became popular with Pontiac ’ s GTO in 1964 , soon Buick , same as Pontiac , fitted their own mid-sized Skylark with high output big blocks . Oldsmobile had their 4-4-2 , Pontiac had their GTO , Chevrolet had their SS , while Buick had their GS , short for Grand Sport . The ultimate Buick came at the end of the decade with the 1970 GSX Stage 1 455 .
Today , muscle car enthusiasts worldwide recognize how fast those Buick GSX muscle cars were and remain today . The main trouble is , production for 1970 totaled a miniscule 678 units , divided between 491 in Saturn Yellow and 187 in Apollo White .
Ray Witt of Dumas , Texas has owned three of the GSX super cars . Although he appreciates all muscle cars , Buicks are his favorites . He has done 16 muscle car restorations , including a 1970 Pontiac Trans Am , a 1969 Opal GT , a 1953 Buick Roadmaster “ woodie ” station wagon , three GSX Stage 1s , and the rest Buick GS models .
A used car dealer today , Ray sold out his Chevrolet , Pontiac , and Buick dealership 13 years ago . He claims to have been “ raised on Buicks .” Like most Buick owners I have met , Ray is very opinionated on the GS and GSX models . When I mentioned that Buick made the GSX in 1971 and 1972 , Ray made sure I realized the 1970 was the “ only true , full package .”
Each GSX came with “ billboard ” tires measuring G60 x 15 – at the time , the largest on any American muscle car . The chromed Rallye wheels measured 15 x 7 and were a special “ WG ” code . The center cap is a red , white and blue Buick crest .
The 1970 GSX is one of those special cars that come along once in a long , long time . The second year saw dilution . Ray says , “ In 1971 or 1972 you could order any piece of the package you wanted , such as stripes .”
Basically , the 1971 and 1972 GSX suffered from decreased horsepower and torque figures and , overall , the GSX was a trim package .
For 1970 , the GSX was the full meal deal . The one caveat to single-mindedness was the choice to two different engines . The base engine was the standard 455 . There just wasn ’ t anything very standard about a big block with 510 lb-ft of torque . Interestingly , the base 455 matched the 455 Stage 1 in torque . Horsepower differed by a slim margin of 10 – 350 versus 360 . Aficionados of the GSX are quick to point out the true horsepower easily topped 400 for both the base 455 and the Stage 1 .
What did the Stage 1 bring to the table ? First was the name itself . Stage 1 was an obvious reference to drag racing , where diggers denoted an increase in power in “ stages .” Buick wisely applied the name to their GSX . No doubt the 455 was right at home on the strip .
Ray explains , “ The compression was the same and the block and heads were identical except they cut the valves larger . The Stage 1 has a different curved distributor , a different camshaft and different jets in the Rochester carburetor .”
According to Ray , the jetting in the four-barrel carburetor was the same from the standard 455 to the Stage 1 455 when backed by a 4-speed manual transmission .
The eight grand hood-mounted tach redlined at 5,000 rpm . The idea was to put the tachometer in line of sight for the driver .
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