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Junkyard Gem: 1997 Oldsmobile Eighty-Eight LSS Supercharged

Oldsmobile got terminated by The General in 2005, in part because the marketing suits decided that the first three letters of the marque's name made the cars undesirable to the under-75 set (never mind that 21st-century rappers continue to venerate Oldsmobiles). Not long before the demise of Olds, though, you could buy an Eighty-Eight with the supercharged L67 V6, known as the Luxury Sports Sedan or LSS. These cars are very rare today, but I spotted this '97 in a Denver self-service wrecking yard. These Eaton blowers are now so easy to find in wrecking yards that most of them go unpicked by customers. The going rate for this supercharger is about 50 bucks, because everyone who wants one already has a big hoard of the things. If you have ever wanted to drop a supercharger onto your crapcan race car's engine, now is the time. Performance was respectable for the era, with output of 240 hp and 280 lb-ft. The 3800 was the descendant of the ancient Buick V6, which debuted way back in 1962, so GM had had many decades in which to make it a dependable (though not very smooth-running) powerplant. Yes, you could still buy big ol' sedans with rear drums at the dawn of the 21st century. Did the LSS steal any sales from potential BMW or Mercedes-Benz buyers? Probably not many, though its $27,695 price tag must have looked pretty tempting when compared to that of the much slower $32,960 Lexus ES 300 in 1997. Right now is the best time to make a resolution you'll enjoy sticking with. The reviewers at Popular Mechanics were unable to break the first-year LSS. Related Video: Featured Gallery Junked 1997 Oldsmobile Eighty-Eight LSS View 12 Photos Auto News Buick Economy Cars Classics Sedan supercharger

Buick Encore takes a hit of Mokka to tackle Dakar

There are many vehicles we'd consider taking racing. Even on a cross-country rally as punishing as the Dakar. But a Buick Encore? That's not one that would enter our motorsports-based consciousness. Yet it's basically what General Motors is entering in the South American rally raid this year, and you're looking at it.
Unveiled at the Moscow Motor Show, this rally machine is based on (or at least billed as) an Opel Mokka - the name that GM's European brand applies to the vehicle Americans know as the Encore, Buick's subcompact crossover. Only it's obviously been extensively modified. It's got a ten-inch raised suspension, a 137-gallon fuel tank, carbon-fiber bodywork and... hold on, we're sure we're missing something here. Oh, right: a 6.2-liter V8 kicking out 340 horsepower and 487 pound-feet of torque to all four wheels through a six-speed sequential gearbox.
In other words, this is not the same Encore (or Mokka) you can pick up at your local Buick, Opel or Vauxhall dealership. It's not even close. It's not even recognizable as such, really. It was unveiled alongside a more sedate Opel Mokka Moscow Edition and a slew of other local debuts for the Opel brand that you can read more about in the (translated and original) Russian press release below.

A Buick Regal wagon is coming to America

The signs have all been pointing to the US getting a Buick version of the gorgeous Opel Insignia wagon, and we now have the most concrete evidence yet that the rumors were true. Our spy photographer caught one of the wagons out testing, and it features a number of styling cues that indicate this one is coming to America. The most obvious change is the grille. While the overall shape remains the same, the look of the grille itself is altered. The geometric slats of the Opel- and Holden-badged versions have been exchanged for Buick's trademark waterfall bars. The badge itself is significantly larger, too. Aside from that, a close look reveals subtle changes along the lower edge of the car. The fenders seem to be slightly flared. They're complemented by sideskirts that are rounder and chunkier than that of the normal Insignia wagon. These styling touches also suggest that this Buick variant will take on the psuedo-crossover aesthetic with black plastic body cladding. If this is the case, the Buick Regal wagon could be the high-riding, plastic-clad Regal TourX that's been rumored. We know that General Motors trademarked the TourX name a while back, and Buick wants more crossovers or crossover-esque vehicles since they make up the majority of the brand's sales. It would also be an excellent option to established models such as the Audi A4 Allroad, Volvo V60 Cross Country, and Subaru Outback. Considering the fact that we've seen the Opel Insignia and Holden Commodore revealed already, we expect the Buick versions to be fully revealed sometime this year. Related Video: