Is a Buick coming back? GM trademarks Riviera name

By Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY

Is Buick bringing back the Riviera?

The answer is a definitive maybe. It has filed a trademark for the famous name of big, sporty vehicles, GM Inside News reports. But even though it produced a Riviera concept four years ago, it may be that GM is just trying to protect the name for use on a future product, but not one anytime soon.

Buick ended production of its Riviera in November 1998. The model's heyday was in the 1960s. That's a 1963 Silver Arrow concept at left.

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General Motors

The Buick brand has been gaining momentum in recent years with popular entries such as the Enclave and the LaCrosse. As the premium marque continues to fill out its lineup with compact entries like the Encore and the Verano, it might even be able to use a new Riviera to plug a hole in the lineup.


From the 1963-99 model years, the Riviera was a halo coupe car for Buick. Trademarking the Riviera name doesn't necessarily mean GM plans on making a production vehicle or even a concept vehicle for that matter. However, there are some indications that it wants to further expand the Buick lineup — especially to capitalize on growing sales in China, where Buick is one of the largest brands.

Two years ago, Buick told Cars.com that it was considering adding a coupe, convertible and wagon to its lineup.

If those models are still in the cards, it's possible that the coupe/convertible could get the Riviera nod, but we'll just have to wait and see.