54k-Mile Estate Find: 1996 Buick Roadmaster Wagon

In 1991, Buick revived the Roadmaster nameplate after a 33-year absence. It replaced the former Buick Estate, though the platform was the same. At first, only a wagon was marketed, but a 4-door sedan arrived shortly thereafter. The seller has a Roadmaster Limited wagon from 1996, the last year made, and it was discovered at an estate sale. With a new battery, it runs like it should, and can be found in Columbus, Ohio. The opening bid of $15,000 has yet to be cast here on eBay.

Buick sold more than 200,000 of these land yachts in six model years. Of that, a quarter or 50,000 were wagons like this one, so they were not rare sights when new. The days of rear-wheel-drive were on their way out at General Motors, so the Roadmaster and its Chevrolet and Oldsmobile cousins were the last of their kind. The 1996 versions used a 5.7-liter LT1 V8, which also found its way into the Chevy Corvettes of the day. 260 horsepower was the output, which was needed to propel these heavy machines with a 4-speed automatic transmission.

The Roadmaster shared the Olds Custom Cruiser’s “Vista Roof” sunroof over the second row of seating. Faux wood paneling was standard fare, but you could opt to go without it and get credit. With an extra rear-facing seat in the back, the Roadmaster wagon could haul eight passengers in comfort. With the popularity of SUVs on the rise, GM elected to focus on those vehicles after 1996, so the Roadmaster disappeared once again.

Little history is known about this wagon, and it only has 54,000 miles on the odometer. Since it was found during an estate cleansing, the wagon could have been sitting for a while (the seller has not washed it, so it’s a bit dirty). With fresh battery juice, the wagon runs great, and the seller says the tires are good, but I’d check the date codes before venturing any distances. The seller suspects this will be a hard wagon to duplicate with the mileage, though we’ve featured several of them in the past five years.