Buick Invicta

1962 Buick Invicta

The Buick Invicta (Series 4600) wis a full-sized automobile produced bi General Motors' Buick Motor Diveesion frae 1959 tae 1963. The Invicta wis a continuation o the Buick Century concept that matit the staundart size Buick LeSabre (pre-1959, Buick Special) body wi Buick's lairger 401 in³ Nailhead V8 ingine, yieldin what wis referred tae as "the banker's hot rod." The name was derived frae Laitin an signified 'unconquerable, invincible, unbeatable' accordin tae Buick Motor Division sales trainin materials.

Owerview

The Invicta series wis introduced as a full line o body styles for model year 1959. Sales niver approached that o either the LeSabre or Electra models, but wur consistent wi the traditional sales penetration o Buick's sporty mid-priced models (the 1954 tae 1958 Century an 1963 tae 1970 Wildcat).

Stairtin in 1960, an Invicta Custom trim package wis affered, featurin bucket seats an a 'consolette' in the haurdtop coupe, convertible an wagon an a leather bench seat wi a center airmrest on some 4 door haurdtops. Sales wur nominal.

1962 saw the debut o the Buick Wildcat 2-door haurdtop athin the Invicta series. The Wildcat featured maist o the interior trim o the Invicta Custom, which includit staundart bucket seats an upgradit door panels. Instead o the Invicta Custom's short console, housomeivver, the Wildcat haed a lang console wi a tachometer an a shift lever. Ither Wildcat features includit special badgin an exterior trim, alang wi a vinyl top an the taillichts that wur uised on the Electra 225 rather than those o the LeSabre/Invicta. These features placed the Wildcat well in step wi the shift towards sports-orientit models.

For 1963, the Wildcat woud replace the Invicta, takin ower its fower-door haurdtop, twa-door coupe an convertible body styles. The Invicta series haed a 6-passenger station wagon as its sole model. Ae 3,495 1963 Invicta station wagons wur built, efter which the name disappeared.

Accordin tae Robin Moore in his 1969 beuk The French Connection, "the 1960 Buick Invicta haed a peculiarity in body construction conducive tae the installations o . . . extraordinary, virtually detection-proof traps concealed athin the fenders an unnercarriage" that made it a popular model for internaitional heroin smugglers.

Buick Invicta Concept (2008)

The Invicta nameplate wis re-trademarked bi Buick in 2004, a concept vehicle bearing that name was unveiled in Auto China 2008. The vehicle wis designed bi GM Design Centers in Warren, Michigan an Shanghai, Cheenae.

The concept includit a 2.0-L direct injection turbo ingine ratit 186 kilowatts (249 hp) an 298 newton metres (220 ft·lbf), 6-speed automatic transmission, MacPherson strut front an independent rear suspensions, fower-wheel anti-lock disc brakes, 20x8.5-in polished aluminum wheels wi P245/40R20 tires.

The vehicle's designs wur later uised in the seicont generation o the Buick LaCrosse.