2w (edited)

Classic Buick 1930-1941

We need a topic to discuss Classic era Buicks. What brought this to my attention was this particular car that is now listed in the Marketplace. A 1935 Series 90 Limo. Buick built 191 of these body on the big chassis in 1935. Google can't seem to find me another stock one. There are a couple of resto mods.

CCCA defines the following Buicks as "Classics" and are accepted by the club.

Buick – 1930 Series 60; 1931-1942 Series 90;

1931-1933 and 1936-1939 Series 80;

1940 Series 80 Limited;

1940-41 Buick Roadmaster 70 Series

https://app.rumbleseat.com/marketplace/5288892/1935-buick-series-90-limousine

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Oct 1, 2026

Reply to alsancle…

Replies (50)

· 2w

Here are the production numbers for Series 90 in 1935.

A total of 1,611 units across the entire 1935 Series 90.

Club Sedan (4-Door) 5-Passenger $1,965 573 built.
Sedan (4-Door) 7-Passenger $2,055 609 built.
Limousine (4-Door) 7-Passenger $2,175 191 built.
Sedan (4-Door) 5-Passenger $1,895 117 built.
Sport Coupe (2-Door) 4-Passenger $1,875 41 built.
Convertible Phaeton (4-Door) 5-Passenger $2,145 38 built.
Victoria Coupe (2-Door) 5-Passenger $1,895 32 built.
Convertible Coupe (2-Door) 4-Passenger — 10 built.

· 2w

Back to the subject car.  According to the seller:  ALL there except one taillight bezel and lens. Needs total restoration but is worth a lot of money when done. This car runs and drives with a large straight eight engine.

For an asking price of $11,500 I can think of worse projects.   I like closed cars and with no other cars showing up this is very interesting to me.    As always, a full restoration is out of the question, so how much can it be cleaned up and used?

Can this interior be saved?  Not sure about that.

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· 2w

Might be able to work with the drivers compartment which is leather.

· 2w

Great idea for a topic A.J.! Don't know much about prewar Buicks but looking forward to learning a lot more. The car for sale looks like it needs a lot of work. Even for a rare car.

· 2w

An interesting car. I’d love to see some of the other body styles that you mentioned, but it sounds like there are no images easily found on the web.

Other than the obvious difference of the power plant, (a straight 8 vice a V8), I wonder how much of this car is represented by Cadillac’s 355 which had the same wheel base of 136 inches?

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· 2w

Hi Al. My uncle is a fan of '30s Buicks and bought three of them back in the '60s and '70s. Unfortunately, two of them (1931 series 90 Victoria Coupe model 96 and 1935 series 40 rumble seat convertible coupe model 46C) were not running and in various states of disassembly when he bought them. Then he never got around to restoring them. The other is a 1934 Model 61 that I got to drive in a parade decades ago but then the engine blew a few years later and it has been sitting in a barn since the '80s with the engine removed. After I bought my uncle's cars several years ago, I did a complete restoration on the '31 and '35, which as everyone knows is a good way to waste a lot of money.

Anyway, I believe the '35 series 90 limo you found uses the same engine as my '31, with maybe a few changes between model years. It's amazing that it is still running and driving. I wonder if the engine has ever been restored.

Jeff

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· 2w

Beautiful! Thanks for sharing. Any interior shots?

· 2w

Very cool. Thank you for posting them. I'm a big Victoria Coupe body style fan. Just love the buckets in a prewar car and I tend to like closed cars.

I believe the engine is the same, maybe minor HP bumps and the new version came out in 1936.

· 1w

Jeff, love the colors on your uncles coupe.

· 2w

Here's interior of the '31 and '35. The '35 was still in process, hence the wires hanging down from behind the dash.

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· 2w

Wow your two restored cars look terrific!

· 2w

I probably lean 34/35 in preference, but honestly I like all of them 30-35. This is a 34 Model 91 Club sedan.

· 2w

Looks like Pebble Beach?

· 1w

Agreed. That looks like Pebble.

· 2w

You guys that follow the AACA not mine for sale forum probably remember this 1932 Series 91 Club Sedan that was for sale for what seemed like forever. Finally found a buyer around 25k. I really liked it and can think of a lot worse cars to fall in love with for 25 than this one.

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· 1w

I wondered why that car could not find a buyer. Running driving in not too bad a set of colors. I think the first buyer did some work and then decided it wasn't for him and it went home to try again.

· 2w

https://app.rumbleseat.com/marketplace/8433361/1931-buick-90-series-sedan

· 2w

I think this might actually be a series 80 (88C)? But a full Classic none the less. Ambitious project but they only built 124 and I've never seen one.

https://app.rumbleseat.com/marketplace/7516072/1933-buick-series-90-convertible-sedan

· 1w

@Edwin_B help me out on this one. Is it an 88C or a 98C? I'm not sure.

· 1w

88C. No 98C in 1933. Not sure why. Always hard to remember what years Buick produced an 80 series. 31-33 have 80 series, no 80 34/35. The Roadmaster in 36-39 is 80 series. 1940/41 there is a Limited 80 series and Limited 90 series. Roadmaster is 70 series from 40-58.

· 1w

What was the difference between an 80 and a 90? Packard 160 and 180 was basically materials and trim with the 180 tending to the longer wheelbases.

· 1w

In 33 Series 80 had a 130" wheelbase, and the 90 was 138". I think the 90 may have had more trim options as well.

· 2w

I’m just looking through the production numbers for the big Buicks. I didn’t realize how few they built from 1932-on. By contrast, they built a ton of them in 30-31. Over 12,500 1930 series 61 5 passenger sedans.

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· 2w

In late 29 in to 30 the depression had not fully taken hold. As we marched further into the 30s all high end brands (in this case the top of the line Buick) saw demand plummet.

· 2w

True. They were probably also helped in 1931 by the new eight cylinders. They did bounce back quite a bit with the series 80 Roadmasters.

· 1w

I agree with this theory. And I think it holds across all manufacturers. 1930 was still a decent year and they didn't realize the "depths" that things would get to. Also, models were planned a year or two out, so the 30/31 production was planned in 28/29.

· 2w

I may be somewhat biased towards them but the 80/90 Series Buicks are excellent cars. 34/35 especially is pretty special. Independent front suspenion, vacuum assisted mechanical brakes, and of course the 344 cubic inch 8 is a beautiful engine. In 34 the 50 and 60 series engines got a slight displacement increase compared to the 31-33 engines, but the 80/90 series engines were more or less unchanged from what I can tell. 34 is the first year for automatic choke as well as the first year for gas pedal starting, which was continued through 1960.

For the average person a 60 series is probably the better car to own if you aren't worried about missing out on CCCA stuff. Parts are much easier to find for the smaller series cars, and they are still excellent drivers.

· 1w

Edwin, the last year of the big engine was 35?

· 1w

Yes. 36 was the first year for the 320, which was produced until 1952.

· 1w

Not a Classic but I borrowed a friends 38 Century for a 500 mile tour and it was interesting to compare it to Classics of the era. I specifically did a comparison with Cord 812 which I will find and post here.

· 1w

In 1932 only 268 of the 2 door phaeton Model 98s were built. Basically an open window victoria. I remember when this car was for sale. It was bid to 51k on BAT which I would consider a bargain price if it sold.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1932-buick-model-98-convertible-phaeton/

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· 1w

Forgive me because I can't help myself. I love this car but I'm not a whitewall guy.

· 1w

Lightening the wheels give it a different look. Typically I try to keep the number of different colors to a minimum. This is already 2 tone. Plus chrome, plus black tires and top. So that is 4. New wheel color makes 5 which is the max.

· 1w

A total of 4,914 Series 90s were built for the 1934 , with just 68 of the 96C Convertible Coupes were built. Cost was $1,945.

· 1w

Even better looking from the back!

· 1w

1934 convertible coupes (across many makes) is arguably the peak of the “straight up beautiful “ curve.

I personally like things a little older, but would never argue with those that point to this year as a high point.

· 1w

32-34 is hard to argue with John. 34 is definitely the year for GM cars. Some of the other manufactures might have peaked in 32.

· 1w

I quite like the 98C. A lot of convertible sedans are ugly with the top up but the Buick is quite striking.

· 1w

Love it!

· 1w

This 1931 Roadster sold for 110k last year at Hershey. I saw it in person and thought it was pretty nice. The made 824 that year. Depression had not hit that bad yet.

· 1w

Country Club coupe version of the 1931. They made a lot! 2990.

· 1w

As you can tell by my handle, my personal preference leans toward the 1932 90 series. Beautiful line, wizard control and ride regulator with synchromesh transmission on a 344 straight 8 at 115 hp. I am told that MacLaughlin Buick made only 7 of these but have paperwork showing that Buick exported 10 unfinished chassis/body/engines to Oshawa. I am also told that this may be the only one that still exists. Does anyone know of another?

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· 1w

Love it! You may be right on the sole survivor. Do you know how many were built in the US? Are the Canadian cars identical? Do the parts interchange?

· 1w

There was an amazing display of 1934 Buick 90 series at Hershey a few years back. One of each of the 5 body styles offered for the model year.

· 1w

I always leave at 5:00 AM the morning of the show and then everybody calls me an idiot for not staying.

· 1w

Besides the well known Brewster bodied Fords there are a number of Brewster bodied Buicks. All of them because of their Brewster coachwork are Classics. I think most have traditional grills but there might be a couple with the heart shaped radiator shell.

https://app.rumbleseat.com/marketplace/6950410/1936-buick-roadmaster-series-80-brewster-town-car

· 1w

The Brewster Fords are an acquired taste with that grill. Something I appreciate a lot more in my older age. The buick here has the standard grill which does looks better but you lose that boom in your face unqiness.

· 1w

Off topic but I'm going to visit my friend Don Weir at his spaces at Hershey where he will have his 3 Brewster Fords for sale. Probably deserves its own topic and I'll get a bunch of photos.

· 6d

Just listed on BAT. 1931 Buick Series 90 Model 96 Coupe

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1931-buick-series-90-victoria-coupe-4

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· 5d

The single and only TownMaster was for sale a while back for what I thought was not a lot of money. I kind of regret at least not looking at it.