1989 buick century 2 door sport custom

[Guest]

i have recently purchased this buick coupe in mint condition tis car seems to be of a rare nature as most buick century models are 4 door cars . this car has the grand national under hood heat shield sixty series tires and rims sport steering wheel and sport package complete with all power and many options ie day time running lights . would this buick be a rare item if so what value would it receive .

[Guest Shaffer]

That is true. Don't see too many 2-door 1982-newer FWD Buick Century's. I see one quite oftern here locally in the supermarket parking lot, but it is the same car - not a different car.

[86 2dr.ltd]

Sounds really nice. There is a small handfull of 2dr,Centurys and Olds Cierra around. I've seen a few Cierra GT's mentioned for sale in our want add over the last few years. I cant seem to remember if I've ever seen a Century with the Sport package your talking about. Most likely not worth much more than you paid for it. Very few 80's cars are considered collectables.Maybe in another 20 years.<P>Check out <A HREF="http://www.lesabret.com/" TARGET=_blank>http://www.lesabret.com/</A> these guys might enjoy hearing about your car,as well you can learn about another special edition 80's Buick FWD car. Good luck!

[NTX5467]

If that car is what I think it is, it would be the precursor to the later T-Type models in basic suspension calibrations. There was nothing special in the engine department, but the body color trim and other "sporty" cosmetics made it work. The chassis upgrades were nice too. <P>There were some Olds Cierra GTs too, as mentioned, but one of those Centurys in solid black looked really good.<P>Collectibility? I'd consider that a tossup right now, but as more of the younger generation that grew up with fwd cars comes to appreciate these special, lower production Buicks, it could be a "keeper" for sure. Just like the later fwd T-Type LeSabre coupes. I suspect there were more of the Centurys than Cierra GTs, from what I remember.<P>Sounds like a neat car that deserves to be treated with care and respect--even if it spins the "wrong set of wheels". Afterall, it's a Buick too.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

[72Buickguy]

My mom had a 2 door 1987 Olds Ciera for many years, then it was given to my sister. So the car was in the family for many years. It always ran great and was dependable, but the body was falling apart when it was 'retired'. The driver's door drooped so badly that it was unusable. The steering column fell apart, and the car started to rust in the upper windshield area (very odd in CA). Add to that a sagging headliner. I think Fisher body did some poor engineering on these cars. But the mechanicals work great. I like the way the coupes look, but I wouldn't bet on their long term durabilty.

[NTX5467]

Most of those problems on the Cierra should have been easy fixes. <P>The headliner issue is a normal one as the foam backing deteriorates with age. Certainly not specific to GM at all. Only repair is to either pull it all down or get it replaced. The trim shop people advised to NOT try to reglue it as it only made cleaning the backing board more difficult when it was prepped for new fabric.<P>The door hinges probably just needed new hinge pin bushings to put them back right, maybe some new pins too--more labor intensive than parts price intensive, for sure. Probably a new striker bolt too as the lock probably had rubbed a flat spot on the top of it. <P>Many people unconsciously press down on a door when they open it, even if you walk up to a door in a building with a cross bar, it seems to be instinct to push downward before you push forward. Same with car doors, it seems as people push down with their elbows and forearms before they push outward when they get out of the car. Something I observed even myself to do before I conditioned myself not to. That downward push puts additional wear forces on the bronze hinge pin bushings over a period of time. In earlier times with the older design latches, the doors popped outward when you pulled the handle to open them, but the newer design latches don't seem to do that. We stock the bushings and pins for late model GM pickups by the handfull as them wearing out is a "normal wear item" on those vehicles.<P>I suspect the steering column was what I call "The Thunderbird Syndrome" where the wheel can be moved around in the column. Four long screws in the lower part of the column (below the tilt wheel pivot) get loose and the pot metal casting they go through can break as the tilt wheel is let "pop" up unrestrained as you pull the tilt lever when you get out of the car. The people who advertise to fix GM steering columns or a dealer with the correct part can probably have it fixed in an hour or so.<P>All of those things are "typical" issues with age that are sometimes more troublesome to tolerate than fix. Not a lot of money involved either. These are things I've observed in the dealership parts area during the past 25+ years so they aren't "big deals" to me to see these things happen, but others might not feel that way.<P>The windshield header rust is certainly unusual, though. Must have been moisture getting trapped up there for some reason. I don't think they fully dipped those bodies in the rust inhibitor tank back then.<P>I concur that the mechanicals usually caused no problems at all. I suspect these were better cars than many people ever gave them credit for being in that respect.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

[86 2dr.ltd]

I will thank and back NTX up 100%. Cars get old and headliners drop and rust gets a bite somewhere. Our 86 LeSabre has not yet droped its liner but our 81 & 89 NewYorker did, also my Dakota is now saging. I will say however on our 86 LeSabre the windshield post was rotting and when I replaced it with a piece from a 87 Delta 88 that was not rusted I found that the post was filled with foam. Something I figured had to do with shock absorbsion as well as sound deadening. The gue glue they bond the windshield with had a small pocket that held some moisture and eventually did its work. That problem also led to some deterioration down by the hinges. When I sandblasted and cleaned this car for the paint, I was very impressed with the galvanation that was done and will state that it was everywhere even inside that post when I cut it open. The one problem with the galvanation was that where it loosens its hold on the metal it seems to trap moisture and then rust really gets ahold. So this is most likely what happened to the Ciera mentioned. I wish my 75 & 76 Delta 88's held up to rust as well as our 86 LeSabre & Riviera have. Cars used to be rusted pretty badly by 80-100,000 miles. Now it takes 50,000 more.<P>Bravo Fisher Coachworks

[72Buickguy]

The Ciera had a 'terminal' problem with the driver's door. The mounting area for the striker was bent or misaligned after many years use. The body shop wouldn't touch that area of the car for safety reasons. It's amazing that my 72 Riv has held up so well when the newer and more expensive cars become unusable after a relatively short time span. I definitely think the body engineering has deteriorated.

[Dave@Moon]

I used to be a RCRA (hazardous waste) inspector for the State of PA in Pittsburgh. One opf the facilities I used to inspect was the Fisher Body Plant in West Mifflin, PA. <P>At the time of my last inspection (about 1991) the plant was being converted to short run production of replacement body panels. It is a very small facility by GM standards. All of the machines at that time were manual feed, operator controlled units. There were no large, computer monitored presses to be seen.<P>My contact at the site, the plant engineer, told me that the last piece made for new car production at this plant was the door skin pressings for these 2-door A-bodies. That had been stopped with the discontinuation of the 2-doors. They were the only cars (probably short of the Allante) being made by GM at that time in quantities small enough to make it viable to use such inefficient presses. They were likely the last individually stamped body panels GM ever made.<P>Enjoy your car! It is indeed quite rare and unique.

[NTX5467]

With all due respect, it sounds like that striker would not have bent or deformed the lock pillar if the hinge pin bushings had been replaced sooner. That piece of lock pillar is a separate stamping that is welded in just as any other body panel's welded in. It's not the easiest or cheapest body shop operation to do, but it's doable. Even on the newer models with the one piece complete door frame stampings, there are procedures to section them to replace parts of them without having to replace the entire stamping.<P>Those '80s cars were designed prior to the federal side impact safety tests. I can tell you from my own experience and observations, the newer cars that were designed for these current standards are much better than the prior ones--no doubt about that.<P>The door hinges on the '70s and earlier cars were of a more substantial and complex design than the current ones. I also suspect the cowl area and door shells were more substantial in design too. They were also designed to support more weight in the process. Usually if the bushings wore, you could tweak the hinge adjustment a little to compensate for it. But I have yet to find a '70s GM hardtop or convertible (the models that had quarter windows beside the rear seat) that did not have some deflection in the lock pillar area when the door was closed--another observation.<P>There are plusses and minuses for both the older and current/future construction strategies. Each has their merits and lesser accomplishments when compared to each other. Some of the newer designs certainly might look flimsier than the earlier ones, but the energy dissipation from the crash forces is a more evolved science than in previous times. Plusses and minuses there too with respect to repairability and similar concerns. <P>Just as there are some areas of the first generation F-body (Camaro/Firebird) that are better than the second generation and there are areas of the second, third, and later generations that are better than the first generations (especially body stiffness).<P>I wasn't aware that GM was using the foam fillings in any of their earlier vehicles. Not that they didn't for a structural reinforcement fix or a noise concern. I know that Chrysler issued a service bulletin on noise concerns (earlier production LH cars) that involved adding the foam in the door/cowl areas. The current Park Avenue has those things too.<P>Just some additional thoughts . . . .<P>NTX5467

[86 2dr.ltd]

So Dave, I always new the door on my LeSabre was special ?<P>On the hinges, the 86 LeSabre has a heavier gauge steel behind outside shell, strong enough. <P>The 86 LeSabre has 150,000 miles and the doors still close great.<P>The 75 88 convertable with 93,000 miles has bad hinges and window tracks.<P>The 76 88 Coupe at 98,000 miles has great hinges and window tracks.<P>This I would say only proves that some owners are hard on stuff, whether its leaning on the doors to reving the hell out of a cold motor. Some people have lots of problems with certain model cars that others have none with. <P>On the Ceira I would say 1 of 3 things happened. Spot welds didnt hold, rust got underneath and loosend the reinforcement or someone did something very radical to the door while it was opened - like backing into something or letting it fly open while parked facing downhill.<P>I just will not accept someone saying GM or Fisher body has faltered. I have two from the 70's and two from the 80's and while different the 80's cars are much more thought out designed than just plain primitive pile up some steel here and there. I've been through them both from stripping them down to repairing areas and putting them back together. I love the older cars and the "once newer cars" but I'm not ignorant enough to say one is better than the other. I've got the comparision right at my finger tips.<P>Now if you want to talk about current GM STLYING??? and upper management decisions, I will accept some critisim.