When dleamon72 uploaded this shot to the cohort, he captioned it “a mismatched pair of white leather shoes.” We’ve covered the GM W-body and H-body several times before and most of us are well aware of the different aim of each platform. But do you think the average consumer of the nineties could distinguish between the large midsize and modestly full-size sedans?
Off the top of my head the LeSabre probably has plastic fenders, maybe even doors, and was marketed as mid-sized since there was the Park Avenue while the curvier Regal was marketed as a full sizer. I have to go to Wikipedia to figure out which vehicle rides on which “frame” since I do not bother fully memorizing GM’s W-body H-body, and other designations. The novelty plate on the Regal is eye catching and surprised how little paint both of these are missing. Even in Portland, OR I see a surprising number of 80s-00s GM fodder since when I first moved here I thought foreign vehicles were going to be even more common than they already are.
No the Lesabre was a fullsize car. Buick touted the Lesabre as Americas most popular full sized car from the 1990’s until the Lesabre’s end in 2005.
The Park Ave was geared to customers that wanted a car with all the trappings of a Caddy without all its pretentiousness.
The Buick Regal was a midsize car that seemed to overlap the A body Buick Century
The 92-96 Lesabre had plastic fenders. The mildly refreshed 97-99 Lesabre had metal fenders. The one in the picture is a 97-99.
Since I have had a Regal of that era, a Buick Century of that same era and now own a 1997 Lesabre, I can say that there was no point to the Regal as the Century had more inside room and for a few dollars more then a regal you could get a Lesabre with a better ride and more room.
Hey, if even you car guys can’t agree which was the full-size and which the mid-sizer, what hope did your average non-car guy have of getting it right?
Maybe consider them as alternative body styles for the customer to choose from?
I’m pretty sure that there was some period of time after the discontinuation of the A-Car where the Century nameplate was used on a W-Car (concurrently with the Regal but with a cheaper level of content). Buick also did the same with the H-Car, the LeSabre being essentially a decontented Park Avenue. The supercharged Park Avenue was an underrated sleeper, the performance of the Bonneville SSE but in a more traditional package.
As far as the merits of the H-Car vs. the W-Car, I agree completely.
Because I am a car guy, those cars are easily identified as Buicks. To the average consumer, they might not know what they are, never mind the fact that they are two different model Buicks! GM designs in the nineties were absolutely horrible IMHO.
I think most Buick buyers, even if they were little old ladies who knew nothing about cars, knew there was a distinct difference by the level of prestige each name carried. Regardless of their actual closeness in size, the LeSabre name had always carried a higher level of size and content than the “junior” sized Regal. Sitting in the interiors of each would confirm this, as the Regal was much cheaper inside.
BTW, that Regal would appear to be a 1996 and an original owner car, due to the “Official Car of the 1996 Olympic Games” plate on the front. Interesting how that thin plate can remain all these years.
I had a 92 LeSabre, it was a great beater car – big enough for four adult males to ride comfortably, big trunk, decent mileage (mid-20s mixed cycle, nearly 30 highway), good performance, solid AC and cruise control, cheap to fix when it broke. Drove mine down some nasty two-tracks to campsites and hunting cabins more than a few times.
W-Cars of that vintage were a bit smaller, no better mileage and had a reputation for crappy brakes.
I’d go H-Car all the way…
I see a lot more LeSabres still around than Regals. Heck, I work with a guy who has one of these with almost 300k on it and it still looks great. He drives it daily, pulls his motorcycle and trailer around to races with it, and takes several long road trips a year in it as well. He is renown in our organization for his care of vehicles and equipment. I’ve thought about submitting a story on his car. It’s getting old enough to be a true curbside classic.
Would you guys like a story about Joe’s old LeSabre?
Definitely!
+1
I think both cars are successful in exterior. Based on two platforms with completely different designs but it’s definitely Buick, and that is enough.
In reality I think it’s better distinguished when color options don’t overlap that much. ’92-’96 LeSabre in white is really rare, and they appear more old fashioned.
They’re rare!? I see at least three or four of them every few days. (Not counting the one that I own)
The really rare colors here are burgundy and green. The burgundy ones look the best to me, personally.
It’s really strange. I see probably 10-20 ’92-’99 LeSabre every day ( slightly less in summer ) and among them the rarest color is black ( as I only see couple of those somehow sold in China was painted black ) and white isn’t far away from that. White seems to be more common on post-facelift models, but among ’92-’96 I only saw two or three of them in total. The most common color was tan. Burgundy and green are both common around where I am ( radius of 220 miles )
But another possible explanation is white paint doesn’t hold up well. At lease on ’97-’04 Century, white paint peels off in huge chunks but metallic colors ( tan, burgundy, green, baby blue ) hold up quite better.
Here’s an independent poll task: Every time you see a white Chevy van, look at the hood. If it’s no less than 3 years old I’d bet a paycheck the paint is askew 70% of the time. My brother and I make a game of it. No other color I’ve seen on Chevy vans do this. Weird.
Spotted in Nothern Michigan. I saw couples of Grand Marquis in similar shape with clunks of white paint peels off, including one with grey light bar on the trunk lid ( thus a late model )
Probably that’s the reason why they put an expensive optional metallic white on Buick Lucerne and later models. Paint peeling off on an entry luxury car isn’t acceptable that fast. ( for Chevy van probably it doesn’t matter though )
I forgot about the black ones completely! I’ve seen PA’s in black, but now that you mention it, I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen a Black LeSabre from this generation.
There are a ton of white 1992-1996 ones out here. Of course, I may be noticing them, because I own one. Out here, this is about as anonymous of a car as you can get.
Black LeSabre is very very rare, but if google it, you can see few of them.
However, most LeSabre sold in China was black ( or dealers just dumped all their unsold black LeSabre to China, a common practice then ) And Chinese buyers have fetish of black on any models anyway, so it was a good idea. My neighbor drove the only black Park Avenue I saw in such a miserable shape ( all hubcaps stolen in Detroit, also the converter )
White one is almost the color next to black. Driving a white one yourself makes a difference, as when I drive my Mark VIII I still feel they are not that rare, however I know it’s really a rare model in general after Cadillac Allante or so.
I’ve noticed that effect- whenever I buy a vehicle, I start to notice it a lot more.
I thought I had paint issues. That Century is awful! I like the white color, though. It shines after being taken through a car wash. I just don’t do that too often- you know, more paint might come off.
White cars. Perry Shoar. Feels like home.
The H-body (and related C-body) may have been small fullsizers, but the second-gens (91/92 onward) were a lot better at hiding their modest 111″ wheelbase than the first-gens IMO. Not to mention there was actual effort put into distinguishing not only the Olds from the Buick, but also the “junior” (88/LeSabre) models from the “senior” (98/Park Ave) models, which is more than I can say for the first-gen C/H-bodies.
But to answer the question, yes and no. Even before I knew anything about cars, I could tell the fullsizers from midsizers if only because of the black A-pillars. But the W-bodies failed in adequately distinguishing between Pontiac, Olds and Buick, at every angle except full front or full rear.
Cheers everybody, here is another picture from that day.
I don’t know what anyone could tell, other than this Regal was one of the most unattractive cars from that era.
I think brand new people could distinguish them, the salesman could tell them the statistical differences, used not so much. Not for styling mind you(I think they’re easy to tell apart) but in general purpose, the size difference between the W and H is modest at best, the 3800 was available in both, interiors are pretty much the same, ride and handling, same, ect. There’s very little motivator to seek one out over the other besides price on the used market, and that’s not even different.
In mid-90s Los Angeles it was nothing but Japanese sedans and coupes, full-sized trucks, German luxury cars and LeSabres. They were everywhere.
I always liked that A-pillar and the skinny quarter window. Other interesting things were the door handles and mirrors (the ones on the Regal are awful).
The LeSabre had the right size and looked solid. It had a classic Buick shape. Never drove one but I hear they are tough as nails. There are still plenty around.
They are. If you only have $1000 and need a car, the LeSabre would be my recommendation. They’re easy to work on (At least for me), and rarely go wrong. Just watch the paint and rear suspension- neither of which is a deal breaker.
The engine and transmission are very tough.
Yes, non car people could tell the difference between the two/three cars. My Dad is a non car guy and relies on me to explain all the differences and beat the dealer down on price. He was shopping for a new car in 94/95 and considered the Regal, LeSabre, Ciera, Supreme, and 88. The Ciera he rejected as being too outdated and elderly; he thought the Supreme was sportier and more modern, and he thought the 88 was “too big.” The LeSabre had a very elderly feel to it, and both it and the Regal still had individual options on them versus Oldsmobile’s option packages. The Buicks made it curiously more difficult to find a car opt9ioned the way you wanted, because to get a defogger, you had to find a car with something you didn’t want.
I remember having exactly this thought during the 2000-2005 era of Buicks, when the overlap was even worse. The Century and Regal were literally the same car at that point (just trim/engine differences), while the LeSabre was barely a few inches longer and styled almost exactly the same. The Park Avenue was the only one I could distinctly tell apart from a distance because of its much longer trunk and upright roofline. Even then it looked identical to the other 3 from the front view – only the stand-up hood ornament distinguished it from other Buicks. Same exact engine in all of them but the Century, too. I think price was the only reason people bought specific models. Those who wanted a “cheap” $18K Buick bought a Century, those who wanted a “nice” $25k Buick bought a LeSabre, and those who wanted a “loaded” $35k Buick bought a Park Avenue. Never understood why that generation of Regal existed… for those who wanted the pseudo-sporty feel of a Grand Prix but in a frumpy, dull package?
Heck, you could even lump the 2005-2009 LaCrosse in with that group as having that same basic shape and styling cues. The Lucerne was distinctive, but it wasn’t until the 2010 Lacrosse that the brand totally ditched the proportions and styling language that were carried over from the ’97 Century.
Buick had Skylark, Century, Regal, LeSabre, Park Avenue and Roadmaster as sedan in 1996. At the same time, volume brand Chevrolet only had Cavalier, Corsica, Lumina and Caprice/Impala SS.
By 2000-2005, the nameplates were almost just carrying over for the previous customers, as Century/Regal had large customer base, also the LeSabre/Park Avenue. Regal was more intended as a mainstream family sedan but obviously it wasn’t.
IIRC the Century was the base model/bench seat and the Regal the sportier model with buckets. We rented a ’98 Regal for our honeymoon, traipsing all over upper NY and Quebec/Montreal. It did a great job comfortably.
The Regal is the worse of the two. We had the Pontiac equivalent in the company car pool .When you would slam the door, the door handles would rattle. Nobody at work felt comfortable with them. We drove our own cars.
I guess I’m in the minority, but I find little resemblance between these cars aside from the paint job. Yes, the Regal is a typical generic 90s General Motors blandmobile. But the LeSabre is just the opposite. This generation H-body broke away from the cookie-cutter styling of the boxy, previous generation that was ridiculed on that famous Fortune magazine cover photo.
The 1992+ LeSabre looked nothing like it’s Pontiac and Olds cousins. It was a modern interpretation of traditional Buick styling cues that was cohesive and attractive. It was also well screwed together and quickly built a reputation for reliability. The torquey and durable 3800 V6 made it a pleasurable drive for people who wanted a traditional big American car. Consequently, it sold like hot cakes.
This generation LeSabre was among the bright spots during GM’s darkest days. So in this photo I don’t see two of the same; I see a contrast between one of GM’s failures and one of its successes.
They did fail because those cars on the photos had no relationship with H-Body or LeSabre at all! It’s W-Body Buick Century and those boxy look alikes! Not only it was hard to tell a Century from a Celebrity, it was hard to tell from LeSabre and Electra too.
Edit: I just realized they are A-Body.
The moment you sit in a LeSabre you should easily be able to tell it is a larger car than the Regal or Century which feel cramped in comparison. And they look nothing alike whatsoever save the paint job!
The A-body Century was in my view an economy mid size with a lower price tag and less equipment and features compared to the much different looking and more advanced W-body Regal. There was no such things as floor shifters, 3800 engine options, rear fiber glass mono-leaf suspension, automatic climate control, power moonroof or GS options even offered on the century. Heck it didn’t even have 4 wheel disk brakes. It was an old guard stand by offered to the cheaper traditional buyer whereas the Regal was the slightly larger, better riding, more modern offering with far more equipment and higher price points.
The LeSabre was the lower priced full size offering and the Park Ave was the largest and most luxurious Buick at the time and also the largest trunk and the most back seat room. One needs to remember that this was still a time when larger sized sedans were still popular and the LeSabre was one of the best selling cars of it’s kind right up until they pulled the plug in 2005. The Century’s popularity was mainly due to it’s lower price, decent quality ratings and it’s V6 performance. The LeSabre excelled with it’s 1992 redux which made it look much different than it’s 1986-1991 predecessor but also moved it’s quality, interior space, reliability and 3800 performance up a further notch and made it a best seller for years!