The LeSabre was one of Buick’s most endearing nameplates, featured on full-size automobiles from 1959 to 2005. Like other GM cars in its category, the LeSabre was downsized in 1977, yet would still be considered a big car by today’s standards. This ’83 coupe with Limited trim has just 40,000 miles and looks original from head to toe (except for the tires and radiator). From Marlboro, New Jersey, this trip down Memory Lane is available here on craigslist for $11,900. Our thanks to Barn Finder dennis house for this cool tip!
GM’s B-body cars went on a diet in 1977, losing 800 pounds in weight and 15 inches in length. But there would be no sacrifices in the amount of space allocated to passengers, so buyers got to enjoy better gas mileage than the land yachts of 1971 to 1976. In the 1980s, GM would play musical chairs with its engines, meaning that motors made by one division would find themselves in cars of other divisions. For example, after 1981, if you bought a Buick with a V8 engine, it was assembled by Oldsmobile, whether gasoline or diesel-fed.
We assume the powerplant in the seller’s little-used car is the Olds 307 cubic inch V8 as the 350s were diesel and no reference to such is made. The Custom would be the basic LeSabre, while the Limited would be the higher trim level, with things like velour upholstery (the blue interior of the seller’s car looks quite nice and comfortable). The last year for the rear-wheel-drive LeSabre would arrive in 1985. BTW, the window sticker for this Buick is still with the car and it shows that you could buy one of these for under $14,000 back in the day!
In 1983, Buick built 29,000 LeSabre coupes, although 22,000 of them would wear Limited badging. At just 40k miles, this looks like a one-owner survivor, but nothing is said of such a thing. Since we’re told delivery is available, you’d suspect a dealer is involved in this transaction. The seller says the car runs and drives as well as it looks, with a new radiator having been recently installed. Though smaller than its predecessors, this is still plenty of car. “Wouldn’t you really rather have a Buick?” (as the advertising once asked)
My neighbor bought one of these new. When he passed his widow was unable to maintain it. After maybe 2 years of sitting she actually gave the car to me and my brother. I was only about 14. We got it running after sitting. When I got my license at 16 we put it on the road but had to sell it. Gas prices and insuring a 2 door V8 at the time was more than I could afford. I really liked that car.
He’s asking $11,900. I think he should ask $13,121.48. Who wouldn’t love to get this beautiful Buick for MSRP?
Good luck finding a parking spot for this dinosaur – even if you want to run the simplest of errands. My Walgreens shortened its parking spots by more than 4 feet! & narrowed them too. & the highway lanes got narrower too(beware of the concrete barriers in construction zones right up against the right or even left lane line marker!
& imagine trying today to find a parkin spot for an even bigger in all directions 1976 LeSabre station wagon! lol
Not a problem down here in Texas. BUT the car better have A/C and the A/C better be working! LOL!
That’s interesting, because if anything, the average size of vehicles are going up. Just look at all of the full size pickups and oversized SUVs out there.
I do agree that most parking spots are getting smaller, it just doesn’t make any sense.
Very nice cushy car, but no longer Worth MSRP…
These were great cars.It’s a gas 307 otherwise the oil filler cap would look different a lot taller.My father in law had one that was a diesel to gas 350 conversion Used to go up and back from Arkasas to IL to visit .He took me one time when me and my ex drove down with our 86 Town car to visit and he took me through the woods on dirt roads crossing small streams and mud the whole way to visit his new friends.They loved him like me he was a ww2 vet and airplane mechanic stationed in the Pacific.Driving past a few shacks with rocking chairs and washers and driers on the porch we got to a pole barn and we entered and the owner said hi John and asked who I was with a menacing look on his face.Father in law says he’s like me a good ole boy and a mechanic.Guy shook my hand and went back to building a BBC on the stand while we talked. I was thinking Deliverance at first.This car is a beauty.Dual exhaust and maybe turbo mufflers on her no glass packs this time.Great price imo.You’re getting a heck of a lot of car.Do an intake gasket and a heater control valve if their old on it and you’re good to go.The fuel pumps sucked to do on these with all the brackets and that stupid AIR pump in the way.
The C-list ad has a photo of the original window sticker, which clearly shows the LV2 307 V8.
gangsta
i put the same seats in my 73 400 catalina. maddd cool qiuck. car that 400 pontiac. miss it. this buick is nice also, could use a heart transplant though, or a triple l.s. bypass. lol
One of Service writers at the Saturn dealer I worked at had an 85 Paisienne rear ended real bad by a bus and the car was totaled.Sold it to me for 100 back in 97. I bought a trade in 90 white 9c1 350 cid throttle body fi caprice for 100 with a bad fuel pump and a 140k on it from the used car manager.off the lot in back where all the junks went..Put the entire interior and carpet except door panels in it since they were already blue and in good shape from the Pontiac and a new fuel pump and tank. The interior was mint. that car moved pretty darn good in style. Sold it for 2500 about 4 years later and parted the pontiac and scrapped it.
Is the 307 a good engine or not? I’m partial to GM’s 350 as I had one in my 1976 Olds Cutlass and loved it.
There’s no such thing as a “GM 350” for the 1976 model year. Each division had their own engines and they had nothing in common – different bore, stroke, castings, etc. Your 76 Cutlass came with an Oldsmobile-sourced 350. The 307 in this car is a direct descendant; the primary difference is the smaller bore (stoke is the same).
And before someone posts about the Chevy motors in Oldmobiles, that was the 1977 model year, and in the full size cars, not the Cutlass line.
I said “GM 350” because although I thought it was an engine made by Oldsmobile, I wasn’t sure. I thought I had read somewhere that Chevrolet made some engines that ended up in Oldsmobiles.
I. Had a ‘71 Nova with a 307. Great engine, problem free, good on gas and sufficient get up and go with a 3 speed Muncie floor shift.
Is there no connection between that engine and the 307 Olds?
None what so ever.
The Olds 307 was a very reliable engine. They rarely gave any trouble or experienced serious failures. They were also very leak free and long lasting.
I had an ‘81 LeSabre Sport Coupe with a 307 and overdrive. Bought it from my brother when he was done with it. It got excellent gas mileage and was very nice to drive. Only problem I ever had with it was with that computer controlled Q-Jet but it was an easy fix. Excellent car!
Last car my grandparents bought before their passing in 1989. They died a week apart, and no it wasn’t from getting in an accident in their Buick.
I can’t read the window label but the original buyer may have passed up a $750 option package discount to get those chrome wheels. My father ordered a 1985 Collector Edition LeSabre and the discount only applied with wire wheel covers. He chose the chrome wheels too.
That is one good looking Buick and with the olds engine. I had the olds version a Delta 88 Royale great road cars.
I had an 87 Caprice Estate with the boat anchor 307 Olds. Yeah, reliable and ran and ran, but burned oil so bad the dealer replaced that POS with a GM long block. Never broke down, but driving one today with everyone in a hurry going 98 mph, you better get out of the way or mom in her Cadillac Escalade will mow you down. Nice Buick. Would love to own it, but have four cars now. No more room.
I love these cars solely based on personal experience. As the youngest of the grandchildren, I was just a teen when my family had several Buicks of this generation. My grandmother had an ’83 LeSabre Limited in white/burgundy that drove like a dream. My grandfather had an ’81 Electra Limited in beige, my parents had an ’80 Park Avenue Diesel (those were fun to leave the school bus in a cloud of blue smoke)…. When my grandmother passed in ’87, her car still was like new and had few miles. Dad had me drive it when commuting to college as well as taking trips for family and business trips. On the interstate, it was a dream ride. I was too young to appreciate nearly enough but since then, I realized what a charm it was.
These were considered good engines, but I had an 84 LeSabre that was not all original, so it had a turbo 350 transmission instead of 200-4r overdrive, abd timing was advanced 10 degrees just so it ran smooth, it got gas mileage like my 68 olds Delta 88 455 used to, I suspect timing chain was severely worn, and emissions carb wore out and running rich, great riding car, but couldn’t afford the gas, or proper repairs, and sold it.
Would be good to see the underside seeing how it’s from New Jersey. Nice ride.
And the transmission Greg.
3 or 4 spd autobox available.
Rear gear w 3spd was a 2.41 only.
The 4 spd got you 2.73.. w 3.08, 3.23 opt.
Unlikely extra gear ⚙️ was ordered but who knows.
Why don’t luxury cars come with such beautiful and comfortable interiors like this Buick has?
This has continued to bring back so many great memories with my grandmother. I was only 16 when I started taking “Nannie” to stay with her daughter (my aunt) in Lexington about 4 hours away. She was so much fun and she enjoyed my choices of radio stations, so all of the current hits of the 80’s were our road trip soundtrack! Two that stand out the most were George Harrisons “Got my mind set on you”, Phil Collins/Phillip Bailey’s “Easy Lover” were repeatedly on and we had so much fun singing with them. She loved the upbeat tunes most, so it was a very fast paced journey on the otherwise boring and bland Kentucky parkways. She rarely asked how fast we were going but I knew she could easily see it on the large speedometer… how could she not? :)
Nice Olds. It has had paintwork done. That usually means some body damage also?
The left front fender has been repainted because it doesn’t match the rest of the vehicle.
Just my opinion!
This website would much more fun to view if the same few YouTube/Google graduates would stop correcting every little thing that they don’t agree with?
For instance, someone just referred to a GM 350 motor, which is what i would have also said. Then, we start hearing from someone else that he is wrong. Then we start about hearing about displacement size, bore, stroke etc.
It’s similar to asking the time of day, then someone starts explaining how a watch is made!
I once referred to a doghouse as a doghouse. I got corrected! I suppose in some area’s they refer to it as a front clip? I always called the rear part of a vehicle a clip? I don’t get it?
Just my oponion!
I value your opinion, but I’m one who is very technical, like several others are, so we correct for accuracy, and education purposes, for me it’s certainly not intended to offend, some of us more mature “gearheads” are just wired that way!
What about the price? Anyone agree with me that the car is nearly 50% over-priced? A malaise-era 2-dr. sedan with an underpowered V8 and missing some of its exterior moldings, and it’s worth $12,000? I think not. Yes, I saw the mileage claim, which is probably correct.
OK, I’m an odd duck. One of the lust-worthy cars in my extensive car brochure collection of my youth was a 1980 LeSabre coupe shown with T-type trim in a sexy burnt orange with blackout trim. That featured car got a 2 page spread in the brochure! I will never understand why that car attracted me like it did. Even as a highschool graduate at the time, I would have taken that car over a TransAm or Z28. I just have, and always will, love this cars chiseled profile and swept back face. I still want one! Burnt orange please.