One of the most radical of the Buick dream cars produced for the GM Motorama was the 1954 Wildcat II.

Credit for the design of the Wildcat II generally goes to the prolific Buick stylist Ned Nickels, working under the direction of General Motors design chief Harley Earl. In one GM press handout, Nickles described the Wildcat II as “an American adventure in tomorrow’s design.” We’ll say. With its radically scalloped front fenders and other unusual features, the Wildcat II is, along with the 1956 Centurion, one of the wildest Buick dream cars of the Motorama era.

Like so many Motorama show cars, the Wildcat II wore a fiberglass body shell, here mounted on a 100-inch wheelbase chassis in support of Buick’s new 322 cubic-inch V8, a Dynaflow automatic transmission, and coil springs on all four corners. A true roadster in every sense of the term, the sports car featured seating for two and no provision for a convertible top.

The Wildcat II (pronounced “Wildcat the second” by the announcers in GM newsreels) went through a number of changes in its career. Originally, it wore “Roto-Static” front wheel covers—that is, the wheel covers were stationary to serve as brake scoops while the wheels rotated (above). A feature also seen on the 1953 Wildcat I, on the Wildcat II these were later replaced with more standard Kelsey-Hayes wire wheels front and rear.

Also, the headlamps were mounted not in the fenders but on the cowl next to the windshield, creating an unusual cavefish look for the front end treatment. A pair of conventional fender headlamps were later installed, but the large right cowl lamp was retained. At one point the Wildcat II was repainted in a metallic lavender, but it was later returned to its original medium blue.

The entire top half of the front end hinged up in clamshell fashion for access to the engine (below). Rated at 220 hp, a 20 hp boost over the production job, the 322 cubic-inch V8 sported four Carter YH sidedraft carburetors (the same carbs used on the six-cylinder Corvette) on a log manifold. At some point after its Motorama career, the Wildcat II was retired to the Sloan Museum in Flint, Michigan. However, a Wildcat II tribute with a modern engine and chassis was created by a private builder. For the 1955 Motorama season, Buick unveiled the somewhat more conventional Wildcat III, and you can see it here.