A neglected, badly abused Buick doesn’t sound like the start of a great muscle car story, until you learn what was hiding underneath. This 1970 GSX Stage 1 is one of just 678 built that year, and one of only 491 finished in the factory’s exclusive Saturn Yellow. Its multiyear restoration back to a four-speed showstopper reveals why Buick’s most overlooked muscle car deserves a second look.
Of all of GM’s brands, the muscle cars from Buick probably get the least attention, so we are devoting the cover section of our July 2017 issue to Buick’s hottest models.
On the cover is a 1970 GSX that was pretty badly abused before it began a multiyear restoration. You won’t believe the “before†shots of what is now a gorgeous Saturn Yellow four-speed.
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From Rolling Wreck to One of 678
Somewhere in a shop, a battered, primer-scarred Buick sat for years looking like nothing worth saving — dented panels, a drivetrain that barely turned over, the kind of car most restorers would have walked past without a second look. But underneath all that abuse was one of only 678 GSX Stage 1 packages Buick ever built, and fewer than 500 of those wore the factory’s most famous color. What happened next took years, a mountain of NOS and reproduction parts, and enough patience to turn a rolling wreck into a Saturn Yellow four-speed showstopper. It is the kind of transformation that makes you wonder how many other GSX survivors are still out there hiding under decades of grime, waiting for someone with the right eye to find them.
The Buick Nobody Talks About — And Should
Of all the GM muscle brands, Buick never got the respect it deserved, and the GSX is exactly why that is a shame. Built for just two model years, 1970 and 1971, the GSX package turned the already-quick Gran Sport into something genuinely special — functional hood scoops, a rear spoiler, dual sport mirrors, and a suspension package tuned specifically for the extra weight of the big-block up front. Buick built only 678 GSX cars in 1970, split between 491 finished in Saturn Yellow (a color exclusive to the model) and 187 in Apollo White. That is a smaller production run than the GTO Judge or the Chevelle SS454, and it is part of why a genuine numbers-matching GSX commands serious money today — restored examples with clean paperwork have crossed the block at Barrett-Jackson and Mecum for as much as $200,000.
Stage 1: The Option That Made It a Street Fighter
Order the Stage 1 package — and roughly 400 of the 678 GSX buyers did — and you got a 455 cubic inch V8 with a specially recalibrated Quadrajet, a hotter cam with .3891-inch intake and .4602-inch exhaust lift, and stiffer valve springs to keep everything under control at higher RPM. Buick’s official rating was 360 horsepower and a monstrous 510 lb-ft of torque at just 2,800 rpm, but internal engineering dyno numbers reportedly put the real figure closer to 376 horsepower — Buick, like most of Detroit in that era, was not in a hurry to advertise exactly how strong its engines actually were. Period magazine testing recorded a 13.38-second quarter mile at 105.5 mph, numbers that put the GSX right there with the fastest intermediates GM ever built, four-speed and all. That is the car buried under the abuse this particular GSX suffered before its restoration — and it is exactly why bringing one back to Saturn Yellow, four-speed glory is worth the years it takes.
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I disagree! For as far back as I can remember, Oldsmobile has ALWAYS been the red-headed step-child of GM! At least Buick still has a chance because they’re still being built! (because they’re a hit in China!) Oldsmobile was America’s 1st car & gets the ax! How’s that for disrespect?
No way Olds are awesome 422’s being tops
I don’t know what a 422 is.
It was obviously a typo smart ass you know damn well what meant d**k
So f**kng sick of smart asses
My apologies!
Pontiac says hello
GM should’ve kept Pontiac also! Alot of great cars from that division as well! At the time GM killed Olds, the average age of a Buick owner was 64, & for Olds, it was 53, so, I could see why Olds would be the one to go! (smh!) IMHO, the only division GM should’ve axed was (is) Saturn! But nothing can be done now!
Sweet I love the Big B.
455 gs !!!!
True, & AMX
Nice Stage 1.
most buicks were luxury cars or luxury sport cars. The buick stage111 is a musclecar and the Grand National is a great car. just my opinion
I used to have a 66 Buick Wildcat GS , loved that car!