The cupboards are increasingly bare of 1960s bargain cars (Corvair collectors remain; we love you), so people are looking at newer stuff. We all know that the 1970s weren’t exactly the time for muscle, at least not after the oil embargo of 1973 killed gasoline availability. But not everyone’s into muscle anyway. How about a cruiser like this 1977 Buick Regal? It’s available for the next day and a bit here on ebay for a bid price of $7100, though you’re not taking it home at that. The reserve is unmet. The car sits in Scottsdale, AZ should you find your way to bidding it up to sale price.
1977 Buick Regal, you say? What did those look like? In the inquisitor’s head is a picture of a Grand National, a car that came out in the 1980s. Show the photo of the car, though, and you get an instant nod of recognition. Those are cool. Big by contemporary standards, with just the right aggressive wheels with chrome beauty rings that look at home sporting whitewall tires as a complement. The body style is square as it gets, but it all works. These cars sit down on their wheels like they’re about to pounce on something. This one’s also got a half-vinyl roof and square opera windows. About the only part of the styling that’s unimaginative is the grille, a set of square boxes with little character. The other unattractive bit is the velour. I’m all for felt-looking seat covers, but this is some kind of snakeskin-gone-velvet, and it’s jarring to look at.
One potential problem, or at least anchor that comes with the cost of ownership, is that you’re going to be smogging this thing if you live in Cali or somewhere else with similar laws. And that can be a massive drag. Ask my friend, who has to rejet the carbs of his BMW every two years to pass the inspection, then undo it a week later so the car is actually usable. Relax, Air Resources Board. He drives a hundred miles a year if he’s lucky. He’s not the one causing global warming.
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So should you go for this car? It’s got nearly 100,000 miles on its 305-CID V8 with automatic. Or is that a 350? That’s apparently what one ebay hawk informed the seller after the ad was posted. Either way, the car has been babied in single-family ownership for upwards of two decades. It’s likely got 50K more trouble-free miles in it, and if you get it for around ten G’s, you’d have a car that you could drive for free for a decade, and look darned good doing it. This one’s at the bottom of its depreciation curve, and they aren’t making more, so grab it now.
Does it come with a spare set of head gaskets. At 100k I’d replace em.Buicks v6 and v8 are notorious for them blowing on the end of the heads with those large c shaped coolant passage into to the neighboring cylinder. 4-5k car imo.
I’ve never heard that on V8Buick, and what the gurus there don’t know about Buicks ain’t worth knowing.
I ain’t no guru but did quite a few sets at a repair shop I co owned in the 80’s and 90’s.In fact I did my aunt’s head gaskets on her 76 dark green Buick Regal 350.After you replaced em you had to let car run about 30 40 minutes to get all the coolant out of the muffler and pancake cat.Look like a locomotive driving down the street after it warmed up.Guy in our shop used to replace just the one bad one if the customer wanted to save some money and the car was a beater. He wouldn’t take the intake off he’d just slide the head off and on.I only saw him do it on v6’s.Saw him also do that on a sbc in a really beat dump truck that had a burned valve.
I was a GM parts counter guy from 1983 through 1995. I remember the Buick V8 being fairly reliable. It was the V6 that kept the wrenches turning and the machine shops busy.
The Regal seems to be the red-headed stepchild of the mid-70’s GM A-Special lineup. The Olds Cutlass Supreme coupe, which shared the same basic body, was the best selling car in the US in 1975-77. The Chevy Monte Carlo sold very well, too, and has a large following today. The Pontiac Grand Prix had a very sporty flare, but the Regal? Somehow, it slipped between the cracks. It was just as well appointed as the Cutlass, and of course Buick was supposed to be a higher class of car, a step above Oldsmobile. Maybe it wasn’t “cool” for a young-ish person to drive a Buick (or, heaven forbid, a CADILLAC!), but “Your father’s Oldsmobile”? I guess that was a different matter.
It doesn’t matter to me… I’ve had more than 40 years of fun with those little Corvairs mentioned up in the first paragraph of the article! (Please don’t let the word get out that Corvairs are still reasonably affordable!)
That’s no SBC. It’s a Buick 350. Front distributor gives it away. Alloy intake, true duals and some recurve & rejeting. And we’ll tuck the bumpers too.
Good eye on the front distributor Chris. According to my research, neither the Pontiac 301 or Chevy 305 were available for this car this year.
I like the cup holder
Kar lovin’ Kalifornia. Where you have to “smog proof” your already smogged 1977 Buick. Pretty soon the bureaucrats there will simply confiscate your ICE vehicle, and present you with a voucher for a one speed bicycle.
Electric bicycle :)
I have a 1976 Buick regal I bought new that is still like new all original. To my knowledge Buick did not offer a ,305 looks like a 350 to me
One of my better car’s from back in the day, she made it to 126k till the transmission went out! Replacing the break calipers turned into a headache came to find out they had put 76 calipers on the early 77’s.
Cool 305 Chev with a front distributor set up!
That’s not a 305 that’s 5.7 350 made from Buick produced 155hp
That is a fully loaded car. windows, locks AM/FM 8-Track, sold for $9210.00 somebody got a real good buy. book around $10,400 + 10% if the 170 hp 350 motor, add another 3% for the power windows. If the 170HP would book about $12K.
Paid 6200.00 for my 1976 Regal S/R with Hurst T Tops and bucket seats and automatic on the floor. Still have the car with 28000 miles on it . I bought it new
It’s got Vogues and all the options, if I had room, and my wife wouldn’t kill me id bid,
Anyone know of a Buick Regal for sale I’m really looking for one.
Hi Tim, you could try our want ads: https://barnfinds.com/want-ads/