The Skyhawk was Buick’s first subcompact, launched in 1975, and it remained in the lineup through 1980. It was a rebadged Chevy Monza, which in turn was a derivative of the Vega. It was only offered as a hatchback, and the seller’s edition also has Buick’s first crack at a 5-speed manual transmission. Located with a dealer in Manasquan, New Jersey, this Buick is said to have just 17,000 miles, which you have to wonder how that is possible. The mini-Buick is available here at Brian’s Auto Center for $12,900. Thanks got to Elmo for the tip!
These Skyhawks were built on General Motors’ H-body platform, which was shared by the Pontiac Sunbird and Oldsmobile Starfire, in addition to Chevy’s Monza. The only engine available was a 231 cubic inch V6, and the standard transmission was a 4-speed. Beginning in 1976, a 5-speed became available, even in the entry-level Skyhawk simply called Skyhawk S. This vehicle was Buick’s attempt at competing with the Ford Mustang II, Toyota Celica, and other smaller yet sporty automobiles. From 1975 to 1980, Buick managed to peddle 125,000 copies of the Skyhawk.
This Skyhawk comes with a ton of paperwork, so we assume somewhere in the documents is how a 50-year-old car can only have 17k miles. While the “S” was the Skyhawk’s lower model, this one has plenty of extras like a handling package, power steering and brakes, and factory air conditioning. The body and silver paint look good, and the interior is nice, though the seats might benefit from a steam cleaning.
I once owned a 1980 Pontiac Sunbird with the “Iron Duke” I-4. While the engine was reliable and did its job, the workmanship of the rest of the vehicle was typical of most 1980s cars. Mine had an automatic tranny, so it was not a speed demon. But this car with a V6 and a 5-speed should be considerably more energetic. I wouldn’t mind taking another crack at one of these H-bodies when it can get more than out of its own way.
I had an Oldsmobile Firenza in the same body style. I want to say it was an 80 or 81. Off white with a 4 cylinder. Great little car.
My Grandpa had a ’79 Monza wagon in silver with a burgundy interior. It had the Buick 3.8. I learned to drive (officially) in that car. It was easy to parallel park. A d from what I remember these cars handled very well, they sat pretty low to the ground and had that high transmission tunnel as you can see in the photos. This Buick looks great, and with a 5 speed? Even better, someone wanted a nice economic car that was fun to drive. If this silver paint is original, that’s impressive. Its in great shape from what I see in the photos.
I bought a new Pontiac Sunbird in 1980, blue with the V6 and 4speed. Did not know how to drive a stick at the time. The salesman took me out and taught me and I drove the new car home. Good car, fun to drive and that V6 had good bones and would take modification well. Of course Buick did some modifying of its own and unleashed the famed turbo V6. Wouldn’t mind and this car, could be fun. Regretted selling the Sunbird but had orders to ship out to England so l sold it.
What an incredible find. And with a manual, too! These are the kinds of cars I love to see on BF. I’m sure some will disparage it, but it was the mid 70s, and small American cars were a new thing. The transmissions were clunky and the back seat worthless. But they looked great, and how many are left in this kind of condition? I would love to own this!
It seems like those, along with it’s corporate siblings, were everywhere when I was a kid. Been a long, long time since I’ve seen one anywhere, even in the boneyards! A very well-preserved specimen, for sure. Someone will be very happy with it.
Thanks, Elmo and Russ! I put at least 100,000 miles on one of these in my college days, a ’76 Skyhawk 3.8 five-speed. It was a fun car and held a ton of cargo with rear seats down. I thought about building it up with go-fast parts from Kenne-Bell Buick (250 HP was possible) but two things led me to buy a 5.0 Mustang instead: the Buick’s brakes faded if you really started using them on the back roads and the over-powered steering was numb and void of feedback. I sold mine to a friend who sold it to his cousin and it had racked up at least 350,000 on the original 231 V6. That said, you could enjoy this car as a driver and cheaply keep it running.
Nice find Elmo! Too bad that the dealer couldn’t walk around to the back of the car and take a few pictures. I used to like the Skyhawk visible in the tail lights.