1989 Buick Riviera: A Longer Restyle Doubles Sales

This record's own dek states that a longer restyle more than doubled sales to 21,189 for 1989, a figure the Owners Association's own table and Wikipedia's own production table agree on, this record's own note calling the two lineages in agreement for the year. This record's own production section adds a separate Gold Package row, 654 cars carrying gold-tint wheels and moldings, its own note adding that the Owners Association does not state a 1989 T-Type count.^1,2

This record's own options section prices a Riviera Appearance Package under code RIV at $205, bundling Platinum Beige Firemist lower accent paint, a body-side stripe and painted aluminum wheels, and requiring specific paint and trim codes; its own note says the Owners Association's production page separately counts 654 "Gold Package" cars but does not state whether that is the same RIV package, so no install count is attached to either row. A Gran Touring Package under code Y56, at $104, bundles a Gran Touring suspension, a 2.97 axle ratio, 15-inch aluminum wheels, a leather-wrapped sport steering wheel and shift handle, fast-ratio power steering, and Eagle ST-4 tires.^3,1

This record's own options section itemizes 24 entries in total, including a $1,230 16-way driver's seat in leather and suede under code AF9, a $550 leather-and-suede bucket-seat upgrade under a second AR9 row (the standard cloth buckets carrying no price under the same code), a $265 keyless entry system under code AVO, and a $925 electric anti-lock brake system under code JL9, each row priced individually by the Owners Association's own transcription of the 1989 order form.³

This record's own specifications section carries an engine entry sourced to the Evolution article rather than the (empty) engines section: a 3.8-litre V-6 at 165 brake horsepower at 4,800 rpm and 210 pound-feet of torque, with an 8.5:1 compression ratio that this record's own note says the Owners Association itself prints as "8:51." The same specifications section gives a 3,364-pound curb weight for the year, sourced to the Owners Association's own weights-and-measures table rather than to the Evolution article.^4,5

This record's own paint table carries 13 colours from the Owners Association's 1989 chart, its own note describing designer accent-paint pairings, most colours paired with Silver, and Mahogany Brown, Arctic White and Black paired instead with Platinum Beige Firemist and matching wheels. Its interiors section carries 15 trims across standard cloth buckets, extra-cost leather-and-suede buckets, and the 16-way driver's leather-and-suede bucket, each in the same five colourways of Blue, Rosewood, Gray, Taupe and Red, every row sourced to the same 1989 color-and-trim chart.⁶

This record's own specifications section carries six further 1989 figures from the Owners Association's weights-and-measures table: a 108.0-inch wheelbase, front and rear track of 59.9 and 59.9 inches, a 198.3-inch overall length, a 71.6-inch width, a 53.5-inch height, and a dual P205/70R15 standard and P215/65R15 optional tire size. This record's own identification, conflicts and unpublished-leads sections are all empty for the year, and its own engines, performance and transmissions sections carry no entries either, leaving the options and specifications sections as this record's own richest sources for 1989.⁵