Buick Reatta
Encyclopedia
The Buick Reatta was the first car Buick advertised as a two-seater since the 1940 Buick model 46. It was a hand-made luxurious
sports coupe produced at the Lansing Craft Centre
in Lansing, Michigan
and sold by the Buick
division of American
automaker
General Motors
from early 1988 to 1991. Like the Cadillac Allanté
, it was based on a shortened version
of the GM E platform
used by the Cadillac Eldorado
, Oldsmobile Toronado
and particularly the Buick Riviera
, with which it shared many mechanical parts, advanced electronics, and interior furnishings. While a sport compact car, it was only offered with an automatic transmission
. It was also Buick's only sports car
at the time.
The Reatta sported its own unique body style and was crafted with an attention to hand finishing uncommon for a mass-produced automobile. The assembly was performed at a small series of craft stations - each with a specialized team of workers, rather than a conventional assembly line
. After a team had completed their portion of the assembly, the car would be moved by robots to the next station in the series. All of the paintwork was subcontracted to PPG Industries
personnel - who performed the work on site.
Initially offered for 1988 as a hardtop
coupe, a convertible
version was added for 1990. The Reatta used GM's ubiquitous "Buick 3800" V6 with 165–170 hp (123–127 kW) and 210–220 ft·lbf (285–298 N·m) of torque
with the highest output in the last year of production. The car sported a fully independent suspension
, 4 wheel disc brake
s with ABS, and front wheel drive. Top speed was electronically limited to 125 mph (201 km/h). The Reatta was rated at 18 mpg (13.1 L/100 km) in the city and 27 mpg (8.7 L/100 km) on the highway.
Every Reatta included a leather book containing the owner's manual and pen. In 1990 and 1991, a zippered owners folio was included. In addition to the owners manual, it also contained a "Craftsman's Log" with the signatures of the supervisors for the assembly of the car at the various craft stations, a pen, flashlight, and tire gauge, among other items. These slightly unusual items were an attempt to sell the mass-produced car as one built with individual care.
During the first two years of production, the Reatta, like its Riviera stablemate,
featured as standard equipment a touchscreen
computer interface called the "Electronic Control Center", or ECC. The touchscreen controlled the radio and climate control functions and provided diagnostic access to the vehicle's various electronic systems and sensors, mostly eliminating the need for a diagnostic scanner. It also featured a date reminder, a trip computer
, and a user-configurable overspeed alarm. This elaborate level of electronic equipment was off-putting for the more traditional "mature" buyers the Buick division
was courting. The 1990 and 1991 Reattas were equipped with a more conventional electronic push button stereo, optional CD player, and climate controls. The climate control buttons and display performed double duty to replace diagnostic scanner capability formerly provided by the touchscreen display, however the trip computer capability was lost.
The Reatta was conceived during a period in the early to mid-1980s when Buick was marketing higher performance editions of its vehicles (such as the turbocharged Buick GNX). However, midway through the development of the Reatta, GM decided to refocus the brand on a more traditional and mature image that was thought to be more in keeping with its core older buyer demographics. The resulting vehicle had a shape that carried performance car styling cues but provided little in the way of actual high performance. The lack of Buick's turbocharging is often blamed on the fact that Hydra-Matic, at the time, didn't have a suitable transaxle that could withstand the extra power.
A sunroof option was added late in the 1988 model year. In 1989, keyless entry was added as a standard feature. In 1990, a driver's side airbag appeared with the more conventional instrument panel. In 1991, the engine and transmission were reworked with the "L27" 3800 and 4T60-E replacing the "LN3" and hydraulic 4T60, along with new 16" wheels, Twilight Sentinel headlight control, and a cup holder.
The coupe
was joined by a convertible
for 1990 and 1991. The convertible top was available in vinyl or cloth, and featured a glass rear window with electric defroster. When retracted, the top was protected by a rigid tonneau cover. The 1991 models were improved with power pull-down motors to assist in tightening the rear bow of the top to the tonneau
cover.
The Reatta was intended as a halo car for Buick, but sales, originally planned to be around 20,000 units a year, were extremely disappointing and GM announced the end of Reatta production in early 1991.
Production is said to have begun in January 1988 and ended on May 10, 1991. However, various accounts of much earlier and later cars exist, and the handbuilt nature of the car and long development cycle makes accurately dating production difficult.
Personal luxury car
A personal luxury car is a highly styled, luxury vehicle with an emphasis on image over practicality. Accenting the comfort and satisfaction of its owner and driver above all else, the personal luxury car sometimes sacrifices passenger capacity, cargo room, and fuel economy in favor of style and...
sports coupe produced at the Lansing Craft Centre
Lansing Craft Centre
The Lansing Craft Centre was a specialized General Motors automobile assembly factory in Lansing Township, Michigan. The plant started production in 1987 and closed in 2006...
in Lansing, Michigan
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...
and sold by the Buick
Buick
Buick is a premium brand of General Motors . Buick models are sold in the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, Taiwan, and Israel, with China being its largest market. Buick holds the distinction as the oldest active American make...
division of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
automaker
Automaker
The automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells motor vehicles, and is one of the world's most important economic sectors by revenue....
General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
from early 1988 to 1991. Like the Cadillac Allanté
Cadillac Allanté
The Allanté was Cadillac's first venture into the ultra-luxury roadster market. The vehicle was sold from 1987 until 1993, with roughly 21,000 models built over its 7-year production run...
, it was based on a shortened version
GM V platform (FWD)
The V platform, or V-body, automobile platform designation was by General Motors for the Cadillac Allante halo car. It was a shortened version of the E-body used in the Buick Riviera and Cadillac Eldorado...
of the GM E platform
GM E platform
The General Motors E platform or E-Body was the automobile platform designation used for a number of personal luxury cars produced from 1963 to 2002...
used by the Cadillac Eldorado
Cadillac Eldorado
The 1953 Eldorado was a special-bodied, low-production convertible . It was the production version of the 1952 El Dorado "Golden Anniversary" concept car, and borrowed bumper bullets from the 1951 GM Le Sabre show car...
, Oldsmobile Toronado
Oldsmobile Toronado
The original Toronado began as a design painting by Oldsmobile stylist David North in 1962. His design, dubbed the "Flame Red Car," was for a compact sports/personal car never intended for production...
and particularly the Buick Riviera
Buick Riviera
The Riviera by Buick is an automobile produced by Buick in the United States from the 1963 to 1999 model years, with 1,127,261 produced.A full-size coupé or personal luxury car, the early models of the Riviera in particular have been highly praised by automotive journalists and writers.A common...
, with which it shared many mechanical parts, advanced electronics, and interior furnishings. While a sport compact car, it was only offered with an automatic transmission
Automatic transmission
An automatic transmission is one type of motor vehicle transmission that can automatically change gear ratios as the vehicle moves, freeing the driver from having to shift gears manually...
. It was also Buick's only sports car
Sports car
A sports car is a small, usually two seat, two door automobile designed for high speed driving and maneuverability....
at the time.
The Reatta sported its own unique body style and was crafted with an attention to hand finishing uncommon for a mass-produced automobile. The assembly was performed at a small series of craft stations - each with a specialized team of workers, rather than a conventional assembly line
Assembly line
An assembly line is a manufacturing process in which parts are added to a product in a sequential manner using optimally planned logistics to create a finished product much faster than with handcrafting-type methods...
. After a team had completed their portion of the assembly, the car would be moved by robots to the next station in the series. All of the paintwork was subcontracted to PPG Industries
PPG Industries
PPG Industries is a global supplier of paints, coatings, optical products, specialty materials, chemicals, glass and fiber glass. With headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, PPG operates in more than 60 countries around the globe. Sales in 2010 were $13.4 billion...
personnel - who performed the work on site.
Initially offered for 1988 as a hardtop
Hardtop
A hardtop is a term for a rigid, rather than canvas, automobile roof. It has been used in several contexts: detachable hardtops, retractable hardtop roofs, and the so-called pillarless hardtop body style....
coupe, a convertible
Convertible
A convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away having windows which wind-down inside the doors, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle...
version was added for 1990. The Reatta used GM's ubiquitous "Buick 3800" V6 with 165–170 hp (123–127 kW) and 210–220 ft·lbf (285–298 N·m) of torque
Torque
Torque, moment or moment of force , is the tendency of a force to rotate an object about an axis, fulcrum, or pivot. Just as a force is a push or a pull, a torque can be thought of as a twist....
with the highest output in the last year of production. The car sported a fully independent suspension
Independent suspension
Independent suspension is a broad term for any automobile suspension system that allows each wheel on the same axle to move vertically independently of each other. This is contrasted with a beam axle, live axle or deDion axle system in which the wheels are linked – movement on one side affects...
, 4 wheel disc brake
Disc brake
The disc brake or disk brake is a device for slowing or stopping the rotation of a wheel while it is in motion.A brake disc is usually made of cast iron, but may in some cases be made of composites such as reinforced carbon–carbon or ceramic matrix composites. This is connected to the wheel and/or...
s with ABS, and front wheel drive. Top speed was electronically limited to 125 mph (201 km/h). The Reatta was rated at 18 mpg (13.1 L/100 km) in the city and 27 mpg (8.7 L/100 km) on the highway.
Every Reatta included a leather book containing the owner's manual and pen. In 1990 and 1991, a zippered owners folio was included. In addition to the owners manual, it also contained a "Craftsman's Log" with the signatures of the supervisors for the assembly of the car at the various craft stations, a pen, flashlight, and tire gauge, among other items. These slightly unusual items were an attempt to sell the mass-produced car as one built with individual care.
featured as standard equipment a touchscreen
Touchscreen
A touchscreen is an electronic visual display that can detect the presence and location of a touch within the display area. The term generally refers to touching the display of the device with a finger or hand. Touchscreens can also sense other passive objects, such as a stylus...
computer interface called the "Electronic Control Center", or ECC. The touchscreen controlled the radio and climate control functions and provided diagnostic access to the vehicle's various electronic systems and sensors, mostly eliminating the need for a diagnostic scanner. It also featured a date reminder, a trip computer
Trip computer
A trip computer is an onboard computer device fitted to cars which can generally record distance travelled, average speed, average fuel consumption, and display real time fuel consumption information...
, and a user-configurable overspeed alarm. This elaborate level of electronic equipment was off-putting for the more traditional "mature" buyers the Buick division
was courting. The 1990 and 1991 Reattas were equipped with a more conventional electronic push button stereo, optional CD player, and climate controls. The climate control buttons and display performed double duty to replace diagnostic scanner capability formerly provided by the touchscreen display, however the trip computer capability was lost.
The Reatta was conceived during a period in the early to mid-1980s when Buick was marketing higher performance editions of its vehicles (such as the turbocharged Buick GNX). However, midway through the development of the Reatta, GM decided to refocus the brand on a more traditional and mature image that was thought to be more in keeping with its core older buyer demographics. The resulting vehicle had a shape that carried performance car styling cues but provided little in the way of actual high performance. The lack of Buick's turbocharging is often blamed on the fact that Hydra-Matic, at the time, didn't have a suitable transaxle that could withstand the extra power.
A sunroof option was added late in the 1988 model year. In 1989, keyless entry was added as a standard feature. In 1990, a driver's side airbag appeared with the more conventional instrument panel. In 1991, the engine and transmission were reworked with the "L27" 3800 and 4T60-E replacing the "LN3" and hydraulic 4T60, along with new 16" wheels, Twilight Sentinel headlight control, and a cup holder.
The coupe
Coupé
A coupé or coupe is a closed car body style , the precise definition of which varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, and over time...
was joined by a convertible
Convertible
A convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away having windows which wind-down inside the doors, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle...
for 1990 and 1991. The convertible top was available in vinyl or cloth, and featured a glass rear window with electric defroster. When retracted, the top was protected by a rigid tonneau cover. The 1991 models were improved with power pull-down motors to assist in tightening the rear bow of the top to the tonneau
Tonneau
right|thumb|260px|1903 [[Ford Model A |Ford Model A]] rear-door TonneauTonneau cover , describes a hard or soft cover used to protect unoccupied passenger seats in a convertible, roadster, or for a pickup truck bed. Hard tonneau covers open by a hinging or folding mechanism while soft covers open...
cover.
The Reatta was intended as a halo car for Buick, but sales, originally planned to be around 20,000 units a year, were extremely disappointing and GM announced the end of Reatta production in early 1991.
Production
| Year | 4EC97 Coupe | 4EC67 Convertible | Total | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 4,708 | 0 | 4,708 | First year |
| 1989 | 7,009 | 0 | 7,009 | New hood ornament, keyless entry, sunroof option |
| 1990 | 6,383 | 2,132 | 8,515 | First year of the convertible, new instrument panel and console, steering wheel-mounted airbag, Select 60 model gets 16 inch wheels |
| 1991 | 1,214 | 305 | 1,519 | 16 in wheels, tuned-port "L-code" engine and electronically controlled transmission, and a new ABS system join a revised interior with Twilight Sentinel, and a cup holder |
| Total: | 21,751 | |||
External links
- Reatta.net Reatta enthusiast website and message board
- Reatta Division, BCA