crime, upper-crust town where the median home price is $650,000 and ranks #10 on the list of Massachusetts’s towns with the most millionaires. Maybe there’s a black market for 20-year-old station wagons I’m not aware of?
Especially from the rear view, these wagons were WIDE! Somehow GM designers were always good at making a big car look even bigger.
Figuratively speaking, with a relatively short wheelbase and narrow track, the car’s body appeared to “spill” over its chassis. This characteristic was present in the sedan, but the Estate Wagon’s larger derrière accentuated it to a further degree. This angle especially gives light to the “beached whale” comparison.
On a more positive side, if there was any ’91-’96 B-body that made the sheet metal work best, it was the Roadmaster Estate. Its classic waterfall grille and stand-up hood ornament announced its sheer size and presence in a traditional American way.
The Di-Noc woodgrain applique, in “light colonial oak”, was one of the most attractive Di-Noc woodgrains in the history of station wagons. Along with the extra-wide (albeit, rather cheap-looking) tacked-on brightwork, it brought some much-needed visual contrast to the expansive side sheet metal.
Indeed, the styling of these final B-body wagons was subjective, but likely not the determining factor in their declining sales. Full-size station wagon sales had been waning since the mid-1980s, a result of the minivan and SUV’s flourishing popularity. Much in the way that minivans are commonly viewed today, by the early-1990s, station wagons were seen as uncool, outdated family haulers–the cars of our penny-pinching parents. Offering comparative levels of passenger capacity and cargo volume, and considerably more snob appeal, minivans, and to a much greater extent, SUVs, were the preferred family vehicle of late-Boomers and Gen Xers, who gladly opened their wallets for one.
Largely because of this, it’s no mystery that full-size station wagon sales kept sliding while minivan and SUV sales grew exponentially. In 1992, GM made a nod over 29,000 full-size station wagons (13,400 Caprices, 11,491 Roadmasters, and 4,347 Custom Cruisers). That same year, Chrysler moved some 250,000 Plymouth Voyagers and Ford sold nearly 300,000 Explorers. GM was also highly successful with SUVs, owning some 50% of the full-size SUV market by the early-2000s. With their high demand, higher transaction prices, and less-stringent fuel economy standards, SUVs were a win-win for automakers at the time.
Although the B-body (mainly Caprice sedans, however) sold well enough in fleet sales, GM wanted an even bigger piece of the lucrative SUV market. It was decided that the factory where B-body production took place would be retooled to make these more profitable SUVs. 1996 would be the end of the line for these last true American station wagons. Symbolic of this final year, all Roadmasters were badged as “Collector’s Editions”. While SUVs, minivans, and even crossovers have certainly matched their size and carrying capacity, nothing can quite compare to the presence of the full-size, wood-grained station wagon.
There was a nearby Buick dealer who had a ’96 Estate wagon identical to this one that sat on the lot (and sat, and sat, and sat) for a ridiculously long time. You are correct, wagon sales just weren’t happening.
Popular Mechanics took an early Roadmaster wagon like this one and installed the front clip from a sedan. Oddly, it seems as if it was not a direct bolt-on affair, although it completely changed the character of the car.
These are nice, but if I was looking for a wagon, I would be much more tempted by the older versions.
I thought that the sheetmetal was a direct swap, and the biggest issue was that the trim didn’t line-up. If you search the web you’ll quickly find pics of RM wagons where the owners have swapped sedan front clips onto them.
That does make sense; working from memory can be risky at times!
Fascinating, I like that good old angry Buick look. Photo from this forum thread on the subject.
I agree the proper Buick front end looks better than the Caprice sheetmetal with a Buick style grille tacked on.
Nice! I like it!
That is one of those weird GM things. More recently why did the front cap on about the 02 pickups change but not on the Yukon, Suburban and Tahoe. And why does the Large SUVs have different front caps from the Pickups now and it appears the 2015 redesign will also be different. I always thought the big SUV’s are marketed as trucks.
If you also notice the 1970 Estate has “LeSabre” style rear doors, The 1971-1976 had “Electra” style rear doors. (Same with Oldsmobile. ) These were all “B” bodies,but “C” style doors, GM started confusing sheetmetal work well before the ’90s!
71-76 Buick Wagons had 127″ wheelbase, as per C-body Electra, but according to wikipedia had B-body numbers, which is still confusing.
There were no less than six(!) different wheelbase lengths (122, 124, 125, 127, 130, and 133″) used on the full-sized ’71-’76 GM cars. And as had been the case since 1959, all GM full-sized cars were just variations in length on the same basic body structure, so the ‘B’ and ‘C’ Body designations really aren’t very relevant after 1959. Before then, the B and C Bodies were totally different in every way.
The station wagons used a unique rear suspension and frame, and many other parts. They were all the same basic body from the cowl back; the B-O-P version had a 3″ stretch in the front end.
So calling the wagons a B or C Body is not relevant; they are their own body, effectively. And are the Pontiac, Olds 88 and Buick LeSabre B or C Bodies? They also had the three inch front stretch over the Chevy. Then the 98 and Electra got another three inches in back. And the Cadillac DeVille got another three inches. And the Cadillac Fleetwood 60 got another three inches.
The B-C Body designations rightfully should have died in 1959. The various divisions just stretched the front and end backs of the basic body to various degrees. They’re all versions of the GM full-size body.
There is a seventh big GM wheelbase in this era Paul, my ’72 Pontiac Grandville rode a 126 inch wheelbase according to my Standard Catalog, and seemed to wear a Buick Electra roof stamping. Possibly the most confusing of the B cars, it really seemed more like a C body.
And, weren’t the Cadillacs, at least the 133″ Fleetwoods, known as D bodies?
121.5″, not 122″, for the Chevrolet, to be precise. The ’77+ Cadillac RWD Deville/Fleetwood/Brougham are that size, too. Makes you wonder if they chose it to use the same frame or manufacturing tooling or something.
That is just about perfect. Would have looked better with the sedan sheetmetal exactly like that. The road wheels and the “ventiports” on the trim really make it!
In addition to the obvious things like grille, headlights and bumper, you need a new hood and front fenders. Everything from the A-pillar back is the same. You do, however, lose the four-note horn and unique seats as well, because the RMW is basically the same as the Caprice wagon and was built on the same line.
There is definitely a difference n the front clips. I have a 96 wagon, and I used to work in a junkyard. I had a small fender bender and damaged my hood. I got one off of a sedan, and when I compared the two, the sedan hood is a couple of inches wider than the wagon hood. The Grille is wider as well. While I’m sure it is possible to change it, I couldn’t figure out how to make it work.
Nice,nobody does wagons or woodys like the Americans.What’s not to like?
Perhaps my favorite GM car from the 90s. I once had a chance to buy one of these. I knew a guy who was selling the one his wife drove. It was one of the earlier ones, and was about 8 or 9 years old. It had been meticulously maintained, and was white with tan leather. At the time, I was driving a white 84 Olds 98 Regency coupe that had lower miles on it and was just as nice. In the end, I could no see paying the fairly high asking price for an updated wagon version of what I already had.
These still seem to have a following, and I occasionally still see a very nice one here or there. As an aside, I have always wondered why these did not share the sedan’s front clip, or at least one closer to it. I suspect that it had something to do with adapting the Chevy sheetmetal parts to the low-volume Buick wagon.
FWIW, I believe that Buick used the “Collectors Edition” hood ornament on the 85 LeSabre too, which was the last year before going FWD.
There was a story at the time how Buick dug up the 1985 tooling for that ornament and used it again in 1996.
It truly was the end of an era.
“When better cars are built, Buick will build them.”
The difference between those two years is the color of the background. 96 is dark and 85 was light.
Buick had 2 Collectors Editions for 1985. The LeSabre sedan and coupe. And the Riviera. The Riv was the best IMO. There’s plenty of information on here about them as it seems every time there’s a CC on the 79-85 Riv somebody comments on it. I have actually owned 3 W15 Rivs over the years. Out of 615 cars built that kind of makes me a legend( in my own mind LOL). How many times can you say you have owned one half of one percent of the production run of any particular model?
BTW I also owned a 95 RMW. Damn near had almost 450K miles on it before Mrs.Louie broke the straw of the camels back by running it low on oil. I was MIA so I relied on my buddies to keep it and her on the road. But that plan failed and I was too poor and didn’t have the time to fix it so off it went. Somebody got a good deal somewhere in FL. I’d like to say it went that 450K on it’s original powertrain but I won’t lie. It lead a rough life at times as I used it to pull my Grand National and other projects across the southeast. A cast iron crank LT1 can only stand so much and at around the 280K mark it broke the crank in two. I replaced the trans at 210K miles and than again at 340K miles. One good thing about cash for clunkers was that I scored a uber low mileage GM rebuilt trans for $75.00 the last time it went out. You know its too bad that GM didn’t tought these wagons more. I hate trucks because they are totally useless 99 percent of the time unless you really,really need one for work. This wagon really suited my needs in a way no truck could have. I can remember one of my fan boy buddies over on impalass.com did a little comparision against the Honda Odyssey and the LT1 wagon. These darn wagons bettered the Honda in almost every catagory. Better MPG. More interior space. Faster in 0 to 60 and quarter mile and top speed. Better handling. IIRC the only thing Honda had an advantage was in the number of cup holders. You could put a 4X8 sheet of plywood in the wagon just by folding down the 2nd and 3rd row seats. You had to take out those seats in the Honda. Yes these cars have a cult following. I just gave you some of the reasons why. Collectors Edition? Buick was way ahead of the curve when they gave a model that designation.
I have a 96 wagon with 293k miles on it currently. I have had to replace the fuel sending unit, and I have a bad optispark and a leaky rear main seal right now, but other than that she is till going strong. I’m waiting for a couple of days of good weather so I can change that optispark, and then she will be back on the road.All of the drive train is still original and in good working order.
I love the Tri shield on the Collectors Edition Hood Ornament. Never liked the simplified Tri shield they came out with in the 80’s. The one on the collectors ornament has all the detail that was lacking on the newer one. Cadillac did the same around 2002. I always chalked it up to Bean Counters at work.
Well written Brendan. I didn’t like the looks of these when they were new but now find them quite appealing. Love the big windows and the wide front seat. No console and the column shift for some extra space.
I love the looks of these but I think that in 1991 they looked just like a 1986 Taurus run through a copy machine set to “enlarge” and that did not help their appeal. It’s really something how huge they look compared to the previous generation.
These never did much for me. The GM B-bodies were ready for a change by 1990, but placing a more rounded – and bloated – body on the same chassis didn’t really work.
The oddball of this generation was the Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser. Oldsmobile no longer offered any traditional rear-wheel-drive sedans, so the Custom Cruiser seemed like an afterthought in the division’s roster. Its strong resemblance to the Chevrolet Caprice wagon didn’t help matters.
I thought the front of the Custom Cruiser was the best looking of them all by far but they are pretty rare: I’ve seen two in my life. I’d take a Custom Cruiser if I never find a ’73 Olds or ’73 Pontiac Clamshell.
Neither did Buick until the Roadmaster sedan returned the year after this. Oldsmobile still offered the “old style” Custom Cruiser until 1990, just like Buick did with the Estate Wagon. Even Pontiac still offered a the old Parisienne RWD wagon until 1988 or so, just as a “Safari”
Yes, but the Roadmaster sedan did return to the Buick line-up. Oldsmobile never offered a sedan version of Custom Cruiser.
The Roadmaster wagon (and sedan) was a logical “fit” with the rest of the Buick line-up, while the Custom Cruiser looked like a desperate move to cover all bases by Oldsmobile.
Oldsmobile was already attempting to cultivate a more youthful image by 1990. Whatever you can say about a 1990s Custom Cruiser, it was not considered to be youthful or especially stylish – particularly to the type of customer Oldsmobile wanted to attract.
I don’t think you understood what I was saying. Except Chevrolet and Cadillac, no GM division had a RWD sedan, but they ALL still had a RWD wagon from 1986-1990. I don’t get how a vehicle doesn’t fit, when you offered it for a decade before. The Custom Cruiser was always a separate model.
Oldsmobile did branch out that year, with the Silhouette minivan too, it came out the same year as the new Custom Cruiser, guess which one wasn’t back the next year?
Except that Buick DID then offer a rear-wheel-drive Roadmaster sedan, so the wagon didn’t seem out of place in the Buick line-up.
The Custom Cruiser was always the wagon version of the full-size Delta 88/Ninety-Eight. It was a “separate model” for only a few years, and seemed out of place by the late 1980s, as the other rear-wheel-drive cars were gone from the Oldsmobile line-up. The fact that the Delta 88 and Ninety-Eight were on completely different platforms made it seem out-of-place within the division.
Buick maintained a more “traditional” image, so the full-size station wagon didn’t seem quite as out of place there.
The Parisienne wagon, meanwhile, seemed like an oddball in the Pontiac line-up, too.
The Custom Cruiser was REALLY out of place within Oldsmobile by the time more rounded version debuted. It came across as a throwback to the 1970s at a time when Oldsmobile was desperately trying to recast itself as a more “hip” brand. And in the early 1990s, the 1970s were NOT hip. Trust me.
No sorry, the Custom Cruiser was ALWAYS a Custom Cruiser, it was never a Delta 88 or 98 Custom Cruiser, it had its own name, like the Estate Wagon was before Buick decided to have a LeSabre Estate and Electra Estate in the early 80’s, then they changed it back to Estate Wagon when the LeSabre/Park Avenue went FWD.
Oldsmobile tried to hip up their Custom Cruiser the most, it never had wood grain trim, it was available with alloys, the interior had less chrome and more toned down plastywood. The front styling isn’t even that different from the 1991 Oldsmobile 98 from that time.
I don’t want to keep going roundy round round on this,……
The Custom Cruiser was the station wagon version of the full-size Oldsmobile. It was built on the same platform, and used the front clip and instrument panel from those cars.
Oldsmobile gave it unique name, but it was really the wagon version of the full-size Oldsmobile, much like the Country Squire and Country Sedan were wagon versions of the Galaxie/LTD, and the Colony Park was the wagon version of the Marquis. Oldsmobile’s marketing team wasn’t fooling any of us out in the real world.
Carmine, You’re right, Some people don’t get the difference, Buick and Olds DID for the longest time market their big wagons as separate lines. Chevy did for a time too. Far from trying to “fool any one”, It seemed logical as there was less BODY variance between the “88” and “98” wagons as there was between 88 and 98 SEDANS.
I have a Smith and Wesson Model 19 Revolver ( “K” Frame .357Mag., Adjustable sights) The Model 13 was same but NON Adjustable sights. The Model 10 was the same as the Model 13 BUT in .38Spl. ( Same concept as 1959-1984 GM B/C/D’s!) Whew!
PS Note I Put “88” and “98” in quotes for the wagons on purpose, A Custom Cruiser is a Custom Cruiser and an Estate is an Estate.
Pontiac made the Parisienne Safari until 1986, The Pontiac Safari was made 1987-89.
I had a ’90 Custom Cruiser, good car, but far from sporty. The Olds interior was far nicer than the overly plush Buick IMO.
Never liked the bark on the sides of wagons myself.
A neighbour on the next street had one of these Roadmaster wagons, without the bark, in light Adriatic blue. Just stunning in its elegance.
I’m an original owner of a 1996 Impala SS made in the same Arlington assembly where today’s feature car was also born. It’s a garage queen that I only take out for shows every couple of years. Driving it is like building a birdhouse with an axe: fast, crude, lethal.
Of the final RWD GMs, if I was forced to buy one, I would go with the Cadillac.
That said, I think this is the best looking of the final version of the wagons.
But generally, my feeling about the 91-96 B and 93-96 D bodies is that they simply made the best of a bad re-design. I like them more because they’re the “last” and because with the exception of the ’91-’06 Park Avenue they look better than what followed, than because of anything about them otherwise; the interiors and exteriors all seem to be a significant step down from their predecessors. The more responsive engine was probably nice, though. I have an octogenarian cousin with a ’93 Fleetwood which he bought new and which has close to 200K now. Still runs and drives great.
The ’77-’90 is gorgeous. I think the ’80 redesign of the Buick came off best on the Estate Wagon. I have a ’77 Electra and while I like the look on the sedan, the more formal front end from ’80-’90 looked better than the (slightly varying) ’77-’79 designs when applied to the woodgrain.
There is something about that ’71-’76 version though, I like the inward inclining venti-ports on that hood and the dish hubcaps.
Still, in all its iterations, the Estate Wagon and all GM wagons come second to the Country Squire and Colony Park.
“I would go with the Cadillac.” Too bad the Escalade wasn’t one of these wagons instead of a truck.
My wife’s aunt and uncle had one of these (’92 or ’93 I think). It was her aunt’s car and didn’t get driven all that much. After they died wife’s cousin inherited the beast and drove it everyday up until a couple of years ago. I remember it as being quiet and solid and a good vehicle on the open road but it must have been a chore driving around town and finding a place to dock. IIRC the motor and transmission were still going strong but towards the end various minor ailments cropped up. The last straw was the A/C packing it in, some places that might not matter but here in the Ohio Valley summer lasts from early May thru the middle of October with heat and humidity so working A/C is a must.
I’m with 62Skylark. Initially I did not like these cars, but time has put them in perspective. I love those broad seats with no console to restrict the occupants, and a column shifter suits me fine. The LT1 engine in the later cars is icing on the cake. All one needs now are some buddies who are up for a trip to the Outer Banks!
Love these but unfortunately my wife has issued a fatwa against wagons and any vehicle with “wood siding” (even a Grand Wagoneer!) Although I am fairly forgiving of that given my other proclivities that she allows me to indulge in. (Channeling Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty: “Good cooking, check. Treats me like a king, check. Never denied me a little loving, check.”)
I do love the last B-body wagons although I prefer the “truck based” 350 powered models over the detuned LT1 models. I guess to me a slow reving truck engine seemed more suited to the character of the cars than the “OMG its a Corvette engine” of the later models.
My all time favorite is still the Fleetwood though which was of course never offered as a wagon but a few folks with more money to burn than I have made their own.
When GM ceased production on these to concentrate on Suburban/Tahoe/Yukon production that was another nail in the coffin of my former childhood worship of GM.
That Fleetwood wagon really looks great for being a last gen bubble design. Somehow, the rear Cadillac fender extensions give the back end a more balanced, substantial look, and the squared off front wheel wells balance off the rear cutouts nicely. I’ll take one with dark walnut woodgrain applique, please : )
I also thought these were bloated throwbacks to a bygone era when they came out, but have really grown to like them – especially the Buicks with their woodgrain sides and the vista roof, preferably in that burgundy-ish red they have, look really classy. It probably helps if you’r a wagon lover, too.
I recently saw the Oldsmobile variant (IIRC), all black and with blacked-out taillights; it had the rear vent windows (deeply tinted!) sticking out, too. Now that thing looked W-I-D-E! Especially over here.
Very nice. I prefer the 77-90 box wagons myself, owning two nearly identical ’87 Caprices. I occasionally see the newer wagons here in NH, so it is nice to see a clean example featured here from the Northeast.
Right now these things are pretty cheap to buy so hopefully I can snag one soon. Seeing all the different front clips on these cars give these ride more character.
These have “future classic” written all over them.
I was always how surprised by the narrowness of the cargo floor, given the width of the exterior.
Love those Buick seats. If it weren’t for those, I’d prefer the Olds version with its full instrumentation (though I’ve seen a handful of Roadmasters with this) and lack of Di-Noc (usually).
All the first generation “new” B-body cars had full instrumentation optional or standard, the non dual airbag Roadmaster/Custom Cruisers had full instrumentation with a tachometer, standard, when the dashboard was changed in 1994 for dual airbags, they lost most of the gauges.
The Caprice 9C1/LTZ cluster was a version of the Roadmaster/CC full gauge cluster with a digital certified speedometer. Base Caprices still had a traditional strip speedometer with only fuel and temp.
All Fleetwoods had a digital cluster with fuel and temp, the Fleetwoods never changed their dash trough the entire model run.
Ah, that explains it! The Custom Cruiser died in 1992, so it only had one year of the new body style. Therefore, they were much more likely to have full instrumentation than the Roadmasters, which had 3 years of idiot-light dashes.
It’s all making sense now… I guess this also explains why I see far more Roadmasters than Custom Cruisers. I wonder how their sales compared in 1992, when both were available.
It didn’t sell that well, Olds released it around the same time they came out with the Silhouette min-van and the Bravada SUV, it lost out, though the sun had set on the majority of these, even Buick and Chevrolet didn’t sell that many of these. Oldsmobile did try to hip up their wagon a bit, they never offered any woodgrain on the sides and most CC’s had alloy wheels.
Olds definitely did try to make the Custom Cruiser the most “Euro” of the bunch. It would’ve worked better on a smaller wagon. That said, the Cruiser is my favorite. I like it’s grille and accent-color lower body cladding. The alloys were definitely the least Broughamy. I wish the Custom Cruiser could’ve had the Roadmaster’s nice-looking soft leather seats, instead the less-exciting, lower-grade looking ones they offered.
As you mentioned, Oldsmobile was entering the minivan and SUV segments with the Silhouette and Bravada around the time of the ’91-’92 CC. It didn’t really fit in with “The New Generation of Olds” direction.
To even add further to the confusion, Chevrolet wen with full gauges(except tach) on ALL Caprices starting in 1994, when the Roadmaster lost the full cluster, I imagine it was cheaper to just offer one cluster with full gauges, rather than a special 9C1 only cluster.
If I remember correctly the Brochure for my 96 Impala SS says it has full Gauges including ammeter and Oil Pressure. In Reality it has Tach, Speedo, temp and fuel. The 96 was the only year without the digital speedo.
Yes, the Impala SS did get an all analog cluster its last year of production.
I have one – a ’94 in “dark jadestone metallic” with woodie delete but tan leather interior. It is dead stock and still a pleasure (after 10 years of ownership). I use it for two purposes only: trips down the interstate to Denver or Colorado Springs with up to three passengers; carrying old bicycles I buy and sell (no problem to fit three or four inside the car).
Mileage is not bad on the highway. No fun to parallel park. Extremely comfortable in straight line at 76mph. Takes a long time to hand wash.
Among Buick fans these cars are still cherished. It is an extraordinary car and it is fun to have one of the final American wagons.
Funny you should mention that color. As you can tell from the article, my opinion of these cars is rather mixed. I don’t love them, but I don’t detest them either.
Now I vividly remember this because it was the first time I ever actually found these wagons appealing. It was the summer of 2006, and I was with my family, stuck in bumper-to-bumper Cape traffic. In the next lane over appears a pristine “dark jadestone metallic” (I just checked and that was the color) woody Roadmaster Estate, glistening in the summer sun. Of course it had Florida plates and was driven by an elderly gentleman.
It just looked so gracious, liked it owned the highway. Worthy of the “Roadmaster” name. Prior to that point, I had viewed the 1991-96 B-body wagons as abominations, but that dark jadestone metallic Roadmaster really changed my opinion of these to somewhere in the middle.
My son has rodded a ’94 Fleetwood Brougham with the 7000′ tow pkg, and the LT1 has long tubes, cam, valves and lifters. They even take a laptop tune! He just turned 21, and wishes he had NOT installed a hi-stall TC. Goes like a streak…
That Sub has a curious paint scheme. I have that stellar blue over olympic white on my ’96 Sierra, but it has the stellar blue repeated along the bottom.
As far as I know, these are the last cars to come from the factory with 235/75-15 whitewalls. May they never ever stop making them.
Hopefully; in my neck of the woods I think they’re still a common size on some agricultural implements as well.
My 79 Lincoln and 96 Sierra both take them; to date there’s still a good selection of these tires to choose from.
Actually, these wagons used 225/75-15’s from the factory.
Really? I thought that was on the sedans, and that the wagons got bigger ones to raise the load capacity a bit. Oh well.
The Fleetwood got 235/70-15s, the wagon got the smaller tire for some reason. With the Trailer Package the Fleetwood was rated at 7000 pounds were the wagons and other sedans were rated for 5000 pounds.
Depending on the year, B-bodies sedans from 1977-96 used 205/75R15’s, 215/75R-15’s and 235/70R-15s. The later rounded cars tended to use bigger tires as they got heavier. Caprices with upgraded suspensions (LTZ, Police), the Buick’s and D-body Caddy’s used the larger 235/70’s. Keep in the wagons 225/75R-15 tires were “75 series” tires which were taller compared to the 235/70’s “70 series” lower profile The wagon tire was taller and slightly more narrow and both had the same weight capacity index of 102. You can run (and I have) 235/75-15’s on wagons but there are a little tall. These tires are a little easier to find. The 235/70R-15’s look to short on a wagon.
I really liked the 90’s Buick wagons, classy and glassy. The wood trim looked just right, as opposed to the ’77 thru Eighties version which looked like someone just slapped a big hunk of mactac on the side. Way too much of it, didn’t allow for a nice contrast with the paint and the trim around it was minimal and atrocious.
A fellow in Quebec was selling a whole fleet of the Nineties Buick woodies. I hope they found good homes.
Never did care for the looks of any of these. Thought the prior generation caprice, impala etc looked very good.
Apple has done well by making things that fill a need or a niche and telling folks they want them. I think if the wagon hadn’t looked like a beached whale, possibly about the size of the old chevelle or ford fairmont, that it would have taken a batch of minivan sales.
I think I could go for something like the old chevy II wagon right now. I’m pretty sure that something rwd with some built in economy would be a hit with police departments too. I do not mind change but just for the sake of change is not good. I’m reminded of a poker term about not kicking a winner in the ___.
They did have something like that, it was the first gen Explorer, they sold a billion of them….
There were station wagons that size too, they didn’t sell either, it just wasn’t something that people bought anymore, they would be more that happy to buy an Explorer or a Blazer, which is essentially the same thing, or minivan for the sliding doors, but not wagon version of anything.
I can’t help but think these lost some popularity simply due to the fact they lack any real flavor or style. The 80’s era models at least had different front ends and taillights, but these all look like the bubble Caprice’s. Nice enough cars and I bet they drive great but it’s clear to me why the market shifted other than minivans.
Great write up Brendan. I have owned a RMW Limited Wagon since 6/2005 along with a 1996 SS and 96 Fleetwood. I did a write up on them here https://www.curbsideclassic.com/my-curbside-classic/my-curbside-classics-1996-impala-ss-1996-buick-roadmaster-woody-1995-cadillac-fleetwood-brougham-the-lt1-holy-trinity/
My Roadmaster is really the best driving of the bunch. It is equipped with the Trailering Package which firms up the suspension. Living in Mississippi the RMW really needs dual ac and the vista roof though it has shades even increases that need. The wood on mine is in good shape except for the lighter trim pieces which like most in the south are peeling. Need to get it redone. Love the front seats. Really more comfortable than the Fleetwood. Even though the car looks long it is the same length as my SS, shorter than the Fleetwood, and much easier to park than my 2008 Sierra xtended cab pickup.
When I got mine my brother had roughly the same vintage Explorer. The Roadmaster would run rings around the Explorer and get roughly the same MPG’s. The Roadmaster though having less height in the load area certainly made up for it in length and width.
And here is an old photo of my Roadmaster Estate Wagon. Now I am running the car with the roof racks removed; looks better and easier to hand wash that way.
I think the absolutely ideal GM full size wagon would be a fully optioned Electra Estate from 1977 to about 1984-ish, but with the 1994-96 drivetrain and the dash subtly modified to accommodate a full set of instruments.
Why? First off, I would pick the earlier years of the box style because somewhere in the late 80’s GM started to cut more corners in the interiors. There is a sweet spot in there where you could get an Electra Estate with a super pillowy plush Park Avenue style velour interior every bit as luxurious as a Cadillac.
As to the drivetrain, that is what seals the deal for most whale wagon owners. The 1991-93 setup is not bad but the 1994-96 detuned LT-1 gives impressive performance, gas mileage in the 21-24 mpg range and could be set up to tow at least 5000 pounds.
The price premium commanded by a Roadmaster over a 1979-91 Country Squire or Colony Park wagon (first generation Panther) is incredible. A wagon based on the aero Panther body would have been an impressive vehicle, almost certainly better looking than the GM whales. Unfortunately, the instant success of the Explorer killed any chances of such a vehicle being built.
Someone did custom make an aero Panther station wagon, its looks……odd, at best. Though I always did wonder how one of those would have looked like all Squire/Colony Parked up.
I saw that picture… It looks rather un-cohesive and awkward. The last years of the boxy panther look the best to me.
http://www.stationwagon.com/gallery/pictures/1998_Ford_Country_Squire.jpg
The local funeral home uses a pair of these as herses.
I always dug these cars for all the practical reasons their fans have elucidated above. I am also reminded of the Car & Driver article about the (’96?) Chevy wagon tarted up in black with SS trim, wheels, etc.: “Mrs. Vader, your wagon is ready…”
Love the last generation B-bodies, including the wagons. In my opinion these were fantastically styles vehicles, modern and rather sleek looking considering their size. One of them is definitely on my must-have list, and I’m sure these can only go up in value in the future. A shame GM discontinued them.
Lots of these in New Zealand; all but about 2 serving as hearses – there are at least 4 within a 30km radius from my house. Being hearses means when they hit the used car market in another 15-20 years they’ll all be immaculate! I love the whale bodies, and a Roadmaster Estate is easily on my top 10 dream car list.
I rather liked the styling of these wagons, but I despised the plasticky interiors, which were the quality of kids’ toys you get from Dollar Plus.
Like the Fleetwood wagon hearse thing best.
I owned a 4 door Roadmonster for awhile…and I won’t swear to it, but I think the doors don’t interchange with the wagon. I thought the wagon body was all Caprice, and the sedan had completely different sheetmetal. Great comfy front seats, amazingly tight rear leg room for a huge car. If I could find a nice one, I might be tempted.
I’m pretty sure that the front doors and windshield interchange between all of them; they just have different trim installed. The rear doors on the Roadmaster sedan are definitely different. The wagons and Caprice sedan appear to have different rear doors as well.
The front doors of the 1991 – 1996 B-Body wagons are interchangeable with the B-Body sedans of the same years, as are the front doors of the 1993 – 1996 D-Body Fleetwoods.
It is the back doors that do not interchange.
I had a 95 blue no wood Roadmaster wagon for a couple of years. With the LT1 it hauled a$$.
But, it’s amazing how such a huge car can have so little legroom.
Got an off I couldn’t refuse and sold it.
Not the best picture but this is what I could find. Yes that’s at the drag strip and it would run 14.9s all day long.
I agree with this. I was sitting in a 1992 Caprice sedan (with the one piece bench seat) two days ago and with the seat all the way back, I still did not have any room behind the wheel. I am only 6ft 1 in tall. By contrast I was sitting in a 2012 Corolla a few weeks ago and with the seat all the way back I could just touch the pedals.
If I had a “101 Cars to own before I die” list, this would be pretty close to the top. We had a Chevrolet dealer that had a Roadmaster wagon that took them literally 4 years to sell. It was low mileage, so they kept it until it sold. That was about 6 years ago- I still see it around town.
I wish Buick offered a LeSabre wagon from this era- I would want one of them in a heartbeat! But, this isn’t bad at all. It’s my second favorite 1990s Buick (You can’t really compete with the final generation Riviera, can you?)
Just saw 2 of these on the roads today, both fairly beat up, bouncing and brake diving badly. What impresses me most is the vast amount of glass. Gives new meaning to the term greenhouse. When they stop running you could use them to start your seedlings inside them in the spring.
My Grandparents loved Buicks, and had a ’63 LeSabre wagon along with 61 and then ’65 Electra.
But when Grandpa needed a new wagon, there was no ’66 Buick version. So went to Chrysler T&C, which my Gram hated. “It’s not as good as a Buick”. She mainly didn’t like the tempremental Mopar starter. Got another T&C in ’69, missed the ’70 Estate Wagon.
G’pa died in ’71, 🙁 and Gram said he would have liked the 71-76 Estates.
The featured car is exactly the color of the Roadmaster wagon my late uncle drove in the mid 90’s. It was actually a company car, but I believe they assigned him a wagon rather than a sedan as they knew he had a large family (four sons, aged roughly 7 to 15 at the time). I remember thinking it was quite deluxe, what with the leather, the vista window in the roof, the electronic dash, and all sorts of gadgetry not common on other cars in our extended family. Plus it had *presence*.
Went the way of so many others though–turned in off lease after 3 years and, big wagons no longer being viable as there were none left in ’98, replaced by an SUV.
The Roadmaster station wagon is one tough and safe car. I found this “beauty” in the pick it pull it junk yard on Friday. It is/was a collectors edition that looks like it was in a devastating accident. Despite the damage, both front doors opened up fine(the drivers door needed a tiny bit more effort to open it but it opened all the way) and there was no damage to the windshield.
A tough car
This was the PM contest entry article and form back in 1995, then the contest winners.
2nd page
winner – page 1
As a post script, Joe Oldham, the PM editor at the time who is in the picture, passed away a few years ago. In his later years, I became aware of him for writing a book on the 60s/70’s musclecars he reviewed when they were new and writing a column on the same topic in Hemmings Muscle Machines.
winner – page 2
Hi Brendan,
I enjoyed your informative and well researched article in Curbside Classic featuring my 1996 Buick Roadmaster LTD Estate Wagon. I would have tidied up the interior which is in perfect condition if I had known!
I have a 1993 Estate Wagon and another 1996 Roadmaster Estate Wagon, both with the same color scheme and in almost perfect condition. The 1993 interior and full guage set up is superior to the 1996 and the LT1 Corvette engine with oversized crankshaft (police car setup) and towing package with electronic transmission is superior to the 1993 drive train in my opinion. I have had several of the Electra wagons and a 1985 Parisienne Safari ( made in Canada) wagon and a 1966 Chevy Caprice wagon which I have liked as
much as these Roadmaster wagons for their unique design reasons. The Roadmaster wagons shown with the Cadillac Fleetwood and Roadmaster sedan front end bodies are elegant.
Regards,
Gary
Dad bought one new in 96. Blue with “Beige” interior trim. about 90K on it now and has spent most of it’s life in the garage. I’m in the process of sprucing it up.
So, the 64k question is, where do I get replacement interior trim?
Thanks,
Rudy Beuc
Hi,
There are several collectors of the 1996 Roadmaster Estate Wagons who have hard to get parts.
Look also on Ebay.
Gary
We bought a 96 Roadmaster Estate wagon with the LT1 engine in PA two years ago. Towing an 18′ vintage trailer with it and we love it to pieces!
“Despite nearly identical dimensions, they somehow managed to look bigger and considerably more bloated.”
As these were close cousins to the Chevy Whale=shaped mobiles of the era, my default response is that these were unsightly to my eyes. The bloated look that they had, from front to back and side to side made them look disproportionate. Exaggerated dimensions for the sake of size or appearance. That they lacked leg room as alluded to in the writeup is further evidence.
These may have been good, sturdy cars, but I’ll pass and take a Voyager or Caravan minivan if it’s 1996.
I was going to try to get one of these back in 2011 to replace my rear-ended buick regal. They were too expensive even then so I got a 01 Grand Marquis gor $3700 instead. It gave me 7 reliable years and 100k miles. I sold it for 500 to a guy who then drove it. I think I got my $$$ worth.
Hi,
That is my 1996 Roadmaster LTD Wagon featured in this “B There Til The Very End. I bought this car in 1997 with low mileage and still drive this wagon every day 26 years later. It has 224,000 miles on the OD. The only other wagons I like as much are the 1965 Bonneville wagon, the 1965 Impala 327 wagon and the1968 Caprice 396 Wagon.
Gary
Cool! I hope the woodgrain and paint have held up. I also have a 96 RMW, which I’ve had for about 8 years. It’s white with woodgrain delete and limited beige interior like yours, but cloth. Has about 120k. Stays in the garage 5 or 6 days a week, I try to drive it to work at least one day a week and anytime I need to use its wagon strengths for carrying big items.
Those wagons you mention would also be in my dream garage. Like the author, I think the boxy styling was better and I also have a dream of getting an 80’s Estate Wagon with the alloy wheels, but transplanting an LT1 or LS1 drivetrain into it.
I like wagons, my wife is on here second BMW E39 touring, ie wagon in BMW speak, in the 60s people used them for pulling trailers and you could fit a 4X8 piece of plywood in the back. But those whale wagons are just so ugly, so so ugly. One should never buy a car just for the styling, but I can see not buying one if it’s ugly enough. Life is too short to drive a really ugly car.
Traditional domestic car, well, questionable in my opinion. Contact paper on the sides, whatever, flawed, but kind of interesting. In a way. But the size and shape of that thing, arrrg.
My 1995 buick wagon came with the Lt1 motor, and the towing package, posi trac rearend. Last year I put the Lt4 motor out of a 1996 covette in it. Plug in go. I can get almost 20mpg in town driving, and about 27 mpg on freeway. Sure if I drove slower it would get better. The 1994-1996 models had a very respectable 0-60mph time for such a large family car. Plan on having mine for a long time! Had the speed limiter reprogrammed 150mph. Not bad for a land cruiser.
My 1996 Roadmaster LTD Driftwood Beige Wagon featured in this article is still beautiful and going strong at 232,400 miles. I bought this car in early 1997. I cleaned out the clutter in the interior in response to the author’s unique commentary.
Gary
Awesome RMW!
Is the 1996 LT4 cast iron or aluminum?
Gary