1972 Full Size Buicks

By Pete Phillips, BCA #7338, Bugle Editor

IT MAY BE HARD FOR SOME OF US TO BELIEVE, BUT THE 1972 BUICKS ARE NOW 50 YEARS OLD.

So, time to take a look at them with this article. The subject is the 1972 LeSabres, Centurions, and Electra 225s. We will cover the other 1972 Buicks in a later issue this year.

For 1972, all of the Buicks were updated with minor changes and small styling revisions. The large changes had come the year before, in 1971. In most cases, you have to look fairly carefully to tell a 1972 model from a 1971. For example, in 1972 Buicks, there is no “off” position for the blower switch on the dashboard. When the engine is on, the blower runs at low speed all the time, to improve the interior’s ventilation. The vent louvers in the trunk lids of 1971 full size Buicks were eliminated. For 1972, front and rear bumpers got black rubber strips to help protect them.

1972 Buick press kit front cover. Photo courtesy of Buick Heritage Alliance.

LESABRE AND LESABRE CUSTOM

These are big cars—124” wheelbase and 221.9 inches long. The standard engine was a 350 cubic inch V8 with two-barrel carburetor. The LeSabre series was divided into the basic LeSabre and the slightly fancier LeSabre Custom. The latter has chrome moldings on the rocker panels and on the lower rear quarter panel behind the rear wheel opening. The interior door panels and seat upholstery are more detailed and complex on the Custom series. Mechanically, they are the same. All 1972 LeSabres came with variable ratio power

Postcard view of Buick’s 325-acre manufacturing complex in Flint, Michigan, circa 1972. 22,000 employees and 9 million square feet of floor space. Courtesy of Buick Heritage Alliance.

steering, power brakes with front disc brakes, Turbo-Hydramatic 375 automatic transmission, a 25-gallon gas tank, coil springs at all four wheels, deluxe wheel covers, left-hand rear view mirror (passenger side mirror, optional), two-speed windshield wipers and washers, heater and defroster, inside hood release, inside day/ night rearview mirror with vinyl edging, and seat belts for front and rear seats. horsepower with the two-barrel carburetor. A 350 with four-barrel carburetor was optional, and it was rated at 180 horsepower. Above that, a 455 with fourbarrel carburetor was available, but it is doubtful that many were ordered that way, given the sharp increases in the price of gasoline in those days.

In terms of styling and appearance, the bodies were exactly the same as in 1971. The LeSabre grille was a bit simpler, with narrow horizontal lines, and the tail lights were a little less flat than in 1971. As noted above, one sure way to tell a 1972 from a 1971 is to look at the bumpers. The 1972s have a thin, black, rubber strip that runs from one side of the bumper to the other. The 1971s lack this rub strip. Another difference is that the 1972s have no ventilation louvers in the trunk lid. Exit vents were moved to the door lock pillars for 1972—you will notice the little, black, plastic louvers when you open the doors.

Postcard view of Buick Motor Division’s administration building, circa 1972, in Flint, Michigan. Courtesy of Buick Heritage Alliance.

Inside the car, the dashboards are the same as in 1971, with all instruments and controls grouped in front of the driver and housed in a large dash pad.

The most popular LeSabre model was the LeSabre Custom four-door hardtop, with 50,804 built, followed by the LeSabre Custom four-door sedan with 35,296 built. The rare one is the LeSabre Custom convertible with only 2,037 made. There would be no LeSabre convertibles in 1973—only Centurions. It is also interesting to note that if you count up all 1972 LeSabre and LeSabre Custom production (all body styles) and compare that to all 1972 Skylark and Skylark Custom production (all body styles), the Skylarks outsold the LeSabres by about 10,000 cars. My theory on this is that the LeSabres had simply gotten too large for many buyers’ garages and also too large for some drivers (think traditional, older buyers) to feel comfortable maneuvering them in parking lots and other tight spaces.

1972 Buick Facts Book, for Buick salesmen, with all of the specifications and features of each model. Photo courtesy of Buick Heritage Alliance. CENTURION

In its second year, the Centurion series was changed very little from 1971. Grilles and tail lights were slightly different from the LeSabres and from the 1971 Centurions. The 1972 Centurion has a grille with many, short, vertical slats.

Being the more high-performance, full-size Buick, all Centurions were equipped with the 455 cubic inch engine with four-barrel carburetor, rated at 225 horsepower. A highperformance 455 was optional with dual exhausts and other refinements that gave it 260 horsepower on an 8.5 to 1 compression ratio (regular fuel). Both engines came with the TurboHydramatic 400 automatic transmission.

There were three different body styles for the Centurion: Four-door hardtop; two-door hardtop; and convertible.