Editing Buick (section)

===Sweepspear===
[[File:Skylark-Wiki-Side-View-D.jpg|thumb|Sweepspear on a 1953 [[Buick Skylark]]]]

Another styling cue from the 1940s through the 1970s was the '''Sweepspear''', a curved trim line running almost the length of the car. Introduced as an option on the 1949 [[Buick Roadmaster]] [[Buick Riviera|Riviera]] [[hardtop]] coupe, the original Sweepspear was a chrome-plated steel rub strip which began level over the front wheel, gently curved down across the front fender and door, dove nearly to the rocker panel just ahead of the rear wheel, then flared up and over the rear wheel before leveling off again into a straight run back to the tail light.{{citation needed|date=January 2023}}{{Original research inline|date=January 2023}}

In 1942 all GM vehicles had an appearance upgrade where the trailing edge of the front fender was extended across the front doors that was called "Airfoil" accented by parallel chrome strips on the front and rear fenders on Buick vehicles. In later years the character line of the "Airfoil" feature was accented with a stainless steel strip that evolved into the Buick "Sweepspear" for several decades.<ref name="Kimes 1996">{{cite book|last=Kimes|first=Beverly|title=standard catalog of American Cars 1805–1942 |year=1996 |publisher=Krause publications |pages=161–192|isbn=0-87341-478-0}}</ref>

The "Riviera trim", as it was initially called, was made available on the Roadmaster convertible very late in the '49 model year.<ref name="The Buick 1987"/> It proved so popular that by the 1951 model year, it was made a standard feature on all Buicks.<ref name="The Buick 1987"/> On 1950s models with two-tone paint, the Sweepspear separated the two colors.{{citation needed|date=January 2023}}

Originally stainless steel, the Sweepspear eventually became a vinyl rub strip<ref name="The Buick 1987"/> or simple character line in the sheetmetal, as hinted in some versions of the [[Buick Riviera]], distinct on the 1968–1969 Skylark, and appearing on the 2008 [[Buick Invicta|Invicta]] concept car. Often optional trim was available to reinforce a plain character line in the bodywork.<ref name="The Buick 1987"/>

====Delta fin====
[[File:1959 Buick Electra 225 Riviera Sedan wings.JPG|thumb|Delta Fins on a 1959 Buick Electra 225 Riviera]]

The 1958 Buick was marketed beginning in September 1957, just as the [[space age]] began with the launching of [[Sputnik I]] on October 4 of that year. The "Sweepspear" evolved into the [[Car tailfin|"Delta Fin"]] reminiscent of a [[rocket ship]], which appeared on the all-new appearance for 1959, and was trimmed down in 1960 and removed for 1961.<ref name="flory 50s">{{cite book |last=Flory |first=J. "Kelly" Jr. |title=American Cars, 1946 to 1959; Every Model, Year by Year |year=2008 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-0-7864-3229-5}}</ref>