I believe these downsized full sized cars of 77 and 78 were among the best GM ever turned out. With larger interior space, less weight, and the better power to weight ratio, they were far superior in many ways to their immediate predecessors. And they still retained the luxurious feeling and interior design elements of the earlier models. Thanks for all the work you put into your content ~ Chuck
@@michaeltutty1540 I can only compare a 74 Impala 350, with a 78 Caprice 350. The mileage and performance were significantly better with the 78. Again, anecdotal evidence.
My Dad had a '71 Electra 225. He would take me out at 3:00 AM on a straight highway going 80 miles an hour, saying that he was "blowing the carbon out." It was exhilarating, to have a huge Buick with brocaded seats as your Dad drove over the speed limit.
Ordered a new Buick LeSabre in January of 1980. I specified option BT1 which transformed it into a LeSabre "Lawman", designating it a police vehicle. It came w/5 high-speed pursuit Goodyear Bluestreak Flexten radial tires in P225/R70-15. They were 6-ply belted radials (2 polyester & 4 Aramid fabric)...no steel belts. The finest, longest-lasting tires I've ever driven upon...lasted 60K miles! I took delivery of that wonderful Buick on my 33rd birthday, order # KQU094. W/out a doubt, the most predictable-handling car I ever owned in my 77+ years!....Dark Blue w/Oyster Grey velour police seats (HD). Cost new was a bit over 10K & the only modification included installation of a Crane cam & lifters.
I worked a Buick Dealership in '77 & '78. Those Electra Park Ave's were jaw dropping, back then. I got to show my mom the dealerships owner's demo, it was '78 white with a ice blue top and interior. Stunning. By the time my mom decided to by it, the car was sold. So she bought a Gran Prix instead. I wasn't happy, as I worked at a Buick dealership and they treated me really well I was just 19 and 20 at the time.
I know this is about Buick, but I had an 87 Chrysler New Yorker and it had the most beautiful interior ever! It was super elegant, plush, garish and "poofy" crushed tufted velour. I got more compliments on that car than all my other cars combined.
I know what your mean! While the interiors on some 70s-80s cars are a bit much at least they had a style and colors! Not like todays Black, grey, or beige/tan interiors. Back then we had every color imaginable inside and outside on our cars
@@jakereal3604 For sure. Not only my interior was super plush, it was color matched and extremely comfortable!! Today's interiors are bland and not that comfortable.
Thank you Adam. Thank you for sharing this generation. I liked the styling update in 1980 and when the seats and steering wheel changes in 1981-1984. The 1977-1979 taillamp theme came back in 1991 and was used well until the end in 2005. The LeSabre Limited was running a close second to this generations interior and exterior styling. That would continue 1991-1996 as well.The LeSabre Limited got the Park Avenue seats in 1984 and they were placed on the LeSabre Limited and Collectors Edition in 1985. I recall seeing a design proposal for the 1980-1984 Electra / Park Avenue. That was great information about the steering wheel too. I saw the Electra Park Avenue steering wheel in the Oldsmobile Ninety Eight in the 1980's also with an oldsmobile emblem. I noticed most people do not refer to this car as Electra anymore. They call them Park Avenue or Duce and a quarter. The Electra name is used on a vehicle sold in China in 2024 that will be coming to the United States. It is a crossover: ua-cam.com/video/S0YyVSNBJPY/v-deo.html
This one made me sad. We had a 1977 Electra limited. It drove and handled so well. We kept for 12 years and I would see it on the road a few years after we sold it. I had the speedometer a far as it would go many times. It registered 85 but would go all the way to the bottom of the dial. I lost control of it in the rain and it spun around about 5 times but didn’t hit anything. I have always been extremely careful in the rain since.
I'll take these interiors over any offered today that's for sure, I do prefer the Park Avenue seats of the '81-'84 over the '77-80 though! I had a '78 Buick LeSabre Sport Coupe with the turbo V6 and I really liked the dash design and the "nautical" look of the gauge cluster especially the large clock on the passenger side of the dash, looked good lit up at night as I remember. I think Buicks dash was the most attractive of the other downsized Chevy/Pontiac/Olds/Cadillacs of the time.
@@trickyricky12147 Way too many black interiors - ever since they figured out they can just use the same black interior with pretty much any color exterior and save a bunch of money. Not very practical either since they absorb so much heat in the sun.
The '77 Electra uses the '73 Cadillac steering wheel, but also the '77 DeVille door panels. My mom had a "Bimini Beige" '77 Coupe de Ville d'Elegance and I hated that car! It was basically the same as this Buick and you can tell they used a lot of the same interior panels. But I will say that the round gauges of this Buick are FAR better and FAR better looking than what Cadillac installed on my mother's car, which were minimalist. The d'Elegance package had these "pillowed" seats, and the first time I crawled into that car I tried to move them, only to realize they were actually part of the seat itself.
My parents bought a 76, in 86. It was white with a red interior. Man that car was gigantic. It was crazy how it rode on the highway. It was like you were floating the way it handled imperfections in the road.
You always seem to know what I need, it's so bizarre that coming up on the anniversary of my mother's death you show the cars that she drive and bring back fond memories when I'm getting down. Thank you for your posts. My favourite.of hers was the 86 olds toranado. There is a car ad on UA-cam that has the exact same burgundy and deep almost purple color with wire wheels. Look it up, it's an absolute gem. Even had a sunroof. Like I said, may not be much to you, but you just got me out of the bed from a dark place by reminding me of fond memories VS the sad times on hospice for her.
My father got a 1977 Electra Limited coupe with the 403 and a tow package. It served him for 3 years, my mother for about 10 years, towing a 2 horse trailer across the country, then a few years with me until I gave it to my sister-in-law. Strong performer, effortless and very comfortable cruiser, and very dependable. Also looked pretty good. Interior was one step down in cushiness, but I'd argue just as comfortable. A favorite feature: the row of indicator lights at the base of the windshield; I used to say, " look what that idiot did! Arm cruise missiles!" Then I'd flip the cruise control switch and the "CRUISE" light would illuminate in the indicator light strip. My kids loved it!
In the early 2000s I picked up a 1977 Park Avenue with this interior in light green. It had a very nice interior but needed paint. When vacuuming the interior, I found a Shell credit card deep inside the tufts of velour in the back seat. It had expired in 1978! I always thought it funny that someone lost their card in that over-the-top interior!
Had a 70 Thunderbird back in the mid eighties, I remember finding matchbooks from Las Vegas and some midwestern states when I was going through the backseats . Wondered what stories they could tell…
I owned a low-mileage ‘79 Electra Park Avenue, bought from the original owner in 2000. It had the blue crushed velour seats in its poofy interior which were very well padded yet supportive. Thankfully Buick did not yet have the excess of plastiwood on the door tops then and had the droopy-V steering wheel shown in one of your pics. The dash was gorgeous, far better than the big Olds at the time, with silver-faced instruments and the large clock on the passenger side as a throwback to ‘40s/‘50s Buicks. I think the interior door armrests were also shared with Cadillac in those years. Mine had the Olds 403/TH400 which would have been fine except for being crippled by an economy rear end. Just a great car which drove wonderfully like all of the ‘77-‘79 downsized GM full-sizers.
Actually, the plastiwood door tops came in 1980, and I believe ran through 1984. Oldsmobile had it too in the 98 Regency and Regency Brougham, although the Olds "wood" was darker in color and did quite assault one's eye like the lighter Buick "wood."
The Olds 403 in these Buicks and the Olds 98 was a perfect fit. The acceleration was assuring and the torque inspiring - very similar to the Cadillac 425 of the era. You could almost option the Buicks and Olds to the level of a Cadillac but there were always a couple of options not available making Cadillac more exclusive. Having driven many models of these cars I feel Buicks just edged the others in driving feel when outfitted with the 403.
These 70s luxury car interiors with the pillow velour seats are the most beautiful interiors ever made. they are like works of art, unlike the plain flat looking seats they make nowadays.
We had a 77 Newport custom with a red cloth interior, a family friend who was a devout Baptist noted that the interior of the car looked like a bordello, we asked him how he knew what the inside of a bordello looked like.
That was the top line of the three Electra trim levels. It remained available in the Park Avenue through to the end of 84 production. In the middle of 84 a new trim level, LS (Luxury Sedan) was added to the Delta 88 Royale Brougham and it used the same interior in the slightly shorter wheelbase through the end of 85. A lot of Park Avenue buyers were not ready to settle for a 6 cylinder, front wheel drive car that was noticeably smaller, and felt much less substantial. I don't blame them. I had a 78 Electra Limited coupé which I loved. It shared the interior trim with the 77/78 Riviera.
That dead on rear shot reminded me of how struck I was when the 77 came out - look, it's a 63! (Oops, I see you got that too) That interior migrated eventually to the Bonneville Brougham, continuing Pontiac's unique position of offering C body luxury in the B body series. Pontiac got the steering wheel too. For a long time this, to me, made top trim Pontiacs a genuine bargain. In HS I had a friend whose parents bought a loaded LeSabre Limited a year or two old with the 403. For the time, that had considerable get up and go; especially because we were driving it in the early 80s when there was nothing but the gutless 307 available - if you were lucky.
Interiors in actual color! Not grey, not black, but actual warm, welcoming, soothing color. Please someone tell today's designers and marketers to bring back some doggone color!
A few yrs ago I traded my LEXUS LS460 in for a smaller MAZDA SUV. I also owned a LEXUS back in 2009. None of those cars were as quiet and smooth riding as my Mom's 78 Buick Regal Limited with the tufted seats and a 305 V8. Or her brother's downsized Buick Electra 225. To this day I haven't ridden in any smoother riding cars 👀
I had a new '79 Electra for a year or so; we opted for the Electra Limited because it was not quite as garish inside as the Park Avenue (although it was a black car with the bordello red interior!). The Park Avenue seats do remind me of the '74-'76 Cadillac Talisman seats, which seem equally as opulent.
My 78 Cadillac Coupe Deville has those Poofy seats and they are AMAZINGLY comfortable in every way...I can and have driven it for hundreds of miles at a stretch without any issues. No other car has done that for me
Drove one of these as a taxi in the late 80’s, it was a 1983 model with a small V8 a 307 or something and a big 4bbl. It was not terribly fast or anything but such a sweet car to drive very comfortable indeed.
I have a 78 Park Avenue. It is ridiculous, but after almost 50 years it's still extremely comfortable, but had I been buying one new I would have stuck with the Limited trim. Considering it's size it is surprisingly easy to maneuver. They were extremely good, and liveable cars.
Those Buick interiors are a bit garish by today's standards but damn those seats were comfortable! I remember riding in my Grandfather's 79 Park Avenue - wish I could ride in that backseat one more time!
I owned a 1972 Electra, back in the 1980s...it too was sumptuous, but I would have happily been surrounded by this amazing interior!. at least I had that awesome 455 V8.....along with 11mpg!
Back when the interior of cars were stylish, sophisticated, had their heart and soul put into the design and ergonomics of it, and most importantly, *were so comfortably they could be considered couches on wheels.* You don't see this in modern-day automobiles anymore (especially the Japanese ones), since they are all blobby, same-designed due to the effect of globalization and lack of freedom in personal design choices, rely way too much on their "useful technology" that distracts the drivers from concentrating on the road, and most importantly, *lack of color and personality when it came to the softness and design choices/dimensions of the interiors of those cars.*
It's almost criminal to have such high prices for today's cars and have most of them restricted to interior colors of most black and somewhat less black. Especially when they lack real comfort for long periods spent in the seats.
BS. These late 70’s and early 80’s GM cars were crap. Maybe not as bad as the other domestics, but they were crap. Fit/finish, quality of materials, emissions, rust, quality of assembly. There is a reason European and Japanese vehicles dominated in the ‘80’s-‘10’s. It started with GM making cars like this in the 70’s.
@@donleamon8653 Ya they were crap, but they were our crap g***ammit! Built in the good ole' US of A. Whatchu gonna do when the big 3 come after you brother? Bahahahahaha.
My mother had a 1984 Park Avenue and the interior lighting at night was absolutely amazing! I wish there were more videos of the interior of those cars at night. Absolutely love them!
Had both a 1979 Buick Electra 225 and a 1985 Buick Electra 225 T-type. The 1985 was an aspirational sports sedan with a muted grey leather interior, alloy wheels and Goodyear Eagle tires. IIRC it did not have a tach and it had the long horizontal speedometer which kills the sports sedanb vibe quite a bit. I put nearly 300,000 miles on it without major engine or tranny work. It was definitely not as sumptuous as the 79. I was in my late 20's when I got the 79 from a friend for $1200. It was very comfortable and handled pretty well for such a large beast. I would push it pretty hard on the very curvy switch back road into town and it never wallowed. The Michelin tires (I'm not sure if they were OEM) handled really well and it was really hard to get it to hydroplane. The best part of both those Buicks were their near invisibility to law enforcement. I think the combination of it being an old people car and the sheer size making it look like it was going slower than it actually was were big pluses. The 79 was a great ski trip car up to Tahoe, everything, even long skis easily fit into the trunk, no rack needed. On the freeway it could eek out over 20 mpg. The velour interior helped the interior be nearly tomb quiet.
This put a smile on my face. The first car I ever bought myself was a white with white vinyl top 83 Buick Electra with a red "stuffed pillow" interior. 9:58, that's it. That's what it looked like. Paid $300. Had to put a battery and fiddle with the carb to get it running. I was 17. Good times.
Thanks for this memory! I bought a new Regal limited in 1978...yep....crushed velour , T-Tops...the works. I had crashed my German sports car badly, and my dad put his foot down, and forbid my getting another sports car. I took many road trips in her, and it was amazingly comfortable! It was really nice, but within 2 years I was on my own and made it back to the Porsche dealer.
So many folks either were lucky or just ignored the leak like a sieve GM engines and transmissions of this era plus terrible drivability issues with many of these cars! My aunt had a 1979 2 door Electra. It drenched her new garage floor with every fluid but brakes! You never knew if it would accelerate strongly or buck and surge. The car spent a ton of time in the Buick shop too. Hers had the Buick 350 which loved to ping on load too even though she always ran premium fuel! Our 1978 Plymouth Volare ran better after a couple trips to the dealer to replace the carb and fix a defect in the Transmission. The Buick dealer could never fix the problems with my Aunts Buick!
I love the puffy cushions. Reminds me of my grandmothers car when I was a little girl! I remember the smell of the velour. Breathing in…. RIP Mrs. White ❤
Back when Buick could quietly "out do" a Cadillac. In the early 80s mom had a used 78 Park Ave. Though I did not appreciate it at the time, it was just as good if not a better car than my grandparents 71 & 79 DeVilles. The power of marketing and a badge.....
I owned a 76 Electra and I think it's still the most beautiful, I did exhaust work on it and I am not sure what transmission it had but it looked as big as the 455 engine huge tranny.
Those were some of the most beautiful interiors. Not sure how well they intended them to age with all the excess crushed velour on the seats… those Park Avenues definitely did have some unique features for GM atleast, like the faux wood plaque on the seat back for the assist straps, the velour wrapped seat trim concealing the aluminum…. Some had nice chrome accents on the lower door panel the Olds and Cadillac didn’t…. They were extremely nice cars. I am a fan. Thanks for the video.
I never understood the whole engine scandel thing. Why couldn't buick get their engines wherever they wanted to? They didn't have to disclose who made the seats, for example.
My aunt had one (78 or 79 top level Park Ave trim) and as poofy as the seats were, they were extremely comfortable. This car would cruise at highway speeds and above so smoothly it was as if you were in an airplane. The things my cousin did to the car were not what one would do to a luxury car such as taking down logging roads through the woods. If my aunt would have known where we went with it she'd have been P!ssed.
Back in the '70s, more the mid'70s, these interiors were 'the bomb'. A friend (ironically their name appears in your video) bought a '78 Riviera, aka LaSabre, with similar if not the same red interior. Thanks for the memories.👍🏾🏁
I love these interiors. I wanna sink into them and revel in the comfort. They need to come back. That plum colored interior. That would be such a nice change from black or grey.
My gramma loved the poofy seats in grampas 79 or 78 LeSabre and the 87' Delta88 they traded it in on. They were definately comfy. Grampa hated the 350 Buick motor though. Prior ride was a 71 Galaxie 500 with a 4V 460 (Canada). He said the 87' olds felt like a hotrod after suffering the Buick.
I loved my '77 Park Avenue... it had those puffy red seats and they were great on long road trips. Mine had the 350 Buick and it was very adequate for the car. My Aunt and Uncle had a '77 with the 403 and honestly there was not much difference I could tell. These were great riding and handling platforms and I would have to say a HUGE improvement for GM across the full size line. Of course the General can never leave good alone and when they went to Front Wheel Drive I walked from GM forever.
My uncle Quincy only drove Buicks. At times he would tow his Renell boat to our area. That boat had an inboard engine. It was meant to be a ski boat. The Buick always had plenty of power to tow it in the 70`s. Comfortable riding car even when towing a heavy boat.
My MIL had a 78 Elektra 225. Gaw that thing was a BEAST. Powder blue interior that was like sitting in a plush living room. It's cruising speed was 70, and could happily open that quadrajet and push you back into it😊 The split bench seat made it a great car for taller people, and even the back seat had enough room for taller folk with the driver's seat all the way back. It's still a Buick, every danged window switch went out, the cassette deck still ate tapes, and the rear leaf springs still gave out. She had it for 20 years, and the only reason it went to the scrap heap is because she wouldn't put water in it for whatever reason and burned that 403 to the ground.
I had a '79 Buick Electra Park Avenue, red, with the red velour interior. The interior really was over-the-top. Friends and family referred to the car as "The Bordello." The seats did not wear well. The faux wood grain on the doors was thin, easily damaged and started peeling. I enjoyed the car for what it was, it was smooth, powerful and quiet. For its size, it handled well.
My Grandpa bought 78 Park Avenue brand new. My Grandma did not like the color. They had it repainted a factory Buick bronze color after a few years....All the options including the little thermometer on the mirror and a moon roof. Was a really neat car. Droopy headliner though. The first year they used the adhesive backed felt material instead of the cloth stretched over the wire rods. That earlier headliner seems to hold up really well, even on beaters. Must've been way easier to install the felt stuff at the factory, not to mention cheaper.
I hate the new headliners, after a certain time they all start to droop - I never once saw the "old school" headliners dong that! And, by experience, it's really hard to find places that are able to fix the droop!
A friend owned a '76 Park Avenue. I can say without a doubt it was a comfortable cruiser. In the '80's I worked at a Buick dealership. I liked the LeSabre Limited Collector series cars. I owned an '86 Riviera. It was a comfortable highway cruiser. The interior was understated compared to the subject of this episode. My father had a '76 Electra 225. The interior was nothing like the Park Avenue interior. Understated in comparison. Even though the cars before '77 had poor space utilization they were comfortable highway cars. '77 and later in my opinion were leaner and smartly designed cars for the time. The only negative was the corporate use of different engine brands. If you paid the money for an upscale offering you wanted the engine to go with it. Today's offerings use globally sourced powerplants. The larger displacements are usually Chevrolet based designs.
Buick Electra sales were very strong in 75 and 76 .. when the 77 came out.. they hardly outsold the 76 models.. not sure if supplies were tight... but neverless sales of the 77's were very strong and success continued in 78.. I believe GM had their best sales year in the US.in 1978. Buick division had the best sales year in 1984 .. when they offered so many different models including small J cars,X cars and A cars, along with all their RWD models.
My favorite is the 79 Electra. The faux wood looks a little different in that year, a little shinier. I love how plush the seats are, and I love how the gages have the silver background instead of black.
That interior looks comfy, but I find the front of the 1977s strange. It looks like they tried making the area around the headlights aerodynamic, but left the grill and the other lights and the areas around those upright. I understand that there was a scandal and a lawsuit in 1977 when GM put Chevrolet engines in Oldsmobiles. I would love to hear your perspective on that.
Bought a '77 Electra 2 dr. used in 1990. Had 39000 mi on it and factory plastic still attached over back seat ( green velour, Chesterfield style tufting). Mine was like Chevron steering wheel version @7:10. My family has a historic relationship with Buick, Chevy and GM (see Sam McLaughlin, GM Canada )
I believe these downsized full sized cars of 77 and 78 were among the best GM ever turned out. With larger interior space, less weight, and the better power to weight ratio, they were far superior in many ways to their immediate predecessors. And they still retained the luxurious feeling and interior design elements of the earlier models. Thanks for all the work you put into your content ~ Chuck
Yup i agree. And yes i own a 75 lesabre which is 226.9 inches and the way smaller 77 model was a lot more roomy
Oddly, the fuel consumption in the real world was almost identical. Then again, few knew how to tune the carburetors properly.
@@michaeltutty1540 I can only compare a 74 Impala 350, with a 78 Caprice 350. The mileage and performance were significantly better with the 78. Again, anecdotal evidence.
? Era of MALAISE surely!
Thanks for the summary Chuck
My Dad had a '71 Electra 225. He would take me out at 3:00 AM on a straight highway going 80 miles an hour, saying that he was "blowing the carbon out." It was exhilarating, to have a huge Buick with brocaded seats as your Dad drove over the speed limit.
The idea of these cars going that fast terrifies me. They always feel so floaty and numb in the wheel. And if you crash it’s lights out
I can appreciate Buick using round 'gages' instead of that horizontal needle usually found on luxoboats. Red Brothel interior looks mighty comfy.
Ordered a new Buick LeSabre in January of 1980. I specified option BT1 which transformed it into a LeSabre "Lawman", designating it a police vehicle. It came w/5 high-speed pursuit Goodyear Bluestreak Flexten radial tires in P225/R70-15. They were 6-ply belted radials (2 polyester & 4 Aramid fabric)...no steel belts. The finest, longest-lasting tires I've ever driven upon...lasted 60K miles! I took delivery of that wonderful Buick on my 33rd birthday, order # KQU094. W/out a doubt, the most predictable-handling car I ever owned in my 77+ years!....Dark Blue w/Oyster Grey velour police seats (HD). Cost new was a bit over 10K & the only modification included installation of a Crane cam & lifters.
That sounds nice
80 was the last year for the 170 hp 350 for those I believe -- after that the top dog was an anemic 140 hp 307 that was gasping at 75 mph
I worked a Buick Dealership in '77 & '78. Those Electra Park Ave's were jaw dropping, back then. I got to show my mom the dealerships owner's demo, it was '78 white with a ice blue top and interior. Stunning. By the time my mom decided to by it, the car was sold. So she bought a Gran Prix instead. I wasn't happy, as I worked at a Buick dealership and they treated me really well I was just 19 and 20 at the time.
My sister inlaw had a79 Electra with the poofy red interior - SO comfortable!!!
I know this is about Buick, but I had an 87 Chrysler New Yorker and it had the most beautiful interior ever! It was super elegant, plush, garish and "poofy" crushed tufted velour. I got more compliments on that car than all my other cars combined.
I know what your mean! While the interiors on some 70s-80s cars are a bit much at least they had a style and colors! Not like todays Black, grey, or beige/tan interiors. Back then we had every color imaginable inside and outside on our cars
@@jakereal3604 For sure. Not only my interior was super plush, it was color matched and extremely comfortable!! Today's interiors are bland and not that comfortable.
Thank you Adam. Thank you for sharing this generation. I liked the styling update in 1980 and when the seats and steering wheel changes in 1981-1984. The 1977-1979 taillamp theme came back in 1991 and was used well until the end in 2005. The LeSabre Limited was running a close second to this generations interior and exterior styling. That would continue 1991-1996 as well.The LeSabre Limited got the Park Avenue seats in 1984 and they were placed on the LeSabre Limited and Collectors Edition in 1985. I recall seeing a design proposal for the 1980-1984 Electra / Park Avenue. That was great information about the steering wheel too. I saw the Electra Park Avenue steering wheel in the Oldsmobile Ninety Eight in the 1980's also with an oldsmobile emblem. I noticed most people do not refer to this car as Electra anymore. They call them Park Avenue or Duce and a quarter. The Electra name is used on a vehicle sold in China in 2024 that will be coming to the United States. It is a crossover: ua-cam.com/video/S0YyVSNBJPY/v-deo.html
The "Electra" moniker is going to be used to denote the EV variant of whatever vehicle it is on, for example, Enclave Electra.
This one made me sad. We had a 1977 Electra limited. It drove and handled so well. We kept for 12 years and I would see it on the road a few years after we sold it. I had the speedometer a far as it would go many times. It registered 85 but would go all the way to the bottom of the dial. I lost control of it in the rain and it spun around about 5 times but didn’t hit anything. I have always been extremely careful in the rain since.
I'll take these interiors over any offered today that's for sure, I do prefer the Park Avenue seats of the '81-'84 over the '77-80 though! I had a '78 Buick LeSabre Sport Coupe with the turbo V6 and I really liked the dash design and the "nautical" look of the gauge cluster especially the large clock on the passenger side of the dash, looked good lit up at night as I remember. I think Buicks dash was the most attractive of the other downsized Chevy/Pontiac/Olds/Cadillacs of the time.
I agree! These interiors had character, whereas most of today’s interiors are just ugly.
@@joesinkovits6591Agreed! Ugly bland black or dark gray interiors. Smh
@@trickyricky12147 Way too many black interiors - ever since they figured out they can just use the same black interior with pretty much any color exterior and save a bunch of money. Not very practical either since they absorb so much heat in the sun.
The '77 Electra uses the '73 Cadillac steering wheel, but also the '77 DeVille door panels.
My mom had a "Bimini Beige" '77 Coupe de Ville d'Elegance and I hated that car! It was basically the same as this Buick and you can tell they used a lot of the same interior panels. But I will say that the round gauges of this Buick are FAR better and FAR better looking than what Cadillac installed on my mother's car, which were minimalist. The d'Elegance package had these "pillowed" seats, and the first time I crawled into that car I tried to move them, only to realize they were actually part of the seat itself.
My parents bought a 76, in 86. It was white with a red interior. Man that car was gigantic. It was crazy how it rode on the highway. It was like you were floating the way it handled imperfections in the road.
You always seem to know what I need, it's so bizarre that coming up on the anniversary of my mother's death you show the cars that she drive and bring back fond memories when I'm getting down. Thank you for your posts. My favourite.of hers was the 86 olds toranado. There is a car ad on UA-cam that has the exact same burgundy and deep almost purple color with wire wheels. Look it up, it's an absolute gem. Even had a sunroof.
Like I said, may not be much to you, but you just got me out of the bed from a dark place by reminding me of fond memories VS the sad times on hospice for her.
Relish those fond memories! ❤
My father got a 1977 Electra Limited coupe with the 403 and a tow package. It served him for 3 years, my mother for about 10 years, towing a 2 horse trailer across the country, then a few years with me until I gave it to my sister-in-law. Strong performer, effortless and very comfortable cruiser, and very dependable. Also looked pretty good. Interior was one step down in cushiness, but I'd argue just as comfortable. A favorite feature: the row of indicator lights at the base of the windshield; I used to say, " look what that idiot did! Arm cruise missiles!" Then I'd flip the cruise control switch and the "CRUISE" light would illuminate in the indicator light strip. My kids loved it!
Sailing down the country roads in my dad’s ‘79, with “BRIGHT” “CRUISE” lights glowing in the dark was something I’ll never forget.
In the early 2000s I picked up a 1977 Park Avenue with this interior in light green. It had a very nice interior but needed paint. When vacuuming the interior, I found a Shell credit card deep inside the tufts of velour in the back seat. It had expired in 1978! I always thought it funny that someone lost their card in that over-the-top interior!
Had a 70 Thunderbird back in the mid eighties, I remember finding matchbooks from Las Vegas and some midwestern states when I was going through the backseats . Wondered what stories they could tell…
I owned a low-mileage ‘79 Electra Park Avenue, bought from the original owner in 2000. It had the blue crushed velour seats in its poofy interior which were very well padded yet supportive. Thankfully Buick did not yet have the excess of plastiwood on the door tops then and had the droopy-V steering wheel shown in one of your pics. The dash was gorgeous, far better than the big Olds at the time, with silver-faced instruments and the large clock on the passenger side as a throwback to ‘40s/‘50s Buicks. I think the interior door armrests were also shared with Cadillac in those years. Mine had the Olds 403/TH400 which would have been fine except for being crippled by an economy rear end. Just a great car which drove wonderfully like all of the ‘77-‘79 downsized GM full-sizers.
Actually, the plastiwood door tops came in 1980, and I believe ran through 1984. Oldsmobile had it too in the 98 Regency and Regency Brougham, although the Olds "wood" was darker in color and did quite assault one's eye like the lighter Buick "wood."
The Olds 403 in these Buicks and the Olds 98 was a perfect fit. The acceleration was assuring and the torque inspiring - very similar to the Cadillac 425 of the era. You could almost option the Buicks and Olds to the level of a Cadillac but there were always a couple of options not available making Cadillac more exclusive. Having driven many models of these cars I feel Buicks just edged the others in driving feel when outfitted with the 403.
These 70s luxury car interiors with the pillow velour seats are the most beautiful interiors ever made. they are like works of art, unlike the plain flat looking seats they make nowadays.
We had a 77 Newport custom with a red cloth interior, a family friend who was a devout Baptist noted that the interior of the car looked like a bordello, we asked him how he knew what the inside of a bordello looked like.
I remember getting some nasty static shocks in the dead of winter from those poofy interiors.
Buick Electra: Look at my wild overstuffed interior
Cadillac Talisman: Hold my beer
That was the top line of the three Electra trim levels. It remained available in the Park Avenue through to the end of 84 production. In the middle of 84 a new trim level, LS (Luxury Sedan) was added to the Delta 88 Royale Brougham and it used the same interior in the slightly shorter wheelbase through the end of 85. A lot of Park Avenue buyers were not ready to settle for a 6 cylinder, front wheel drive car that was noticeably smaller, and felt much less substantial. I don't blame them. I had a 78 Electra Limited coupé which I loved. It shared the interior trim with the 77/78 Riviera.
That dead on rear shot reminded me of how struck I was when the 77 came out - look, it's a 63! (Oops, I see you got that too) That interior migrated eventually to the Bonneville Brougham, continuing Pontiac's unique position of offering C body luxury in the B body series. Pontiac got the steering wheel too. For a long time this, to me, made top trim Pontiacs a genuine bargain. In HS I had a friend whose parents bought a loaded LeSabre Limited a year or two old with the 403. For the time, that had considerable get up and go; especially because we were driving it in the early 80s when there was nothing but the gutless 307 available - if you were lucky.
Interiors in actual color! Not grey, not black, but actual warm, welcoming, soothing color. Please someone tell today's designers and marketers to bring back some doggone color!
A few yrs ago I traded my LEXUS LS460 in for a smaller MAZDA SUV. I also owned a LEXUS back in 2009. None of those cars were as quiet and smooth riding as my Mom's 78 Buick Regal Limited with the tufted seats and a 305 V8. Or her brother's downsized Buick Electra 225. To this day I haven't ridden in any smoother riding cars 👀
"Vulgar Velour" I love it.
You know lots of old people were shagging on those seats
Thanks!
Welcome!
Crazy cool crushed velvetish interior. Nice. Thanks for sharing.
I had a new '79 Electra for a year or so; we opted for the Electra Limited because it was not quite as garish inside as the Park Avenue (although it was a black car with the bordello red interior!). The Park Avenue seats do remind me of the '74-'76 Cadillac Talisman seats, which seem equally as opulent.
My 78 Cadillac Coupe Deville has those Poofy seats and they are AMAZINGLY comfortable in every way...I can and have driven it for hundreds of miles at a stretch without any issues. No other car has done that for me
Drove one of these as a taxi in the late 80’s, it was a 1983 model with a small V8 a 307 or something and a big 4bbl. It was not terribly fast or anything but such a sweet car to drive very comfortable indeed.
I rode in a friend's Buick with seats like this. The fabric was kind of grippy and It felt like I might throw my back out getting out of the seat.
I have a 78 Park Avenue. It is ridiculous, but after almost 50 years it's still extremely comfortable, but had I been buying one new I would have stuck with the Limited trim.
Considering it's size it is surprisingly easy to maneuver. They were extremely good, and liveable cars.
Those Buick interiors are a bit garish by today's standards but damn those seats were comfortable! I remember riding in my Grandfather's 79 Park Avenue - wish I could ride in that backseat one more time!
I owned a 1972 Electra, back in the 1980s...it too was sumptuous, but I would have happily been surrounded by this amazing interior!. at least I had that awesome 455 V8.....along with 11mpg!
Back when the interior of cars were stylish, sophisticated, had their heart and soul put into the design and ergonomics of it, and most importantly, *were so comfortably they could be considered couches on wheels.* You don't see this in modern-day automobiles anymore (especially the Japanese ones), since they are all blobby, same-designed due to the effect of globalization and lack of freedom in personal design choices, rely way too much on their "useful technology" that distracts the drivers from concentrating on the road, and most importantly, *lack of color and personality when it came to the softness and design choices/dimensions of the interiors of those cars.*
It's almost criminal to have such high prices for today's cars and have most of them restricted to interior colors of most black and somewhat less black. Especially when they lack real comfort for long periods spent in the seats.
you can always pimp your ride. 😂
BS. These late 70’s and early 80’s GM cars were crap. Maybe not as bad as the other domestics, but they were crap. Fit/finish, quality of materials, emissions, rust, quality of assembly. There is a reason European and Japanese vehicles dominated in the ‘80’s-‘10’s. It started with GM making cars like this in the 70’s.
I'm surprised one of the big 3 didn't partner up with Lay Z Boy to make a special edition interior like they did with the designers. lol
@@donleamon8653 Ya they were crap, but they were our crap g***ammit! Built in the good ole' US of A.
Whatchu gonna do when the big 3 come after you brother? Bahahahahaha.
To think how many babies were conceived on those pillowy velour seats.
But the after-sex cigarette burns in the pillowy velour upholstery made it look pretty tacky after a while.
Trust me, cheap vinyl seats in a 70s compact worked just as well.
😂😢😅@@stormythelowcountrykitty7147
Think of a Bob and Midge type couple
@@stormythelowcountrykitty7147 😃😁🤣
I still think the 74-76 Fleetwood Talisman was the plushest car from GM but this was pretty damn close
My mother had a 1984 Park Avenue and the interior lighting at night was absolutely amazing! I wish there were more videos of the interior of those cars at night. Absolutely love them!
Neighbor was part of the lawsuit against GM for putting a Chevrolet engine in his Oldsmobile
Had both a 1979 Buick Electra 225 and a 1985 Buick Electra 225 T-type. The 1985 was an aspirational sports sedan with a muted grey leather interior, alloy wheels and Goodyear Eagle tires. IIRC it did not have a tach and it had the long horizontal speedometer which kills the sports sedanb vibe quite a bit. I put nearly 300,000 miles on it without major engine or tranny work. It was definitely not as sumptuous as the 79. I was in my late 20's when I got the 79 from a friend for $1200. It was very comfortable and handled pretty well for such a large beast. I would push it pretty hard on the very curvy switch back road into town and it never wallowed. The Michelin tires (I'm not sure if they were OEM) handled really well and it was really hard to get it to hydroplane. The best part of both those Buicks were their near invisibility to law enforcement. I think the combination of it being an old people car and the sheer size making it look like it was going slower than it actually was were big pluses. The 79 was a great ski trip car up to Tahoe, everything, even long skis easily fit into the trunk, no rack needed. On the freeway it could eek out over 20 mpg. The velour interior helped the interior be nearly tomb quiet.
This put a smile on my face. The first car I ever bought myself was a white with white vinyl top 83 Buick Electra with a red "stuffed pillow" interior. 9:58, that's it. That's what it looked like. Paid $300. Had to put a battery and fiddle with the carb to get it running.
I was 17. Good times.
Thanks for this memory! I bought a new Regal limited in 1978...yep....crushed velour , T-Tops...the works. I had crashed my German sports car badly, and my dad put his foot down, and forbid my getting another sports car. I took many road trips in her, and it was amazingly comfortable! It was really nice, but within 2 years I was on my own and made it back to the Porsche dealer.
So many folks either were lucky or just ignored the leak like a sieve GM engines and transmissions of this era plus terrible drivability issues with many of these cars! My aunt had a 1979 2 door Electra. It drenched her new garage floor with every fluid but brakes! You never knew if it would accelerate strongly or buck and surge. The car spent a ton of time in the Buick shop too. Hers had the Buick 350 which loved to ping on load too even though she always ran premium fuel! Our 1978 Plymouth Volare ran better after a couple trips to the dealer to replace the carb and fix a defect in the Transmission. The Buick dealer could never fix the problems with my Aunts Buick!
You know you are old when you can feel every control by memory on a dash from a "classic" car.
I love the puffy cushions. Reminds me of my grandmothers car when I was a little girl! I remember the smell of the velour. Breathing in…. RIP Mrs. White ❤
I grew up during that time and, what I called Bordello Red, was a very popular color back in the day.
Adam, such outstanding work - thanks. Please keep it up.
Ultra comfortable seats and carpet rides.
Back when Buick could quietly "out do" a Cadillac. In the early 80s mom had a used 78 Park Ave. Though I did not appreciate it at the time, it was just as good if not a better car than my grandparents 71 & 79 DeVilles. The power of marketing and a badge.....
I owned a 76 Electra and I think it's still the most beautiful, I did exhaust work on it and I am not sure what transmission it had but it looked as big as the 455 engine huge tranny.
i agree, last year for the big one.
Some of the best vehicles ever produced by GM
The 403 Olds would literally run forever with proper oil changes
The "Casket Interior"
It was a lot of people's last car interior.
Ahhh, bury me!😆😆
They should call the red interior the "mobster special". You could whack someone in the back seat and the blood would be invisible.
More like old school bordello.. 🤭🤭
My grandpa called it "the whorehouse interior"! lol, boy, I miss his sense of humor!
Poofy obviously means something very different in American English. You would never say that you have a poofy car interior if you were in Australia.😃
Lol... In American English , poofy means overstuffed and pillowy, not🦄
What does it mean?
@@ChezJohn on a family channel like this, I really shouldn’t say. 😉. I suggest you do a little research, shouldn’t be difficult. Here’s a hint. 🏳️🌈
@@Martin2153 lol ok, got it. I didn’t mean to put you in the spot brother. 👍
@@ChezJohnno worries, I wasn’t bothered, I just didn’t want to seem to be making derogatory comments. Cheers.
Those were some of the most beautiful interiors. Not sure how well they intended them to age with all the excess crushed velour on the seats… those Park Avenues definitely did have some unique features for GM atleast, like the faux wood plaque on the seat back for the assist straps, the velour wrapped seat trim concealing the aluminum…. Some had nice chrome accents on the lower door panel the Olds and Cadillac didn’t…. They were extremely nice cars. I am a fan. Thanks for the video.
I took my driving test in my mom’s ‘78 Park Avenue with a 403 Olds. This was back when you still had to parallel park…😮
Some of those Buick seats are reminiscent of the 1974-1976 Cadillac Fleetwood Talisman seats.
Hi Adam, i think that this model has the same steering wheel as the Cadillacs had of the same era. And i must say that i like your videos.👍👍
I never understood the whole engine scandel thing. Why couldn't buick get their engines wherever they wanted to? They didn't have to disclose who made the seats, for example.
My favorite GM car of this period is the 1979 Cadillac Fleetwood. It had presence and still let you know that you made it. It still does.
I agree.
I also see a lot of part sharing with the Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham.
My aunt had one (78 or 79 top level Park Ave trim) and as poofy as the seats were, they were extremely comfortable. This car would cruise at highway speeds and above so smoothly it was as if you were in an airplane. The things my cousin did to the car were not what one would do to a luxury car such as taking down logging roads through the woods. If my aunt would have known where we went with it she'd have been P!ssed.
Never thought I'd miss these "bordellos on wheels" but I kinda do! 🤷
Those interiors are very Bordello looking! LOL I agree though while perhaps a bit much, the were so comfortable and cozy!
Having seen these new when they came out, they were super plush and VERY living room like. Rode in a few and they were nicer than caddy’s at the time
I miss the luxobarges from that era, especially the interiors!
Back in the '70s, more the mid'70s, these interiors were 'the bomb'. A friend (ironically their name appears in your video) bought a '78 Riviera, aka LaSabre, with similar if not the same red interior. Thanks for the memories.👍🏾🏁
I love these interiors. I wanna sink into them and revel in the comfort. They need to come back. That plum colored interior. That would be such a nice change from black or grey.
My neighbor had a brand new 77 LeSabre, silver exterior , red crushed velour interior. I loved that car.
My gramma loved the poofy seats in grampas 79 or 78 LeSabre and the 87' Delta88 they traded it in on. They were definately comfy.
Grampa hated the 350 Buick motor though. Prior ride was a 71 Galaxie 500 with a 4V 460 (Canada). He said the 87' olds felt like a hotrod after suffering the Buick.
I loved my '77 Park Avenue... it had those puffy red seats and they were great on long road trips. Mine had the 350 Buick and it was very adequate for the car. My Aunt and Uncle had a '77 with the 403 and honestly there was not much difference I could tell. These were great riding and handling platforms and I would have to say a HUGE improvement for GM across the full size line. Of course the General can never leave good alone and when they went to Front Wheel Drive I walked from GM forever.
My uncle Quincy only drove Buicks. At times he would tow his Renell boat to our area. That boat had an inboard engine. It was meant to be a ski boat. The Buick always had plenty of power to tow it in the 70`s. Comfortable riding car even when towing a heavy boat.
Yes crazy interiors but dam comfy. Not like the junk we have now. Comfort was king. Thanks Adam!
My MIL had a 78 Elektra 225. Gaw that thing was a BEAST. Powder blue interior that was like sitting in a plush living room. It's cruising speed was 70, and could happily open that quadrajet and push you back into it😊 The split bench seat made it a great car for taller people, and even the back seat had enough room for taller folk with the driver's seat all the way back. It's still a Buick, every danged window switch went out, the cassette deck still ate tapes, and the rear leaf springs still gave out. She had it for 20 years, and the only reason it went to the scrap heap is because she wouldn't put water in it for whatever reason and burned that 403 to the ground.
How about a "Best cars to live in" episode?
Ha!
@@JackF99 Oh yeah, make sure to include the GM MotorHome and Volkswagen Bus!
I love it when you say "poofy", Adam. ;-)
I want a '77 Electra, badly.
A buddy of mine has a 1980 Park Ave and put a 93' Impala 6.0 in it. It also has that purple velour. He gave it a lavender/bone paint job. it is sweet!
I had an '86 Park Avenue with those poofy velour seats and they were more comfortable than anything made today.
Those poofy seat cushions pushed my shoulders further forward than the 8-way power seats could compensate. I hated those seats.
Love the bordello red interior. The phrase pimped out comes to mind.
Even though Ed Mertz wasn’t in charge of Buick at this time, I can imagine him selling Buick as something grand during this late 70’s to mid 80’s era.
These remind me of my youth when my folks bought the 79 olds 98 regency...it had gorgeous deep red leather,
Had a 1977 in triple pickle. Amazingly comfortable and had extra room in the garage as an aside.
I had a '79 Buick Electra Park Avenue, red, with the red velour interior. The interior really was over-the-top. Friends and family referred to the car as "The Bordello." The seats did not wear well. The faux wood grain on the doors was thin, easily damaged and started peeling. I enjoyed the car for what it was, it was smooth, powerful and quiet. For its size, it handled well.
My Grandpa bought 78 Park Avenue brand new. My Grandma did not like the color. They had it repainted a factory Buick bronze color after a few years....All the options including the little thermometer on the mirror and a moon roof. Was a really neat car. Droopy headliner though. The first year they used the adhesive backed felt material instead of the cloth stretched over the wire rods. That earlier headliner seems to hold up really well, even on beaters. Must've been way easier to install the felt stuff at the factory, not to mention cheaper.
I hate the new headliners, after a certain time they all start to droop - I never once saw the "old school" headliners dong that! And, by experience, it's really hard to find places that are able to fix the droop!
A friend owned a '76 Park Avenue. I can say without a doubt it was a comfortable cruiser. In the '80's I worked at a Buick dealership. I liked the LeSabre Limited Collector series cars. I owned an '86 Riviera. It was a comfortable highway cruiser. The interior was understated compared to the subject of this episode. My father had a '76 Electra 225. The interior was nothing like the Park Avenue interior. Understated in comparison. Even though the cars before '77 had poor space utilization they were comfortable highway cars. '77 and later in my opinion were leaner and smartly designed cars for the time. The only negative was the corporate use of different engine brands. If you paid the money for an upscale offering you wanted the engine to go with it. Today's offerings use globally sourced powerplants. The larger displacements are usually Chevrolet based designs.
They were very comfortable, especially on long rides...
I had a 1977 Electra (Limited, Not Park Avenue) It's my opinion that of all GM's 1977 full-size cars, Buick had the nicest dashboard.
ANYTHING beats the GLOOMY GREY OR DEATH BLACK interior that became popular in 1990
Looks like that interior was the Tri-shield’s answer to the Wreath-and-Crest’s Fleetwood Talisman.
Buick Electra sales were very strong in 75 and 76 .. when the 77 came out.. they hardly outsold the 76 models.. not sure if supplies were tight... but neverless sales of the 77's were very strong and success continued in 78.. I believe GM had their best sales year in the US.in 1978. Buick division had the best sales year in 1984 .. when they offered so many different models including small J cars,X cars and A cars, along with all their RWD models.
Thx...Had a friend w/75 PA Burgundy over Burgundy wht top...whooo what a cruiser to Hollywood on the 10...bumps what bumps?? Deep seated comfort!!
I LOVED these Buicks. They were VERY comfortable. My daily driver is a 1978 Riviera.
These made my '76 Cougar XR-7 feel as spartan as a $1,999 Maverick. Truly plush.
My favorite is the 79 Electra. The faux wood looks a little different in that year, a little shinier. I love how plush the seats are, and I love how the gages have the silver background instead of black.
What the heck is “vulgar” about those seats? They look luxurious and supremely comfortable.
That interior looks comfy, but I find the front of the 1977s strange. It looks like they tried making the area around the headlights aerodynamic, but left the grill and the other lights and the areas around those upright.
I understand that there was a scandal and a lawsuit in 1977 when GM put Chevrolet engines in Oldsmobiles. I would love to hear your perspective on that.
We had a 78 Parkie when I was growing up. It was a pretty good car but I always liked our 69 Electra Limited with the 430 engine better.
Bought a '77 Electra 2 dr. used in 1990. Had 39000 mi on it and factory plastic still attached over back seat ( green velour, Chesterfield style tufting). Mine was like Chevron steering wheel version @7:10.
My family has a historic relationship with Buick, Chevy and GM (see Sam McLaughlin, GM Canada )
These Buicks (Olds too} were the cars of my childhood in the 80s and first cars I drove when I got my license in the early 90s.