Usually, you don’t have the chemical reaction for a process. Two opposition-controlled areas in the suburbs around Damascus were struck by rockets containing the chemical agent sarin. For example, pure water, regardless of its source, always has two hydrogen atoms bonded to one oxygen atom. For example, spinach offers eight times more vitamin C than does iceberg lettuce, and a ruby red grapefruit offers 25 times more vitamin A than a white grapefruit. Buick’s flagship C-body line received a similar makeover for 1991, gaining more-fulsome lines inspired by the ’89 Essence show car, plus plastic front fenders and eight inches in overall length (wheelbase was unchanged). Buick revived a tradition with the addition of portholes to the front fenders of the 2003 Park Avenue Ultra. It was only that year’s restyled Chevy Caprice in Buick dress, built on the same rear-drive B-body chassis from ’77. But the Roadmaster would die after ’96 to make room for more-profitable sport-utility vehicle production at the Arlington, Texas, factory that also built the Caprice. Production eased to some 226,000 for 1983-84, by which time four-speed automatic transmissions had been adopted as a much better bet for improved mileage.

Both carried 3800 V-6s with tuned-port injection and 170 bhp, plus four-speed automatic transaxles with electronic shift control newly integrated with the engine computer. By that point, GM had endured another painful reorganization and numerous plant closings, plus an unprecedented 1992 “palace coup” that summarily ousted chairman Robert Stempel and president Lloyd Reuss after just two years in office. The T Type coupe vanished, Chevy’s familiar 2.8 V-6 ousted Buick’s 3.0 as the step-up engine, and the 3.8 gained 25 horses (for 150 total) via low-friction roller valve lifters, sequential-port injection, and distributorless triple-coil ignition. The ’94s could run close to $27,000, but they also ran with a standard 350 LT1 V-8 from Chevy’s latest Corvette sports car, though in low-stress, 260-bhp tune. Also on hand: standard driver-side airbag, ABS, solar-control windshield glass, and full power assists. Power organization ranked this elderly duo near the top of the industry for initial vehicle quality. Initial engine choices were a 2.5-liter Pontiac four; a new 3.0-liter Buick V-6 (destroked from 3.8); and a 4.3-liter Olds diesel V-6.

In a sense, Buick had long been showing the way to GM’s future. Helping the cause was a thorough 1992 redesign featuring a more rounded and contemporary look, a smoother 3800 V-6, standard driver-side airbag, and useful no-cost extras like power windows and GM’s “PASS-Key” antitheft ignition. Come 1992, it added a supercharged V-6, the only such engine in U.S. The aging front-drive Century was one of Flint’s most profitable assets in the early 1990s. Buick increased quality and added features that customers wanted while keeping the lid on price. In its quest to strengthen its position in the 1990s, in 1991 Buick introduced the first Roadmaster in 35 years. Like Reatta, the ’90s Roadmaster served a purpose, but it was clearly a car of Buick’s past, not its future. The reborn Roadmaster pulled a fair number of customers, all things considered: a best of 85,500 for ’92, 30,000 to 40,000 for 1993-95. Though that wasn’t much compared to the levels of 10 and 20 years before, each sale was almost pure gravy, as the elderly platform and other major components had been paid for long ago. Though LeSabre had no more allure for enthusiasts than a Century or Regal, it offered solid family transport with a modicum of luxury at a fair price, a combination many folks found hard to resist.

In fact, these Buicks bid fair as the fastest cars in the land, able to bound from 0 to 60 in about six seconds. Magazine testers clocked 0-60 in the mid-fives and the quarter-mile in about 14.5 seconds at 95 mph. Car and Driver clocked one at 7.8 seconds 0-60, but pulling power, not sheer acceleration, was the name of this game — as in towing trailers and boats. Sales, of course, were the most important payoff, and Century model-year production remained well above 100,000 for 1990-95. This was achieved with remarkably few changes: a more-orthodox face for ’91, new downpriced Special models for ’92 (recycling yet another familiar Buick name), a new 2.2-liter base four for ’93 (ousting the old Iron Duke at last). While holding on to an old design might seem questionable, Buick couldn’t afford to let this one die, because the Century had come to have great appeal for rental-car companies and other fleet buyers; in fact, they now accounted for the majority of sales. While these uses show the incredible versatility of power drills, their specialty is still boring holes and driving screws; they aren’t perfect substitutes for the tools they’re meant to imitate. In this section, we’ll show you which wall treatments will work best for you.