In 1970, General Motors broke new ground by introducing a series of powerhouse engines, including the Chevelle 454, Pontiac 455, Oldsmobile 455, and Buick 455 V8s – each one delivering a staggering amount of torque.
Tire manufacturers must have been scrambling to find ways to relax their jaw muscles, likely sore from grinning from ear to ear as they watched their products fly off the shelves, selling like hotcakes (pun intended).
Buick, perched at the pinnacle of GM’s “regular car” hierarchy, was hardly absent from the horsepower race. Its Gran Sport line of Skylarks was always ready to challenge the competition.
In 1970, however, Buick shook things up when the GS became a standalone model, packing a 455-cubic-inch V8 under its hood.
With 7.5 liters of big-block V8, the GS 455 earned the fearsome nickname “Hemi Killer,” especially when paired with the optional Stage 1 performance package.
The engine delivered 510 lb-ft of torque and 360 horsepower (691 Nm, 365 PS), making it a formidable contender, even in an era when other automakers were vying for high-horsepower bragging rights.
However, Buick didn’t exactly mass-produce the hard-hitting GS 455. Its high price was a significant deterrent, and anyone looking to flex their muscles at the local drag strip or on the street would likely have been better off with the more affordable LS6 Chevelle.
The 1970 Buick GS came in two basic versions: the standard 350-cubic-inch (5.7-liter) small-block model and the mighty 455. While the 350 version was a straightforward offering, the 455 had several variants.
There were the standard 455 models, available in both hardtop and convertible body styles. Then, there was the Stage 1 455, which was available in both hardtop and convertible forms as well.
But we’re not done yet. Buick also released a special high-performance version of the regular high-performance GS – the GSX. This too was divided into standard and Stage 1 sub-series, with all models available only as hardtops.
Among the convertibles, automatic transmissions were the clear favorite. In fact, out of the 20,100 Buick GS cars produced in its debut year, approximately 17,000 were equipped with automatic transmissions.
Of the 1,419 total convertibles (both GS and GS Stage 1), only 212 came with manual gearboxes – 19 of which had three-speed transmissions.
The Stage 1 convertible is the rarest of them all, with only 232 units produced, including 65 manuals and 167 with the three-speed Turbo Hydra-Matic 400 automatics.
Finding one of these rare cars in survivor condition 54 years later is nothing short of extraordinary.
Currently stashed away in a barn in Schenectady, New York, this car has just under 30,000 miles (roughly 48,000 kilometers) on the clock and retains all its original factory-installed components, including the carburetor and distributor.
Today, it stands as a one-of-one 1970 Buick GS 455 Stage 1 automatic convertible, finished in Gulfstream Blue with a white interior.
However, labeling it a “survivor” is a bit misleading, as raccoons had their way with the car’s interior. The story goes that the original owner purchased it from New Jersey, enjoyed it until around 1974 or 1975, then sold it.
The new owner stored the car outdoors for about four years before placing it in a barn in 1980, where it sat untouched until now. The window sticker shows the last registration expiration in 1981.
Unfortunately, the owner forgot to put the windows up, leading to the raccoon damage that Parker Blubaugh of Backyard Barn Finds documented.
The current owner, an enthusiastic gearhead with a collection of other classic cars, plans to restore this gem. However, it won’t be an easy task.
The front fenders are crumpled, a result of the car’s years of storage, not its time on the road. Normally, restoring such a vehicle wouldn’t be prohibitively expensive, but the collector is committed to using as many original or NOS parts as possible.
Unfortunately, these parts aren’t always easy to find, and when they are, they come at a premium. Then again, buying a new 1970 Buick GS Stage 1 convertible wasn’t exactly cheap.
This particular car sold for $4,800 – about the same price as a well-equipped Chevelle SS 454 LS6, which offered 90 more horsepower, one less cubic inch of displacement, and was generally more common than the GS 455 Stage 1.
