This 1962 Buick Invicta wagon carries the nickname “Airwagon,” earned when Air Ride Technologies took on the rare nine-passenger body style as a build project. Under the hood sits a numbers-matching 401 Nailhead V8, swapped from its original two-speed Turbine Drive automatic to a smoother four-speed. Gateway Classic Cars photographed the full car for this gallery, from the engine bay to the polished chrome trim, one of the least common body styles Buick built during the Invicta’s run.
For 1962 the luxurious Buick Invicta was factory equipped with the  401 cu in nailhead V8 engine and backed up by a two speed turbine drive automatic transmission. The vehicle imaged here is the original legendary Air Ride Technologies “Airwagon” Invicta as featured in magazine articles and does have the 401, but it is further equipped with a four speed automatic for improved performance.
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Station wagons don’t usually earn nicknames, but this 1962 Buick Invicta did. Collectors call it the “Airwagon,” and once you know why, you’ll never look at a plain-Jane full-size wagon the same way again. Underneath that formal, chrome-heavy Buick styling sits a 401-cubic-inch Nailhead V8, the engine that built Buick’s reputation for effortless low-end torque in the early 1960s. Factory buyers who ordered the wagon got a two-speed Turbine Drive automatic and, if they paid up for the nine-passenger version, a power tailgate that was still a novelty feature at the time. This particular car swapped in a four-speed automatic for a bump in drivability, and it’s been featured in magazine articles for reasons that go well beyond horsepower. So what actually earned this wagon its nickname?
Where the “Airwagon” Name Comes From
The Airwagon nickname ties directly to Air Ride Technologies, the aftermarket air-suspension company that took on this Invicta as a build project and featured it in magazine coverage. It’s the kind of car that bridges two audiences: Buick Nailhead purists who appreciate the numbers-matching 401, and street-rod builders who value a smoother ride and modern handling underneath a period-correct body. Either camp would be lucky to park this one in their driveway.
What Made the Nailhead 401 Special
Buick’s 401 Nailhead earned its name from unusually small, vertically stacked valves that made the valve covers look like they were studded with nails. In Invicta trim it was factory-rated around 325 horsepower, running 10.25:1 compression through a four-barrel Power Pak carburetor setup, with hydraulic lifters and a cast-iron block. The engine’s low-end torque made it a favorite for hot rodders decades after Buick stopped building it, and there’s something satisfying about a mill this old still having a devoted following, which is part of why parts and expertise are still easy to find for keeping one running today.
A Rare Body Style Even Among Invictas
Buick built the Invicta lineup as its performance-oriented full-size offering for the early 1960s, but wagons were always the least common body style in that range. Most surviving Invictas today are hardtops and convertibles rather than the nine-passenger wagon shown in this photo set from Gateway Classic Cars, which makes finding one this well documented a genuine treat for Buick people.
Where the Nailhead Name Actually Comes From
Buick’s 401-cubic-inch V8 earned its ‘nailhead’ nickname from unusually small, vertically stacked valves that resembled nail heads when viewed from directly above — an unconventional design that traded outright high-RPM breathing for exceptionally strong low-end torque. That torque-heavy character made the nailhead a favorite for exactly the kind of duty this Invicta wagon was built for: moving a large, heavy body with authority rather than chasing high-RPM horsepower numbers the way a small-block Chevy of the same era might.
Why the Four-Speed Automatic Swap Makes Sense Here
A factory 1962 Invicta would have paired its 401 with GM’s two-speed Turbine Drive automatic, so the four-speed automatic under this car’s hood represents a real drivability upgrade drawing on decades of transmission engineering progress since the early 1960s. Spreading the engine’s power across more usable gear ratios improves both highway cruising manners and around-town response compared to the wider gear spacing a two-speed unit forces on a driver — a sensible upgrade path for owners who want to actually drive a car like this rather than trailer it to shows.
A Wagon Body That Was Never the Cheap Option
Buick positioned the Invicta as one of its more upscale full-size offerings in the early 1960s, and the nine-passenger wagon variant carried that same higher trim level rather than being a stripped-down cargo hauler. That configuration added a rear-facing third-row seat, maximizing passenger capacity in an era before minivans existed and large wagons served as the primary family-hauling vehicle for households that needed to move more than five people at once.
Two-Tone Paint on a Custom Stance
The silver-over-blue two-tone paint scheme seen here plays against the wagon’s dramatically lowered ride height and aftermarket wheels, a combination that signals a deliberate custom build rather than an attempt at factory-correct restoration. Two-tone paint was a common factory option across GM’s full-size lineup in the early 1960s, and applying it to a heavily customized air-ride build like this one shows an owner choosing to honor the car’s original design language even while dramatically altering its stance and drivetrain.
Why a Documented Build Commands Its Own Premium
A car with genuine magazine-featured history, like this Airwagon, occupies a different collector category than an anonymous custom build with no documented past. Buyers and enthusiasts place real value on being able to trace a car’s build story — who built it, when it appeared in print, and what made it noteworthy at the time — because that documentation transforms the car from simply ‘a nicely done custom’ into a verifiable piece of the custom-car hobby’s own history.
A Wagon Built Around a 401, Not a Small-Block
Choosing the 401 nailhead over any of Buick’s smaller-displacement engines for a full-size wagon like this one reflects exactly the kind of low-end grunt a heavy, passenger-and-cargo-loaded body needs to move confidently from a stop, rather than the higher-revving character a lighter car might prioritize. That torque-first engineering philosophy is a big part of why nailhead-powered Buicks of this era have such a devoted following among owners who actually load up their wagons and drive them, rather than just displaying them.
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