1939 BUICK Century 5.2L 3MT (143 HP)

Vehicle Overview

Following a new marketing strategy, Buick renamed its models in the mid-’30s, and the Century nameplate was born as a replacement for the Series 60 model.

There was a new era in the automotive industry. Gone were most of the canvas-top vehicles, and the new body-on-frame with an enclosed cabin for passengers and a separate area for the luggage compartment took over the car arena.

On the outside, the tall and narrow engine compartment was flanked by flamboyant, curved fenders interrupted by the spare wheels. By that time, Buick already understood that the side steps were no longer needed since the cars were not as high as before.

The interior was also clean and simple but finished with expensive materials. Buick built the Century in a few body options, including a sedan, a coupe, and a convertible. Apart from the leather upholstery, the car boasted a radio, ashtray, and a metallic dash panel with three large dials in front of the driver and a clock in front of the passenger.

Like most of the cars from that era, the Century was built on top of a rigid chassis. Its front independent suspension with coil springs added an increase in comfort, while at the back, Buick had to rely on the trustworthy rigid axle with leaf springs. Under the hood, an inline-eight powerplant dubbed Firewall Dynaflash Eight boasted with its overhead valves system. Thanks to this improvement, the 143 hp engine could provide some punchy accelerations for those times and brought the car the nickname of “The banker’s hot-rod.”