Photography by Grant Coxhe Buick Skylark began its run in 1953 to mark the 50th anniversary of Buick. Then in 1961 General Motors introduced a trio of compact cars: the Tempest (Pontiac), F-85 (Olds), and the Skylark (Buick) that ran for several years through 1963. Then in 1964 the Skylark, because of its success, became its own line, which brings us to the 1966 Buick Skylark belonging to Steve and Faye Mitchell out of Oklahoma that was oh-so neatly put together by Kyle Gambrell at Laid Back Recreations (LBR) in McLoud, Oklahoma.
There were three generations of Buick Skylarks that were produced from 1964-1979. The 1966 Buick Skylark that we will be looking at here is a first-gen Skylark that ran from 1964-1967, the second-gen ran from 1968-1972, and the third-gen ran from 1973-1979. The 1966 Buick Skylark belonging to the Mitchells was an impulse purchase while attending a Goodguys event about seven years back. They purchased it from two brothers who had inherited it from their mother who had purchased the car new while in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Steve will tell you that the car was 99 percent original and came with its original 340ci Wildcat 375 V-8, the Super Turbine 300 transmission (abbreviated ST-300 was a two-speed automatic), the bench seat (now swapped out), and a column shift (also swapped out). The basic V-8 option motor was 300 inches from an iron block equipped with aluminum heads and a Rochester two-barrel carb that produced a mild-mannered 210 hp. There was a high-performance version with 11:1 compression and a four-barrel carb that generated 250 hp. There was also a very popular option in the Hurst four-speed shifter (long throw version).
Steve, while very happy with the car as a weekend fun ride, hadn’t planned on changing much until that one fateful morning. He went outside to find the clearcoat paint had begun to peel. Realizing this wasn’t going to work, he went to Gambrell at LBR as they had worked together on an earlier project. Initially Steve wanted to repaint the Buick Skylark in the same color. When it came time for Gambrell to sand off the old paint he was impressed with the amazing condition the original sheetmetal was in and he told Steve that the car could easily be painted in black. And then the project snowballed from there. What started out as a color change to black quickly morphed into an interior color change from dark blue to “lipstick” red leather, and, of course, this was the “trip wire” that led to the modifications to the suspension and powertrain. It was on!
The frame and basic chassis is stock with the following improvements. A pair of Wilwood Pro 2-inch drop spindles that serve as the “home” for Wilwood four-piston Dynalite calipers with drilled-and-slotted 13-inch rotors in both the front and rear, a Wilwood master cylinder, and continuing from front to back the RideTech single-adjustable coilover shocks. Steering comes by way of a Borgeson power steering box and an ididit tilt steering column brought to assistance through a Budnik steering wheel. The rear suspension is based on a Moser 12-bolt rear furnished with 3.73 Posi gears and from here a UMI (PN 401516-B) upper and lower control arms system for the GM A-body platform. You will also find Hotchkis sway bars front and rear.
It should be noted before die hard Buick fans “faint” when they learn the original powerplant was offed in favor of an LS that the original V-8 was donated by Steve to another Buick owner and the original V-8 now resides within a 1966 Buick Skylark. Power comes by way of an LS1 with Billet Specialties valve covers, 1-7/8-inch stainless steel headers networked to 3-inch mandrel-bent exhaust pipes, and a pair of Flowmaster mufflers. The engine is dressed with a Vintage Air Front Runner serpentine belt system while the engine compartment is painted in a satin black finish by LBR. The overdrive tranny is the ubiquitous 4L60E that’s run through the gears by a Lokar floor-mounted shifter.
The 1966 Buick Skylark is stock sheetmetal from front to back with a color change to black. LBR used their custom mix of BASF Glasurit black over their metal- and bodywork while this beauty runs on a set of Budnik Knife wheels measuring 19×8 and 19×9, wrapped with Sumitomo HTR (High Technology Radials) ZIII 245/40R19 and HTR ZIII 275/35R19 rubber.
There’s no questioning that the black exterior allows the bright red interior to pop—and vice versa. LBR is credited for assembling the interior while Ciadella rounded up a pair of 1965 Chevy Impala bucket seats and stitched them in red to match the door panels. There’s also red weave carpeting, matching the original loop style, to match the front buckets while the stock rear bench seat is also covered in red leather. Buick red lap belts are found in use on both the front and rear seating. Further complementing the interior is the use of a Vintage Air A/C system with the controls mounted to the factory dash that also includes Speedhut gauges, which includes a GPS-activated odometer/speedometer.
It was during the mid ’60s that Detroit produced some great-looking muscle cars that have withstood the test of time. This 1966 Buick Skylark is without question an outstanding example.