The 1968 Buick Grand Sport, or GS, saw numerous styling changes
in 1968. The new car featured a shorter wheelbase, long hood, short
deck, and an entirely new styling package. A new smaller V8 was
offered which increased the 350 cubic inch horsepower to 280. For
the Buick buyer who had performance on their mind there was the
400 cid option which featured 245hp and a tire frying 440 ft/lbs
of torque. Transmission choices were limited to three speed automatic
or a three or four speed standard transmission.
The real story for 1968 was the introduction of a little know package
called the "Stage 1". It was a dealer installed option
that turned the Buick GS into a true quarter mile hero and was a
sign of things to come for Buick enthusiasts. The Stage 1 package
included a hotter camshaft, functional ram-air,11.0:1 compression,
upgraded valve springs, modified Quadrajet carb, 3.64:1 positraction
axle, and a reworked TH-400 transmission that had higher shift points
and firmer engagements. Stage 1 cars also had heavy-duty Rallye
suspension and power disc bakes.The special package knocked off
nearly 1 second in the quarter mile and added nearly 50 hp over
the base 400. Not suprisingly, Stage 1 Buick's are highly collectable
today.
