1933 Buick Convertible Phaeton, Model 88C 🇺🇸

David Dunbar Buick was born in Scotland in 1854 and emigrated to the United States at just 15 years of age. He ultimately made his name in the plumbing fixture business but was fascinated by the concept of motorized transportation. Applying his engineering skills learned from his previous business he developed his first automobile in 1902 but didn’t start production until 1904. A much better engineer and inventor than a businessman, Buick ended up selling his automobile company to William Durant in 1908. This became the basis for the foundation of General Motors. Fast forward to 1933 and the company that made General Motors possible because of its strong sales and market share was now in dire condition. 

From a peak production of  266,753 units in 1926 Buick fell to a model year production of 45,150 in 1933. An astounding 83% drop in seven years. To make matters worse, sales for the calendar year 1933 were only 43,247, meaning 1,903 cars were left overs unsold when the new 1934 cars hit the market. 

Where the top of the line series 90 had body styles cut from its offerings in 1933, the next  lower series 80 cars gained three new body styles. One of these new offerings was the Convertible Phaeton otherwise known as a convertible sedan. This new offering allowed owners to enjoy top down driving weather permitting but stay comfortable and dry inside a normally proportioned four-door sedan the remainder of the time. This $1,845 offering was the most expensive 80 series body style and fell squarely in the series 90 price range. Clearly the 124 purchasers of these cars felt that the car offered sufficient value  and equivalency to the series 90 cars despite the 8” shorter wheelbase.