Mike: I will find the info/photos. I will try to scan in color b/c I recall one of the photos shows the features very well. I also recall that this vehicle was a test (pool?) car and was a 1972 model GS; it had early '70's MI Manufacturer plates, the 14" Super Stock II (?) rims (I thought were a '71 only item), black interior & full vinyl top, rear seat shoulder belts and the paint was a maroonish-brown, but a little more maroon than brown. I think I recall a body color hood tach & sport mirrors as well as an engine compartment photos w/ Stage 1 engine w/ A/C and cruise control, but do not remember if it had a N25 bumper ... a really nice-looking GS. I will find the info.
This is the car he's talking about. I know several people on this board that would kill to find this car. http://www.buickstreet.com/images/article-72caroftheyear-page3.jpg I've got a color picture of it on my work computer, if Hawken doesn't get it posted I will on Monday.
Bingo. This is the car. Has it been discussed somewhere else before? Here is one of the prior pages in the article and shows the GS being worked out a bit ... http://www.buickstreet.com/images/article-72caroftheyear-page1and2.jpg You can clearly see the leading edge of the Sun Coupe sunroof and the rear seat shoulder belts. For the history buffs out there, I think you will recognize a name or two of the Buick Motor Div. brass as people who show up by name (and signature)on some of the GS & GSX internal GM engineering documents - Like Bowser, etc.
That car is Flame orange and I am one of the members thats been looking for it . I would imagine it was crushed as it was a magazine test car and could not be sold with a warantee . Most of the Manufacturers also tweeked these cars and if one could find the guys that worked on it it might have been snatched by one of them . I for one really like the full vynil roof and considered making my Stage 1 Suncoupe look like it . The gold car has been at BG and is every bit as ugly in person . My take is that it was not a factory custom but an outside contract that did this maybe even the dealer him self !
Regarding these two photos, I noticed somethings that are unusual. It really helps to be looking at the printed color photo to see, though. It would appear from the background that these two photos were probably taken at the same place, so probably at the same time. The color photo I have (my copy is from Collectible Automobile, June 1994, pp. 20) clearly shows four digits in the base of the passenger windshield as viewed through the driver-side windows. The middle two numbers appear to be the same ... maybe a '5' or a '2' reversed. You have to really look close at a good picture. Can someone else w/ a magazine check this out and confirm? I have seen other press fleet vehicles in other period magazine photos have some numbers similar in the windows. Possible Buick identifier? If there is a way to get a VIN on this car, I may be able to track it. I have found tougher 'needles in the haystack' before. It seems that some people on this board have or have access to historical Buick records. If anyone knows if these numbers mean anything or if they could be used to trace a history w/ records available, please jump in and comment. Also, the trunk lid has the 1971 GS emblem set on it ... you can clearly make out the "By Buick" emblem under the GS on the trunk lid. This, plus the 1971 Super Stock wheels and the probable press fleet/test vehicle in late 1971 may present a strong case that this was a 1972 pre-production vehicle. Don't you find it odd that the articles (I have seen) do not mention the folding roof much or at all? As far as crushing test, fleet and prototypes ... I know that there was a standard practice for this, but look at Lawrence Conley's GSX ... one can hope as stranger things have happened.
John,i hate to disagree but the car was bought straight from GM.I'am the one who took the photos and had them posted here a couple years ago. It was a buick show circuit car and purchased by Ed Toth of Toth Buick in Akron,Oh.He can produce all the needed paper work to back this up.
I had heard that from Mr Toth at the NATS . I was just theorizing that the factory might not actually do the customizing in house . Most of the special cars were done that way in my experience . I was not saying it was a attempt to misslead and could very well have been done by Buick in house it just seems illogical that they would have that material and paint . The top was painted also . Either way I like the Suncoupe aspect but I could do with out the interior . I do however like the wheels . The prototype was I bet a pre production car with many 71 styling cues . I am not sure that Sloan would have anything on this one . I would be very interested in seeing if anything can be found out about this car .
Of course, if Conley’s prototype GSX’s interior was completed in-house at Buick’s Trim Shop (I believe it was) and some employees were REALLY enjoying the Jim Morrison and the Door’s music from the 1970 Buick ad campaigns (and some other stuff, too), this Gold Sun Coupe might just be the result. Heh, heh, heh.
If they did this the job was the result of more than mussic if you get my drift ? Wow thats an old saying !
