The Buick Sail sedan is essentially a rebadged second-generation Opel Corsa wagon. The Shanghai-GM joint venture manufactured it in China from 2001 to 2004, alongside the Buick Sail S-RV, which was based on the Opel Corsa wagon. In 2005, General Motors transformed the Buick Sail into the Chevrolet Sail. At that time, GM decided to move the Buick brand upmarket and introduce Chevrolet for the lower end.
White Plates
Beijing, Hangzhou, and Shenzhen only issued white license plates for passenger cars in 2002 and 2003 as part of an experiment where citizens could create their own alphabetical/numerical combinations.
The experiment ended after citizens got too creative, choosing combinations like “sex,” “CIA,” “FBI,” and the infamous “USA-911,” which appeared on a Beijing car shortly after the September 11 attacks. Following the uproar, authorities canceled the experiment but allowed owners to keep the non-offensive plates. The Sail has WLJ-168, a combination without any apparent meaning.
Specifications
The Buick Sail sedan came with three Opel-sourced four-cylinder petrol engines: 1.2, 1.4, or 1.6, paired with either a five-speed manual or a five-speed automatic.
The silver sedan in the photos is an SLX AT, with a 1.6-liter engine and an automatic transmission. The output of the engine was 88 hp and 128 Nm. The price in 2002 was 98.800 yuan.
Interior
The interior was in top shape too, with beige faux-leather seats, a black steering wheel, classy wood trim on the center stack, and a relatively modern audio system. The keys were in the keyhole. I was tempted for a moment. I really wanted to take a test drive! Note the seat belt situation. Chinese drivers don’t like the beeping of the seat belt warning system. This is an easy fix.
The rear compartment with a cover on the bench, a Doraemon hand fan, and a set of gloves. The Sail sedan was quite specious in the back.
Early cars of the joint venture had these cool SHANGHAI GM badges in English. Later on, the Chinese government launched a new law requiring car makers to use Chinese-language badges.
The Sail badge in a funky font.
The Buick Sail was a super popular car in the early 2000s. The sedan version was also a common taxi in smaller cities. The Chevrolet version was less popular, the brand was not as well known as Buick, and by that time, the original Sail was getting a bit old.
The Shanghai-GM Buick Sail sedan with rare white license plates. The Sail is very rare nowadays, especially in the big cities, where emissions regulations are killing older cars. But many more survive in smaller towns. Let’s hope this pretty silver Sail is still around somewhere in China.