2003 Buick Park Avenue Ultra

In cars as well as fashions, tastes change. What fell out of favor long ago just might make a comeback at some later date.


"Portholes" are the items making a comeback at Buick. Younger consumers won't remember when portholes—originally called "VentiPorts"—were de rigeur on Buicks. Older motorists recall them well, and even fondly. Starting in 1949, a trio of these decorations on each fender of a Buick meant it was the Super. Four of them signified the top-of-the-line Roadmaster.

Visually, the new portholes are rather subtle, accenting rather than overpowering each front fender. On a black body, they look especially striking.

After disappearing completely in the early 1980s, portholes have turned up again on the fender-tops of the supercharged 2003 Park Avenue Ultra—Buick's most posh model. They're not just decorations, either. Three chrome-plated portholes on each fender permit additional air to flow through the engine compartment.


That's not the only styling touch-up for 2003. A new chrome vertical-bar grille features Buick's monochromatic tri-shield emblem, which also appears on the trunk lid. Buick says the grille is a modern interpretation of the one used on the 1938 Y-Job, created by Harley Earl, GM's first design chief. Often considered the first concept car, the Y-Job was one of the most striking designs ever developed by General Motors.


Lower-profile tires are mounted on 17-inch chromed wheels. Front door openings gain bright aluminum sill plates, and Buick's logo is embroidered on all outboard seats. Burled walnut woodgrain decorates the doors, steering wheel, and instrument panel—which features new gauge cluster graphics.