Buick Special Deluxe 1968

A Buick Special Deluxe is an ideal car for the guy who, deep down inside, is really shallow. He doesn't dig cars, and thinks of them as nothing more than a means of getting from one point to another. It's solid, staid and virtually devoid of any distinctive features. And it's neither "special" nor "deluxe", but simply another version of GM's bread-and-butter A-body sedan.

In a 4-door version it's hard to imagine a less glamorous car. The only concessions to distinctiveness are the squared-off portholes on the front fenders-and they look a bit incongruous on this otherwise spartan sedan.

Powerplant for the Special Deluxe is a 350 cu. in. V-8, which, in a moderate state of tune, could provide above-average performance; but rated as it is, at 230 horsepower, the Special Deluxe is definitely not what you would call a high-performance machine. Ride characteristics are undulatingly soft, masking what actually turns out to be better than average handling qualities. Sure, there's a strong dose of understeer-more than any enthusiast will put up with-but enthusiasts don't buy Buick Specials, and for the run-of-the-mill driver the car is simply a smooth-riding, predictable, practical sedan. And when you get right down to it, nobody needs more than that-just like no one needs portholes.