Buick Estate Wagon front and rear side marker bulbs utilize sizes 194, 194NA, 97, 168, and 1157 depending on location and model variation. The replacement chart covers 1970 through 1983 production years with corresponding bulb size specifications.
The year-by-year compatibility chart below provides a quick reference to verify the correct bulb size for your vehicle.
The 194 and 194NA bulbs are the most frequently specified sizes across the Buick Estate Wagon's front and rear side marker positions, covering the majority of model years from 1970 through 1983. Both are T10 miniature wedge bulbs rated at 12V and 3.78W under the ANSI standard.
The 194NA differs from the standard 194 solely in its natural amber glass construction. Because federal and Canadian regulations required amber front side markers, the 194NA was specified for the front position on the Buick Estate Wagon across the 1976-1982 model years, while the optically clear 194 was used in years outside that range.
The T10 wedge base shared by the 194 and 194NA means the two bulbs are physically interchangeable in terms of socket fitment. However, substituting a clear 194 for a 194NA in a front side marker position would remove the amber coloring provided by the glass envelope, which in those applications was integral to producing the required amber output.
The 168 bulb is also a T10 miniature wedge type and is therefore socket-compatible with the 194 and 194NA. It operates at 12V but draws 4.9W, making it slightly higher in wattage than the 194 series at 3.78W.
The 168 bulb was specified for the rear side marker on the Buick Estate Wagon for the 1977 and 1982 model years, while the 194 was used in the rear position for all other years in the dataset. Despite sharing the same T10 wedge socket, the wattage difference between the 168 and 194 means they are not identical replacements.
The 1971 Buick Estate Wagon stands apart from all other model years in the dataset by using different bulb types in both marker positions. The front used the 97 and the rear used the 1157, neither of which shares a socket type with the T10 wedge bulbs used in every other year.
The 97 bulb specified for the 1971 front side marker uses a BA15s single-contact bayonet base and is rated at 12V and 13W. It is described as a variant of the 1156 bulb, though it draws significantly more wattage than the T10 wedge bulbs used in surrounding model years.
The 1157 bulb specified for the 1971 rear side marker uses a BAY15d dual-contact bayonet base and carries a dual-filament rating of 12V at 21W and 5W. The BAY15d base is offset-pin, distinguishing it from the single-filament BA15s base of the 97 bulb, and the two are not interchangeable.
Because the 1971 model year uses bayonet-base bulbs in both marker positions while all other years in the dataset use wedge-base bulbs, the sockets in a 1971 Estate Wagon are physically incompatible with the bulbs specified for any other year in the dataset without modification.
All bulb sizes listed across both marker positions for the Buick Estate Wagon conform to ANSI standards recognized in both the United States and Canada, indicating standardized electrical and mechanical specifications across the full range of bulbs in the dataset.