1953 Buick Skylark

Built to celebrate Buick's golden anniversary, the 1953 Buick Skylark marked the transition from early-fifties coachwork into factory customized styling. Stylist Ned Nickles dropped the door beltline and opened the rear wheel arches to display dazzling 40-spoke Kelsey-Hayes wire wheels. A chopped windshield and Buick's downward-arching chrome Sweepspear gave the convertible an unmistakably athletic profile before tailfins grew towering. Underneath its sculpted hood hummed Buick's brand-new 322-cubic-inch Fireball overhead-valve V8, generating 188 horsepower through a Twin Turbine Dynaflow automatic transmission. Hand-finished bodywork made this rare convertible an instant luxury benchmark.