Yahoo Autos Junkyard Gem: 1972 Buick Centurion Four-Door Hardtop
During the mid-to-late 1960s, General Motors made flashy, semi-sporty versions of each of its full-sized B-body cars. Oldsobile had the Delta 88 Royale, for example, while Pontiac offered the Grand Prix. The rakish big Buick of that period was the Wildcat, built through the 1970 model year. Just as the Wildcat shoved aside the Invicta, the Centurion appeared in 1971 to replace the Wildcat. Named after a famous 1956 concept car, production of the Centurion continued just through 1973. Just over 100,000 were built, and here's one of those rarities in a Colorado self-service boneyard.
The Centurion was available as a hardtop coupe, a convertible, and a four-door hardtop sedan. It was at heart a LeSabre with a different grille and other cosmetic touches.
Instead of the usual triple-shield Buick emblems, the Centurion got Roman-soldier badges.
Perhaps the world's best-known Centurion is the '72 convertible driven by Kurt Russel's slimy-car-salesman character in the 1980 film, Used Cars.
Kurt ends up selling his Centurion to a customer he "baited" from the rival lot across the street.
In 1974, the Centurion was replaced by the LeSabre Luxus, a trim-level designation that Buick swiped from Opel.
