1986 Buick Electra Estate Wagon
1986 Buick Electra Estate Wagon in Home Alone, Movie, 1990
Class: Cars, Wagon — Model origin: 
00:21:09 ![[*]](/res/star.png){kind=small}
Background vehicle
Comments about this vehicle
| Author | Message |
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explorer4x4 ◊ 2006-03-24 18:44 |
Buick Electra Estate? I've never heard of a Buick Electra. The car to the right is a Buick Regal |
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◊ 2006-03-24 18:52 |
The Electra name was used by Buick from 1959 right up until the late 1980s. |
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◊ 2006-03-24 18:53 |
And I guess that it is for the one on the left... |
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◊ 2006-03-24 20:56 |
The model year of the Estate Wagon on the left is 1986-1990 as the third brake light on the tailgate was added during the 1986 model year. From the rear, it's impossible to tell if it's an Electra or a LeSabre, it could be both if it's a 1986-89. In 1990, the model was just called "Estate Wagon" and it used the same grille as the 1981-89 Electra Estate wagon. |
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◊ 2008-02-25 23:17 |
The car to the right is a buick regal, not a LeSabre. |
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◊ 2008-07-24 02:04 |
That IS a Buick LeSabre on the right. It's a 1990 LeSabre, probably a Limited. Regal for 1990 didn't have the chrome strip at the bottom of the tail lights, and the back up lights were on either side of the license plate, not at the bottom as in this picture. I used to think that the Wagon was probably the '87 Electra Estate Wagon from Adventures in Babysitting. |
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◊ 2009-01-02 04:27 |
Yes, that car to the right is indeed a Buick LeSabre. Likely a 1989 or 1990 model from the looks of the taillights and since this is a 1990 movie. The wagon is probably also a 1989-1990. I cannot tell unless I see more of the side/interior. As someone mentioned, these cars added the center brake light in 1986, so its at least a 1986. In 1988 these cars (and all other 1988 GM wagons) added a wide chrome trim strip on the "C" pillars, 1989 brought rear seat shoulder belts and in 1990, they had front door mounted seat belts. |
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◊ 2012-05-21 07:20 |
Wow, extremely tight fit for the wagon in this garage. -- Last edit: 2012-05-21 07:20:39 |
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◊ 2012-08-14 22:06 |
@jettallover - I KNOW! I remember when I saw the movie noticing that! It sure seems like the location vehicle coordinators got a surprise when the pulled the cars into the on-location garage and realized they could not exit the vehicles without shimmying over to the passenger's seat and using that door... THEN to realize that there was no room left for a person to leave the garage via the main doors because of the width of the cars! Funny, because it's not like cars were a lot smaller back when this house and garage were built... you wonder what the garage designer was thinking! |
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◊ 2013-11-30 04:00 |
The Buick Electra was in production from 1959 to 1990. My mom and dad actually had a 1973 model. |
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◊ 2016-05-03 05:37 |
My guess is that the Electra Estate was Kate's car while Peter drove the LeSabre. Too bad we didn't have a scene where Kevin attempted to drive one .gif ";)") |
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◊ 2016-12-12 16:19 |
I have to assume it's a 1990, and they're both brand-new product placement. |
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◊ 2017-08-27 04:15 |
If that is the case, then both of these cars would have been purchased by the McCallisters within only a few months of the film's setting (presuming it takes place in December of '89). Wouldn't be surprising. The family seemed to be quite well-off, so purchasing two brand-new Buicks at the same time would be nothing to them. |
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◊ 2017-08-30 01:39 |
Here are a couple of videos touring the same vehicle: https://youtu.be/DEJEEtswXiQ (Exterior tour) https://youtu.be/12ZvBcF0vtQ (Interior tour) Nice closeup videos showing the McCallister station wagon. Looks like this car would have been about $17,940 back in 1990 which translates to $33,599 in 2017. |
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◊ 2017-08-30 01:47 |
and would probably be an Enclave or Envision.. |
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◊ 2017-09-15 01:43 |
And the equivalent sedan that the family also owned would probably be a LaCrosse or Regal. |
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◊ 2018-07-02 05:09 |
If this is an '86-'89, then it is an Electra Estate. However, if it is in fact a 1990, the Electra name was dropped from the wagon for its final year of production which would simply make this a Buick Estate Wagon. |
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◊ 2018-09-19 14:02 |
Regular Car Reviews just recently did an episode on this car: https://youtu.be/S85_iBhvs7A |
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◊ 2020-04-08 17:19 |
I think this is probably a 1990 Buick Estate Wagon. As a previous poster mentioned, it would make sense that both the McCallister cars are more than likely brand-new models (at the time) for product placement. Because Cadillac never offered a station wagon, the Buick Estate was GM's most expensive and fully equipped entry in the market (which matches that of the McCallister status of being an upper middle class family with that gorgeous home). 1990 was also the final year of the Estate model being based on the Electra sedan as the Electra nameplate was dropped in 1990 after 31 years on the market. The Estate would return in 1991, however, with the all-new Buick Roadmaster Estate wagon that was produced until 1996. The equivalent car today would probably be the current Buick Regal TourX as it is the first station wagon Buick has offered since, or an Enclave if you figure SUVs took over the station wagon market in the years following this film. |
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◊ 2020-04-19 17:27 |
I found another really great video tour of one of these cars. This one really shows all the features: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GO6b5dHoqH4 |
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◊ 2020-10-06 19:28 |
Interesting: I just read the original screenplay for this film and John Hughes wrote that when Kevin looks in the garage to see his parents' cars, they are described as "a Ford wagon and Ford Taurus". I imagine they changed the vehicles to Buicks as they are a bit more upmarket than the Fords, and that matched the economic status of the McCallister family better. I imagine the Ford wagon John Hughes wrote of was probably a Ford LTD Country Squire. |
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◊ 2020-10-06 19:35 |
or GM offered a greater check than Ford to feature the Buick ..  |
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◊ 2023-09-27 01:58 |
Potentially the same car here, if so this could be changed to 1987. |
